Uploaded March 2013 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster at The Magic Kingdom, Walt
Disney World
The Wildest Ride in the Wilderness
Dash in and out of desert caverns and rumble through a haunted mine aboard a speeding train.
Amid rugged bedrock and desert cactus, venture inside a nearly 200-foot mountain to the Big Thunder Mining Company, established in the early days of America's Gold Rush. Traipse down into an abandoned mine shaft and discover a mysterious 5-car locomotive waiting to take you on a journey inside an abandoned shaft.
Hang Onto Your Hats!
Hurl forward into the darkness of the tunnel as the train's wheels chug back and forth across a rickety track. Swoop around sharp turns and dip and drop into canyons and caves, darting through the ghost town of Tumbleweed.
Peel under a booming waterfall, past rock formations, and dodge a rumbling boulder from an inexplicable landslide. Along your adventure, glimpse the remnants of a flash flood and behold a bevy of local critters—including bats, opossum and a goat—before hastily making your way back to the safety of the railroad station.
The Big Thunder Mountain Legend
Legend has it that a supernatural force dwells within the mountain. When gold was first discovered in the 1850s, a mining company was established. But soon, eerie things began to occur. Miners heard ghostly sounds, cave-ins became frequent and equipment mysteriously failed. Trains would take off and race through the mine and around the mountain driverless! Word got out that the mine was haunted and Big Thunder became another ghost town.
Years later, when eyewitness accounts had faded into folklore, new prospectors resurrected the Mining Company and began blasting into the spooky mountain once again. But as the new settlers became aware, some legends turn out to be true.
Location: Magic Kingdom
Big Thunder Mountain Railroad roller coaster at The Magic Kingdom, Walt
Disney World
The Wildest Ride in the Wilderness
Dash in and out of desert caverns and rumble through a haunted mine aboard a speeding train.
Amid rugged bedrock and desert cactus, venture inside a nearly 200-foot mountain to the Big Thunder Mining Company, established in the early days of America's Gold Rush. Traipse down into an abandoned mine shaft and discover a mysterious 5-car locomotive waiting to take you on a journey inside an abandoned shaft.
Hang Onto Your Hats!
Hurl forward into the darkness of the tunnel as the train's wheels chug back and forth across a rickety track. Swoop around sharp turns and dip and drop into canyons and caves, darting through the ghost town of Tumbleweed.
Peel under a booming waterfall, past rock formations, and dodge a rumbling boulder from an inexplicable landslide. Along your adventure, glimpse the remnants of a flash flood and behold a bevy of local critters—including bats, opossum and a goat—before hastily making your way back to the safety of the railroad station.
The Big Thunder Mountain Legend
Legend has it that a supernatural force dwells within the mountain. When gold was first discovered in the 1850s, a mining company was established. But soon, eerie things began to occur. Miners heard ghostly sounds, cave-ins became frequent and equipment mysteriously failed. Trains would take off and race through the mine and around the mountain driverless! Word got out that the mine was haunted and Big Thunder became another ghost town.
Years later, when eyewitness accounts had faded into folklore, new prospectors resurrected the Mining Company and began blasting into the spooky mountain once again. But as the new settlers became aware, some legends turn out to be true.
Location: Magic Kingdom
