17 Hidden Secrets on Expedition Everest at Disney's Animal Kingdom
By Nick Sim, Thursday, March 20, 2014 15:2610. Ye-Tea
Look out for cleverly-named "Ye-Tea", a special blend produced by the Royal Anandpur Tea Company, on show in a cabinet in Tashi's Trek and Tongba Shop.
9. The yeti footprint
In the museum, look out for a reproduction of Eric Shipton's infamous yeti footprint picture, taken in 1951. The yeti print is said to be 13 inches high by 8 inches wide.
8. A worrying precedent
Keep your eyes peeled for a tent on the left-hand-side of the queue line. Its shredded remains and damaged camping equipment do not bode well!
7. Steaming along
Take a close look at Expedition Everest's trains. They are themed after aging steam-powered tea trains. Vents under the station are used to release steam when the train enters the loading platform to add to the illusion.
6. Just tall enough
At 199 feet tall Expedition Everest is the tallest of Walt Disney World's faux mountains. It is just below the Federal Aviation Authority's 200-foot limit, which would require it to have a flashing red light on its peak.
5. Not so tall
Despite its extreme height, Expedition Everest is not - as commonly claimed - the tallest mountain in Florida. Walton Count's Britton Hill tops it, at 345 feet above sea level, whereas Expedition Everest's peak sits at 320 feet above sea level.
4. A steel beast
The Forbidden Mountain was created using 5,000 tons of structural steel and 10,000 tons of concrete. A rigid steel structure holds the mountain in place. More than 2,000 gallons of stain and paint were used on the mountain's rockwork and the buildings in the village.
3. A complex creation
The mountain was crafted using more than 3,000 pre-fabricated steel "chips".
2. Forwards and backwards
Two key sequences in Expedition Everest see the trains switch from travelling forwards to backwards, and vice-versa. This achieved by using two track switches, which weigh 200,000 pounds each. Computers are used to trigger the switches, which rotate into the required position within six seconds.
1. The Disco Yeti
It's not a secret to Disney experts, but some guests will be unaware that the Yeti animatronic that is sighted on Expedition Everest was originally much more advanced in his movements. A few months after the ride opened, the concrete foundation on which the Yeti stands cracked, and his full range of movements was put to an end. Instead, a disco-style strobe light now flashes behind him to give the impression that he is moving.
The yeti was the most ambitious audio-animatronic figure ever built by Disney's Imagineers. It stands at 22 feet tall, and originally featured movement controlled by 10 actuators. It was able to move five feet horizontally and two feet vertically in its original guise.
If I remember correctly, the Yeti also used to be white. I heard that, because of the way the ride was constructed, they can't reach him to fix the animatronics or clean him. I often don't even see him the first time I ride anymore because he's so dirty. Of course, this gives me a good excuse to ride more than once. This is, by far, one of my favorite queue lines.
False, the yeti was never white, she is purposefully brown. The yeti that is white is at the Matterhorn in Disneyland. The number 1 secret is false as well.
How is #1 false? Don't just claim it's false and leave it at that.
We are Disney AP and went to the AP exclusive weekend for the ride. It used to move and it was very cool. The following year, we noticed it didn't move. I've read numerous articles regarding how they disabled it because it shaking everything apart.
First of all, the concrete foundation is not cracked. That is ludicrous and dangerous. If it were true, they would've had to completely revamp the ride. You want to know what I used to say to guests when they came asking questions? She has a broken back, she needs neck surgery, her arm is broken.. etc. Since all sort of "magic" has been killed here, do you really want to know? There was an air leak into the hydraulics. Bam. Broken back causing a dislocated arm that can no longer move. No broken concrete or "shaking" things around. Nope she can't move. And to fix her? They would have to remove the exterior of the ride and the ride track. Until they find a way to avoid that, she will never move again.
First of all, the concrete foundation is not cracked. That is ludicrous and dangerous. If it were true, they would've had to completely revamp the ride. You want to know what I used to say to guests when they came asking questions? She has a broken back, she needs neck surgery, her arm is broken.. etc. Since all sort of "magic" has been killed here, do you really want to know? There was an air leak into the hydraulics. Bam. Broken back causing a dislocated arm that can no longer move. No broken concrete or "shaking" things around. Nope she can't move. And to fix her? They would have to remove the exterior of the ride and the ride track. Until they find a way to avoid that, she will never move again.
The yeti has its own foundation which is not part of the rides track or foundation. It is very possible for it to have cacked from stress and still be safe as long as what caused the crack is no longer being done. Funny thing people dont realize is how they claim they cant get up to the Yeti to fix it yet there is a Disco ball that was added afterwards right behind the Yeti so evidently they got up there for that. And all Animatronics require maintenance so I find it hard to believe Disney built it in there with no way to get to it to repair the thing. Makes the cracked foundation excuse sound that much more plausible.
you are correct. In the very beginning, the yet he was white. I was a cast member at the time of opening and we had a ride through with the lights on. And many times riding it after that, it was a white up until a few years ago.
If you were in fact a cast member, you would know she has always been brown. I worked there as an attractions cast member, I worked there with the people who opened the attraction, and I know every nook and cranny of that mountain. Why would the Imagineers build the yeti white then turn around and make her brown? That's ludicrous. If you view footage of the attraction's development and opening, what color is she? Brown.
Linds I think you dont know nearly what you think you do. Want me to send you the vacation planning DVD from the year the ride opened? Because they show this gigantic white yeti swinging its arm down at the Everest cars. It was certainly a white yeti plain as day in that video. ANd a few videos after as well.
this is a little late to the party(just found out about this site this year{2017}) but i believe linds is correct, albeit very abrasive, about the color of the yeti
if you google expedition everest yeti moving 2006, and click the machinedesign(dot)com link they have a picture of the yeti there
To the guy that thinks it's a "ludicrous" thought that the foundation that the support that holds the yeti cracked, you're an idiot. The mountain and ride system were designed independently of the Yeti's system, causing the problem described in the article. This is why the yeti no longer moves, when the yeti was attached to the mountain, the yeti shook the mountain too much.
I thoroughly enjoy Theme Park Tourist and its articles. I was also a longtime cast member at Disneyland and was lucky enough to see the yeti when it worked. Such a scary and cool figure! I offer one little tip to the author. "Queue" and "line" mean the same thing. You can simply say "the queue" or "the line." Saying "the queue line" is just redundant. ☺️
The Yeti and mountain were never connected or touched in any way. The Yeti had its own independent structure from the beginning of design.
