A perilous journey aboard a runaway train through the Himalayan mountains. Adventurous riders push deep into the lair of the feared yeti, guardian of the forbidden mountain. En route, they encounter torn tracks, spiral backwards through the fog into an ice cavern and dart into and out of the mountain in a high-speed adventure. Mountain peak: At just under 200 feet, one of 18 mountains created by Disney Imagineers at Disney parks worldwide. Chilling thrills: A careening adventure including an 80-foot drop, plus frightening encounters with the mystical yeti. Length: Nearly a mile of track as riders encounter harrowing twists, tight turns and drops. Ride vehicle: Modeled after an aging, steam-engine tea train; 34 passengers per train. Yeti, Guardian of the Mountain: The mammoth-sized Audio-Animatronics yeti has a potential thrust, in all of its hydraulic cylinders combined, of slightly over 259,000 pounds force -- potentially more instantaneous power than a 747-400 airliner. Forced perspective: To create the sense of an enormous mountain range, Imagineers painted a "mural" of shadows across the face of the mountains. The range, glaciers and valleys is a canvas of rockwork, carvings and painting creating a forced perspective where closer-in objects have a massive look while appliqués trick the eye into perceiving far off objects. Bringing the Himalayan environment to Florida: More than 900 bamboo plants, 10 species of trees and 110 species of shrubs are being nurtured and planted to re-create the lowlands surrounding Mount Everest. Steelwork: 1,800 tons of steel were used in the mountain structure. That is about six times the amount of steel used in a traditional office building of this size. Mountain make-up: The mountain is crafted with more than 3,000 pre-fabricated "chips" created from 25,000 individually computer-molded pieces of steel. Color palette: 2,000 gallons of stain and paint were used on the rockwork and throughout the village. The color scheme has ritual meaning to the Himalayan culture. Artisans at work: Artists from Imagineering used hammers, chainsaws and blowtorches to "age" wood and buildings in the village, giving them the appearance of being longstanding parts of the landscape. In the Himalayan regions, villagers commonly preserve yak dung and dry it out on village walls. They later use the hardened material as fuel in their homes. Disney Imagineers recreated the look of these walls in the Serka Zong village area. Authentic detail: Some 2,000 handcrafted items from Asia are evident in the props, cabinetry and architectural ornamentation. Height restriction: 44 inches. Seating: 17 rows of seating two abreast. Restraint: Lap bar. Disney's FASTPASS: Expedition Everest features Disney's FASTPASS, the innovative system which allows guests, at no additional charge, to avoid lengthy waiting in line.
Great details. The trains were supposed to shoot off steam when entering the loading area but it never worked properly so they turned it off.
I have seen this working sporadically and it is a pretty cool affect. Does anyone know what happened to the bird at the top of the lift hill?
