“You know, Nature’s Wonderland is awful pretty, but sometimes she can be a mighty rugged place to live. All they want to do is lay around and scratch and fish and swim… that is when they ain’t sleepin’. “Ya know, bears are one of the most playful animals there is. No tellin’ how long she’s gonna last.īear Country, not to be confused with Bear Country “We’re comin’ into Bear Country now, folks, and, while we’re crossin’ the old trestle, ya gotta sit real still. Them other two falls they call the Twin Sisters-reckon that’s cause they’re always babblin’. Yuh don’t hafta worry though… unless the wind changes. “If yuh’ve never gone beneath a waterfall before, then get set, cause we’re comin’ up on Big Thunder, the biggest falls in all these here parts. Them little marmots over the tunnel must be a-whistlin’ to all you pretty gals. Yes, sir, they’re really busy as a… well, busy as a beaver. Looks like the beavers are building another dam. “As we come out of this first tunnel, we’ll be entering Beaver Valley. Photo by Marion Caswell, 1976, courtesy Dennis Caswell

Yer apt to see a whole lotta wildlife, so… keep a real sharp hunter’s eye. Now, beyond these hills lies Nature’s Wonderland. And, uh, no smokin’ please, ’cause we don’t want to start a forest fire. As we head for the wilderness, a couple of suggestions: please stay seated at all times, and keep yer hands and arms inside the train. “Howdy, folks! Welcome to the little minin’ town of Rainbow Ridge, the gateway to Nature’s Wonderland. When your train pulls out of the station, an old miner begins a recorded narration:

Or sit on the jump seat when the ride attendant closes the ore car door. Take a seat on one of the benches facing each other in your bright yellow ore car. Colorful, glowing waterfalls inside Rainbow Caverns.Geysers shooting water high into the desert air.Devil’s Paint Pots-bubbling pots of mud in all kinds of colors.Balancing rocks that may just lose their balance as your train car passes by.Saguaro cacti that look strangely human.Brown bears swimming and resting-and even one scratching his back on a tree.Mighty waterfalls cascading off Cascade Peak.Inspired by Disney’s True-Life Adventure nature movies of the 1950s, Nature’s Wonderland is home to more than two-hundred lifelike, animated mammals, reptiles, and birds.Īs your train travels through Bear Country, Olympic Elk, Beaver Valley, the Living Desert, and Rainbow Caverns, you will see: As you wait to board the train, listen to the sounds emanating from the buildings, such as the music from the Last Chance Saloon and the screams from the dentist’s office above it. The loading platform for the Mine Train Through Nature’s Wonderland is in the Western mining town of Rainbow Ridge.

Welcome to a great attraction in the tradition of the Jungle Cruise-only this time it’s the environment and animals of North American wilderness areas instead of those of the world’s jungles.

Calico mine ride