Category Archives: Mouse-Next-Door

Redwood Creek Challenge Trail Wilderness Explorer Camp

4 Comments Posted by on June 11, 2012

Back over to the Mouse-Next-Door, there’s an attraction I particularly love–the Redwood Creek Wilderness Explorer Camp.

It’s all woodsy and stuff

The Redwood Creek Challenge Trail is sort of tucked away in this little area of California Adventure, and is a great place to just immerse yourself in a truly interactive attraction.

It was originally tied to the movie Brother Bear, which I never saw, but is now themed in with the Pixar movie Up, which I love, love, love (SQUIRREL!). Part of the challenge trail is walking in the footsteps of Russell (the Boy Scout-like character in Up). You can move through the trail collecting Wilderness Explorer patches.

Actually badges, not patches

When you go in, you can get a map of the badges. They have a little scratch off area for each of the stations to mark your progress. If you don’t have your own personal map, you can follow this one

For the directionally-challenged, like me

At each station, there’s an activity to do. For example, you can howl like a wolf

AAAOOOOO!!!!

While you slide down giant slides that look like tree trunks.

Wheeee!!!

At the bottom. We had to do this approximately 5,000,000,000 times that night.

How sliding down tree trunks is connected to wolf howling is a little beyond me, but it’s fun. Theo particularly loved this part.

The area is defined by a number of activities, from the slides to a kid’s zip line to just a whole lot of rope bridges. For a while Theo was too anxious to walk on the ropes, but he got over it.

Daddy and Theo on a rope bridge

The whole trail is multi-level, so it’s fun to see the different vantage points.

After you’ve finished your Wilderness Explorer badge hunt, there’s a small theater where you can watch a graduation type show.

It’s pretty much super-cute

At the show you take your official Wilderness Explorer Oath, call for Kevin the bird thing, get a Wilderness Explorer sticker, and do a meet and greet with Russell from the movie.

Unless you find Russell positively terrifying, which Theo does.

Go figure.

There are also other things to do. A little kid zipline on tires is super cool.

In a princess dress, no less!

Unfortunately I am too big for this, so chalk that right up with the Jedi Training Academy as things I wish I could do but can’t.

There’s also a smaller slide, which Theo didn’t like quite as much.

Kind of goes side to side

And a lateral rock climbing wall that again I’m too tall for

It’s like they just don’t want me to have any fun

And left over from the Brother Bear theme, a cave of wonders with these hand thingies that light up and tell you your spirit animal.

My spirit animal is apparently a skunk, which to be completely honest is pretty disappointing.

The Redwood Creek trail is really great if you’ve got kids who need to blow off some energy after waiting all day, and fun for adults as well. It’s sort of one of those hidden treats at the Mouse-Next-Door, and I do recommend it.

Mouse-Next-Door , , ,

Zephyr

2 Comments Posted by on May 9, 2012

Let’s talk about the Zephyr. I mean first of all, the word is totally awesome. Zephyrrrrrrrrrrrr. Pronounced Zeffer, but spelled much more awesomely. And it makes you want to drag out the rrrrrrrr. And also, the ride is actually pretty fun.

Zephyrrrrrrrrrrrr

 

Zephyr is located in the Mouse-Next-Door (California Adventure) on Paradise Pier right by The Little Mermaid ride. It’s a spinner ride, in that you sit in a vehicle and spin around and around.

Zephyrrrrrrrrrrrrr

 

Now I’ll admit, I didn’t go on this attraction for a long time. I was thinking, how many more spinner rides do we need? There’s Dumbo, Dumbo In Space (Astro Orbitor), and another one in A Bug’s Land I haven’t covered yet.

But the Zephyr is different! Yes it is!

Its cars are suspended by cables. This also makes it prone to being shut down due to high winds. Cause that could totally ruin your day.

The Zephyr queue is all pipes and industrial. Like they put up the framework and then didn’t build anything else over it but then you realize it’s supposed to be all hip and industrial and then it’s cool again.

Lots of pipes

 

I know I posted this picture over in my Mickey’s Fun Wheel post, but if you look to the left of the Fun Wheel, you can see the zephyrs you’re sitting in.

They’re all space agey and stuff

 

Theo totally loves this ride.

Wheee!!! Zephyrrrrrrrrr!!!!!

 

And away you spin! You actually get some height, and unlike the stationary spinners, you get some swaying and natural movement as well. It’s like you’re in a giant vehicle suspended from cables spinning around at an amusement park or something!

I also took this picture of the World of Color crowd while we were moving. To be honest, it kind of makes me a little loopy to look at it.

But it’s a cool picture. You’re welcome.

Mouse-Next-Door , , ,

Mickey’s Fun Wheel

12 Comments Posted by on April 30, 2012

Over at the Mouse-Next-Door, Mickey’s Fun Wheel is the giant ferris wheel that looks over Paradise Pier. It’s awesome.

This picture was actually taken from the Zephyr, but I'm including it here because I didn't take a full-on picture for the Fun Wheel post. Oops.

As you can see, it’s pretty much all kinds of awesome colors at night.

Mickey’s Fun Wheel has two options for your riding pleasure: Brave and Wimp Swinging and Non-Swinging gondolas. The non-swinging gondolas are attached to the wheel like a normal ferris wheel seat would be (and spellcheck keeps wanting me to type Ferris. As in Save Ferris? I mean the movie, but isn’t the band originally from Orange County?) (UPDATE: A sharp-eyed reader confirmed that the ferris wheel is named after its inventor, George Washington Gale Ferris, Jr., therefore is indeed properly written Ferris wheel) .  The swinging gondolas swing. It’s hard to tell from these pictures because I didn’t really get any good close-ups of the swinging, but they are on an oval-shaped rail (also attached to the wheel) and the car can then swing back and forth as the wheel turns.

It’s pretty darned terrifying.

And the gondolas have barf bags in them, so seriously, not for the faint of heart or the faint of stomach.

Do I need to say that we chose the non-swinging ones? Fortunately you get to pick before you get in line.

Brave or wimp?

The Fun Wheel slowly goes up, up, up

Kind of looks like a roller coaster from this shot

Oh, also, the gondolas are completely enclosed, so nobody throws anything out of them.

Theo loves this ride

The Fun Wheel gives you the best views of the park.

Like this fuzzy picture of Cars Land

Paradise Pier has some of the best lighting I’ve ever seen.

Shiny!

You really go very, very high. Like you know when you’re even or above the giant roller coaster, that’s high.

California Screamin'

You can even see our house from up there.

Kind of.

It's in this direction

And that’s the crowd for World of Color at the bottom.

Go on the Fun Wheel. It may seem like meh, it’s a (save) ferris wheel, but once you get up there, the views are breathtaking.

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Misc. California Adventure Pics

Leave a comment Posted by on April 13, 2012

There’s always so many miscellaneous pictures that hang around while I photograph the park. Lot of exciting stuff this summer!

And the walls came a'tumblin' down

This summer is going to be an amazing one for the Disneyland Resort. Cars Land opens, which will be incredible. I can’t wait to report on that for you! Also opening is Buena Vista Street at the entrance to California Adventure, similar to Main Street except themed to represent what Los Angeles looked like in the 20s when Walt arrived with a suitcase and a dream. I’m particularly looking forward to a street show similar to “Newsies” on Broadway.

Exciting times, my friends. Exciting times.

And you know what’s great about construction at CA Adventure?

Secret exits!

Lights! Shiny!

You currently exit out into Downtown Disney instead of the Esplanade, which is super-convenient if you’re going home, but not really so much if you want to go back to Disneyland. Still…

No, I'll be seeing YOU!

Doing some pick-up back in the Animation building, the rotunda has these amazing giant screens which cycle through various movies.

Like Up!

For realz people, I LOVE Up! It’s a great movie, but the dogs are worth the price of admission (well, rental) alone. Dug pretty much speaks for all dogs. If you’ve ever wondered what’s going on in your dog’s head, definitely watch– SQUIRREL!!!!!

Casey Jr. comin' round the track, comin' round the track, Casey Jr.'s back

Dumbo! Casey Jr. holds a special place in our hearts, not only because he’s a train and all trains hold special places in our hearts (except Thomas for me, I can’t stand him), but because Casey Jr. was the first ride Theo ever rode at Disneyland.

It's like Thomas except significantly more awesome

I can’t remember exactly why we chose Casey Jr. I think it had to do with it being a train and easy to sit in or something, and we forgot that there’s a part of it that actually goes kind of fast. But anyway, there ya go.

Oh, also? How adorable is this???

My favorite Disney animated movie of all time is The Lion King.

This is not, however, the cheeriest part of the movie

I can’t say exactly why it’s my favorite. I mean, it’s a great movie all by itself, but I think that’s also coupled with the fact that the year it came out was one of the best summers of my entire life, and I have so many good memories wrapped up in this movie.

Also, it’s just an awesome movie.

And Theo wasn’t at all afraid of the whole Scar scenes like the above. So maybe it’s time to show it to him? He enjoyed both Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid.

But then again, he found Ratatouille to be EXTREMELY upsetting. Go figure.

You've got a friend in me

Another thing I love is the concept art that shows up on various screens. I’ll admit it–I’m a sucker for concept art. I find it endlessly fascinating, how ideas get transferred from sketches to the big screen.

Plus Toy Story is awesome. Theo has watched Toy Story 1 and 2 and loved both (he calls them “Woody Buzz”) but we’re holding off on #3 due to the fire scene. Because this is the kid who’s afraid of Pixar-animated rats.

Anyway, Theo found the entire rotunda to be extremely fascinating.

Whoa!

It even kept him occupied for a full 2 minutes, and THAT is an accomplishment.

Mouse-Next-Door

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