Seven Dwarfs Mine Train fun facts and details

Apr 30, 2014 in "Fantasyland"

Posted: Wednesday April 30, 2014 1:08pm EDT by WDWMAGIC Staff

Disney has just released a whole host of fun facts and details about the upcoming Seven Dwarfs Mine Train, in the Enchanted Forest of New Fantasyland.

Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is almost completely “on stage.” With its location in the middle of New Fantasyland, guests aboard the rockin’ coaster are afforded amazing views from all angles.

  • The footprints of forest creatures, large and small, and the impressions of sticks, stones and acorns are embedded in the dirt path that meanders through the Enchanted Forest, leading to the attraction.

  • The Dwarfs cottage is a meticulously detailed representation of the cozy home seen in the classic film, down to the wisteria vine and birdhouse at the front door.

  • At the first interactive station in the attraction queue, Doc’s note explains the jewel washing game. As the jewels flow by in a wooden trough, or sluice, guests touch and drag them into a tray on the side of the sluice, matching them by color and shape. The trough is about 15 feet long and is accessible from both sides.

  • At the third interactive station in the queue, “Vault” is carved into the wooden crosspiece, or lintel, above the doorway. This is a reference to the scene in the film where Dopey opens the vault and throws in a bag of gems, then locks the door with a key. For safekeeping, Dopey hangs the key to the vault on a peg next to the door. The key hangs on a peg next to the entrance to the vault in the queue as well.

  • The figures of Grumpy, Doc, Bashful, Sleepy, and Happy, seen in the cottage near the end of the attraction, originally appeared in Snow White’s Scary Adventure, a Magic Kingdom attraction now the site of Princess Fairytale Hall. The figures of Snow White, Dopey and Sneezy, in the cottage scene, were created for this attraction.

  • The two vultures perched on the jib crane near the mine entrance are styled after the vultures in the film and originally appeared in the Snow White’s Scary Adventure attraction.

  • The individual mine cars are designed to reflect similar vehicles that appear in the film, handmade of wood by the Dwarfs, shaped with an ax, and used to haul rocks and jewels. Hand-hammered metal bands and nails are used to bind the wood. In the film, the mine cars sit in a cradle that allows them to be tipped to unload their contents. Here, the cradle design allows the cars to swing back and forth as they carry riders along the winding track.

  • The innovative, patented ride system for the Seven Dwarfs Mine Train is an original design developed at Walt Disney Imagineering. It features five-car trains designed to swing independently from side to side as they move along the track. This newly patented design provides a one-of-a-kind ride experience.

  • Next to Doc’s workstation in the mine, the carved wooden clock is a replica of the one seen in the film with the figures of two miners striking an anvil. As in the film, that motion signals the start of the beloved song, “Heigh-Ho.”

  • At the jewel washing station, a melody from the classic film can be created by moving from spigot to spigot. There are 12 spigots, corresponding to the notes of the musical scale.

  • The jewels seen throughout the mine come in three different sizes and six different colors: red, green, amber, purple, blue and clear.

  • The shadows of the Dwarfs marching homeward along the track on the lift inside of the mine were rotoscoped from the scene in the original film where the Dwarfs march across a log bridge, singing “…home from work we go.” (Rotoscoping is a technique where the movements of a figure in original live or animated footage are copied, or traced, frame-by-frame).

  • At the top of the second lift, guests have a brief moment to enjoy an inspiring view across Fantasyland to Belle’s cottage, Beast’s Castle above Be Our Guest Restaurant, and beyond. Then, the track drops precipitously, passing under a trestle and looping around the mountain crossing over the same trestle. The vehicle picks up speed as it careens down the mountain, twisting and turning, with its cars swinging back and forth. At the foot of the mountain, the mine train loops back to cross a pool at the bottom of a waterfall.

  • In the original tale by the Brothers Grimm, the Dwarfs were unnamed. When Walt Disney and his animators decided to name them to correspond with their character, scores of names were rejected including: Wheezy, Jumpy, Baldy, Hickey, Sniffy, Stuffy, Burpy, Tubby, Shorty, Deafy and Dizzy.

  • In the last view of the cottage, around the corner of the far wall, the Wicked Queen can be seen in her disguise as an old hag watching Snow White and the Dwarfs through a cottage window. She turns toward the train as it passes, and cackles wickedly.
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jay_londonJun 13, 2001

oh next time you go take a look its great views. Go up to the california grill but as you exit the lift turn left towards the rest rooms and the door out to the walk way is round there. Jay

Mr LightbeerJun 13, 2001

Now that wasn't so hard was it ? I'll give you a more in depth reply soon.I'm really busy at the moment. Now for another new name wdwcritic no longer suits you.

ArielJun 13, 2001

Thanks WDW Critic! That was really great...Sorry about your dog too. I am sure that was very hard.

lileonardJun 13, 2001

Ive only been to the contemperary a few times to eat, what does the walkway on top look like? just wondering?

wdw criticJun 13, 2001

hey tramp, while I'm at the first aid station I can slip into the gerber place to change that depends diaper,, thanks about thunder,,,I was just looking at his grave in the backyard, buried him in his favorite spot,,,,he was a great dog,,,,,life goes on

TrampJun 12, 2001

Good job critic! ;) But please, go to the First Aid station and change that diaper...ok? LOL :):) By the way, the First Aid station near the Crystal Palace is a real "cool" place to get out of the heat and pick up a few bandaides for those blisters....OUCH! :( Sorry to hear about the pooch! Like losing a family member:( :(

wdw criticJun 12, 2001

thanks jay-london,it's a sad ritual all pet owners unfortunately have to go through,,,, now for mr. lightbeers challenge, keep in mind this is not in any order of importance: 1.chicken fingers anywhere in the world 2.cruising the waters in a pontoon boat,those water taxis keep cutting me off!! 3.sitting on the poly beach at night listening to the train whistle in the distance,watching the monorails, the contemporary and the grand floridian lit up and then the fireworks start,,,, then watching this couple on their honeymoon... 4.the walkway on top of the contemporary,especially at night 5. fish and chips, was in southhampton and london,yum,great with malt vinegar 6.staying in ft. wilderness 7.hoop de do revue,chicken is a little salty,the show is great 8.o'hanas,shrimp the size of small rats 9.whispering canyon cafe, waiters are a hoot 10.wilderness lodge,2nd best lobby in the world,great xmas tree 11.grand floridian,best lobby in the world 12.cont. tower rooms facing the mk,sit out on the balcony sipping a cold guinness at night 13. the old poly pool 14. the poly,yeaI know I criticized the decor but I like the landscaping 15.haunted mansion,could use more high tech effects, imo 16.pirates of the caribbean 17.carousel of progress,like the old show better 18.main street at night,but too many merchandise shops,imo 19.monorails 20. columbia harbor house 21.port orleans 22. the coffee bar next to the kona cafe,desserts are fantastic 23.steak and kidney pie 24.london,greatest city in the world 25.english pubs 26.that warm feeling looking at the castle at night,oh crap, no pun intended,need to go change that diaper....... now about that tree in the mk, one foot to the left would be perfect,, and that muffin was short one raisin!!! I'm still looking for that rust free zone! See, I told you there are some good things in mouseland,you guys were'nt reading between the lines!!

jay_londonJun 12, 2001

Sorry to hear of the sad loss of your lab I know from experience how sad these times are. jay

wdw criticJun 12, 2001

lightbeer, you ole bloke!!! what took you so long to get into the newest "row" as you Brits say, you're slowing down ole man. But its good to hear from you!!!Nice to see the posts from people who love to hate me. I was beginning to feel left out. I accept your challenge and I PROMISE to be fair, balanced and not so sarcastic,but just a little bit. But, there is one problem. There is sadness in the house tonite. I had to put my black lab to sleep today, he was 13 and well, it was time to say goodbye so I'm really not up to the task tonite. His name was thunder and now it is thundering and raining,he's probably up there causing all this. I see you are from liverpool,beatles and all that. True story: I graduated from columbia high in decatur,georgia in 1970. guess who was in my phys ed class, you guys call him MDC as in Mark David Chapman,as in the creep who shot John Lennon, actually ate lunch with him a few times in the cafeteria, he's a strange duck. I also met Allan Williams, the Beatles manager before Epstein,very interesting to talk to. Would really enjoy coming to liverpool to see all the beatles sites,maybe some day. Well, got to go, I will make a list tonite of all things good about wdw,yes, there are some good things.

ArielJun 11, 2001

I agree with Tramp on this one. I think the best thing to do is ignore his posts. It's so obvious he's only here to cause trouble, not post valid criticism. Why let him upset us? We like this board - no wait - we love it!! We like the topics and each other (I hope) and if he doesn't like it, then he can simply go away. We have too much fun, so we shouldn't let him spoil it :)

wdwmagicJun 11, 2001

Tramp - u got a personal email! you are lucky!! :D :D :D On your second point- this new forums has SUPERB admin features - i can do all kind of cool things behind the scenes :-) and yep, the ignore list is a cool feature too! :-) Things are OK on this side of the pond - but I would prefer to be on the other side!! :cool:

TrampJun 10, 2001

Mr. Lightbeer.... You are too, too much....dangling red meat in front of a tiger! He'll be up all night trying to think of something good to say just to prove you wrong...:D By the way...I just got an email from wdw critic complaining about me insulting him...don't think he liked the 'diaper' comment...lol. Someone throw this guy a crying towel please!:D :D I don't have a dog in this fight but I was prepared to badger this guy until he cries uncle scrooge. A more reasoned approach would be to let the guy with his hand on the NUKE button handle it..ie, Steve. As for me....now is a good time to start the IGNORE list. :D :D :D Hope all is well on the other side of the POND...:cool:

jay_londonJun 10, 2001

dont worry about replying i've just found the posts he made. jay

jay_londonJun 10, 2001

so what is his reicarnation called? jay