This week, crews began cutting down the Splash Mountain tree as the Magic Kingdom attraction is turned into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. Now, most of the tree is gone from the top of the mountain.
Splash Mountain Tree
Although the tree was originally part of Tiana’s Bayou Adventure concept art, it was later revealed that it would be removed as the ride’s backstory was altered. Yesterday, only the top few feet of the tree had been cut away.
The tree is now just a stump of roots. The scaffolding around the tree has also been lowered.
Crew members may not work during this Easter weekend, but the rest of the tree could be removed next week.
The front of the attraction is covered in scaffolding and a giant hole was cut into the center of the faux rockwork. Yesterday, we noticed new wire mesh over the hole.
More Splash Mountain Construction
New mesh was also installed over the holes in the rockwork down next to the Frontierland bridge.
This wire mesh acts as a base for the shape of the façade. It looks like the space beneath the façade and track has been thoroughly cleaned up before the mesh was installed.
There’s a small hill of wire over some of the steel supports next to the tunnel. Tarps to the side were used to cover the holes in the façade when work was not actively underway.
The track down here was recently repainted.
We have frequently seen crew members working inside both tunnels, but none were on site this morning. Materials like buckets and wires were on the ground.
Splash Mountain closed permanently in January at Walt Disney World and is scheduled to close in May at Disneyland. Tiana’s Bayou Adventure is set to replace both versions of the attraction in 2024. Read our complete history of Splash Mountain for a look back at the classic log flume ride.
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
Tiana’s Bayou Adventure takes place after the events of “The Princess and the Frog.” Tiana’s Foods is an employee-owned community food co-op established by Tiana in 1927, following the success of her restaurant, Tiana’s Palace. The co-op is housed inside a salt mine, with growers planting crops along the old Splash Mountain waterway. Guests will ascend through a mill house built into the side of the mountain.
The attraction will follow Tiana venturing into the bayou to find animal friends. She’s hosting a party for the people of New Orleans, but it’s missing a special ingredient. Some of the original cast will be providing their voices to the attraction, including Anika Noni Rose (Tiana), Bruno Campos (Naveen), Michael Leon Wooley (Louis), and Jennifer Lewis (Mama Odie).
Read more details about Tiana’s Bayou Adventure:
- Logo for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Revealed
- First Look at Tiana’s New Outfit for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure
- Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Model at D23 Expo 2022 Shows Removal of Iconic Splash Mountain Tree
- Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Backstory and More Information Revealed at D23 Expo 2022
- More Details Revealed for Tiana’s Bayou Adventure Story, Original Cast Returning
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