Staff writer Brian Bennett received many letters in response to his series of articles on the Walt Disney World steam train tour. Links to the articles can be found here (link). First off, Peggy and Dusty both wrote in asking how to get more information about the tours.
Peggy Wolny writes:
Great article. My husband is a huge train buff and would love to do this tour. We are going to be in Disney World in February 2006. Are these tours something they do on an ongoing basis, or is it just a one time thing? How do I get information about the tours?
Dusty Cheatham writes:
Hi Brian! I am always looking to try something different. How much and how long for the tour? I enjoy your postings on MousePlanet.
The tour officially takes about three hours, but the guides make it clear that if you have questions they’ll hang around at the end and take as much time as you wish.
You can call Disney at (407) WDW-TOUR (939-8687) for information. You’ll have to call (407) WDW-TOUR to make reservations in any case.
Enoch Lipson asks:
What is a “blow down test?”
During a blow-down test the boiler is fired up to a higher-than-normal pressure until the pressure relief valve opens up. This test is performed to insure that the boiler is safe to be operated on the main rail line where Magic Kingdom guests are out and about.
Of course, if the relief valve does not open up automatically before a certain pressure (I don’t recall what the normal operating pressure and high pressure limits are) is reached, then the safety systems are not considered to be sufficiently operational and the valve is opened manually. In that case, the engine would not be permitted to run on the main line until the valve problem has been resolved.
Editor’s Note: The following email corrected Brian’s description…
What Brian is describing here is the “pop-off” test, NOT the “blowdown” test. The popoff valve will open up when the boiler reaches a certain pressure (it’s a different pressure for each locomotive, usually between 145 and 155 pounds of steam pressure). Normal (optimal) pressure is 135-140 pounds
The “blowdown” test is when we “blow down” the water level in the boiler to a level below a certain point in our “sight glass” (which tells us how much water is in the boiler, going by the level at the number of “bolts” on teh sight glass; our optimal range is about three bolts of water). We “blow down” the water level to below one bolt of water; there’s a small hole in the bottom of the sight glass. When the top of the water level is *just* below the top of that hole, we release the blowdown valve. After 90 seconds, the MAPO (our low-water alarm) *should* shut off the fire in the boiler. If the MAPO doesn’t work (and doesn’t shut off the fire), then the train is not cleared for operation until the blowdown test is fully completed.
I’m an Engineer myself on the WDWRR 😉
Kathy P. Lewis writes:
Thanks for the great article on the Steam Train Tour at Magic Kingdom! We were at Walt Disney World last summer and my oldest son was only 9, so he couldn’t go on the tour. They said it was only for children 10 and up. Is this still the policy? We have another son who is almost 8.
We might be taking a surprise visit this October so I was going to sign him and my husband up for this tour for his birthday present. He is a big train buff and from what you described of the tour I know he’ll love it. Let’s put it this way… by the time he was 3 he knew all the wheel arrangements and names of almost every type of steam engine! So once again thanks for the great article!
Thanks Kathy! Ten and up is still a requirement for the tour.
Hey, it sounds like you have quite a young railroad fan there. I’m learning more about the railroads as I write the various articles about them. It’s been a lot of fun… And I’m looking forward to learning even more about them and specifically about the Walt Disney World railroads!
Ken Goldenberg writes:
Great article about your Walt Disney World train tour. My wife, step-daughter, and I were visiting Walt Disney World near the end of July and had a great trip, despite some heavy rain at times and humidity at 99%! We stayed at the Old Key West Resort.
By the way, if you have ever checked out Google Maps (link) and put in Lake Buena Vista as the location, you can then turn on the “satellite view” and get fantastic overhead shots of most of Walt Disney World, including the monorail and train barn (Most of Animal Kingdom area does not yet have detailed satellite views).
Thanks for the note, Ken. I’ll check out that Google site. It will be fun to see what I can “spy” on Walt Disney World property.
John Donat writes:
If you have any desire to add on to your Walt Disney World train trip tour, when I went in December, 2001 we were allowed to take pictures (at least no one yelled). I’m a train nut, so this tour was fabulous for us! They let us into the roundhouse to take a look at the stuff in there. I got some pictures of the roundhouse area.
Either the rules have been tightened up, or my particular tour guide was more of a stickler for rules than some others. You’re very fortunate… and I’m very jealous.
Mike writes:
I wanted to thank you for writing this tour story. I had the pleasure of taking this same tour with my father and brothers last October. Jim also served as our Tour guide, and it was one of the most memorable events of the entire trip. Reading your tour review brought it all back again. I thought is was very well written and could imagine myself backstage as you described it.
Thanks for the kind note, Mike! I’m glad you enjoyed the tour as much as I did.
Maribeth Moore writes:
My husband, Tom, and I along with my Mom and Aunt Mary, took the Steam Train Tour back in May 2005 with the same Engineer/tour guide. We loved the whole thing until the story time in the station afterwards. We found it boring, and we could hardly hear anything. The people going in and out did not realize what was going on, or didn’t care, and were very noisy. The echo was bad, and this tour guide could be a little soft spoken.
We felt that it would have been more effective and interesting if it could have been done while the tour of the trains were going on, or while the tests were being completed. Something. I don’t fall asleep during things like that, but at story time, I wanted to. It didn’t help that Tom has read anything that he can get his hands on about Walt Disney. So he and I already knew those stories.
I do recommend taking the tour. The first half was GREAT! But, if you are hard of hearing or know all the stories already, skip the second part (but don’t forget to get your pin before leaving).
I do admit to being a little less involved during the “story time” back at the station than during the more “hands on” portion of the tour and I agree that it was difficult to hear what Mr. McLoone was saying due to the extra noise.
However, I’m sure that whenever a tour of this kind is designed it is difficult to balance the material to the audience. For every person, like your husband and I, that already knows much of the history of the parks and has, perhaps, even read up on the very topic that the tour covers, I’m sure there are several other tour attendees that are quite ignorant about those matters.
I personally enjoyed the historical talk. Although I knew some of the background it was fun to hear the story told the way it was. It really did tie the whole of Walt’s fascination with the railroads together with the Walt Disney World Railroad (along with the Carolwood Pacific and Santa Fe and Disneyland Railroads that preceded it.) I’m sure that those folks that were less familiar with the story found it even more interesting.
Lannie Bartlett writes:
Thanks for the great articles on the steam trains. It’s funny, just the other day I Googled Diane Disney and came across a recent picture of her, as well as her son Walt Miller dedicating the old barn at Griffith Park. I’ve wanted to take a visit up there (I live in the San Diego area) and after reading your article I’m ready to plan a trip! Keep the great stories coming.
Thanks for the kind note, Lannie.
It’s funny how getting into such a topic can be so absorbing. I never realized how much I would enjoy studying, researching, and writing about these trains. I’m hooked, though. That’s for sure.
If you go up to Griffith Park, send me some pics of the barn and the Disney loop, will ya?
Jeff Sjoquist writes:
Great job Brian! I have been wanting to take that tour for a while and plan on doing so next summer on the next Sjoquist Disney Adventure. After reading today’s article, that trip can’t come soon enough. Thanks and keep up the good work.
Thanks for the kind note, Jeff. Go ahead and take the tour! I highly recommend it.
Anne Royer writes:
I enjoyed your pictures. I know you are now based in Florida but if you ever are near Scranton you should visit Steamtown National Historic Site in Scranton, PA. They have a restored roundhouse and lots of trains. Their website is www.nps.gov/stea.
Thanks Anne! I’ll add the Scranton museum to my list.
I grew up in Michigan, and Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum was a place I visited many times as I grew up. They have an incredible collection of railroad equipment that also includes a restored roundhouse. The Smithsonian, in Washington, has a great collection of locomotives and rolling stock, too.
Brian also received the following letter from reader Julie Edman regarding his photo tour of the new “Pooh’s Playful Spot” area in Walt Disney World (link):
Just a quick comment about the following sentence from your article:
“ Pooh’s Playful Spot… makes no allowances for the fact that older ones might enjoy a fun place to play and get some excess energy out of the way.”
I must respectfully disagree with you. There don’t need to be more activities for older and bigger kids–there are already so many things that they can do in The World that little ones can’t. From personal experience as the mother of a very small for his age 2.5 year old boy, I really think that this kind of play area is needed.
At so many of the other free-play attractions (Tom Sawyer’s Island at the Magic Kingdom, Boneyard at Animal Kingdom, and Honey I Shrunk the Kids at MGM) my little guy wouldn’t stand a chance against all of the older kids. That is why I think it’s great that Disney has finally made one small play area for some of their younger guests.
You make a good point. Frankly, I wish that all of the playgrounds had areas set aside for younger kids, but it would have been nice if another part of Pooh’s Playful Spot had been designed for older kids.
I guess part of my thought is that there is so much space there where the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea attraction had been that much more could have been done. Hopefully some of the space will yet be turned into another attraction. If not, then giving up 20,000 Leagues for Pooh’s Playful Spot was a very, very bad trade.
