Brer Rabbit's quest for adventure and his rival's plot to do him in launch Walt Disney World guests on an action-filled journey with a thrill-packed, five-story "splashdown" finale on Splash Mountain in Magic Kingdom.

Based on animated sequences in Walt Disney's 1946 film "Song of the South," the 87-foot-high Splash Mountain boasts one of the world's longest flume drops and promises guests a 40 mph descent -- faster than any other attraction in Magic Kingdom.

The attraction, which opened in summer 1992, occupies a 9.2-acre site next to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad in Frontierland. It features special effects that give the show its animated quality and heighten splashdown into the briar patch during the ride's heart-pounding finale.

Splash Mountain features Disney's FASTPASS -- at no charge to park guests -- designed to reduce waiting times at popular attractions in all four Walt Disney World theme parks.

Splash Mountain stars a cast of 68 Audio-Animatronics characters -- one of the largest groups of animated figures ever assembled in a Walt Disney World attraction.

To begin the 11-minute adventure, guests climb aboard eight-person logs (hollowed out by sharp-tooth beavers, as the story goes) to travel the canals of the flooded mountain.

Soon, they join Brer Rabbit, who is looking for some fun on a zip-a-dee-doo-dah kind of day. But his antagonists, Brer Fox and Brer Bear, are scheming to catch the happy-go-lucky hare and put an end to his carefree rambling.

To bring the classic Disney story "Song of the South" to life, wizards at Walt Disney Imagineering -- the company's creative design and engineering division -- created a magnificent mountain chock-full of backwoods swamps, bayous and waterfalls.

As guests proceed on the log ride, they meet the show's stars and a number of critter characters who help weave the tale of "Song of the South." Against the advice of Mr. Bluebird, Brer Rabbit leaves his briar patch home in search of adventure. Brer Fox and Brer Bear seize this opportunity and begin their legendary pursuit of the rabbit.

Along the way, the guests' boats dip and turn through brilliantly colored scenes featuring musical selections that include "Laughin' Place" and "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah," one of Disney's most familiar tunes.

Spooky caves, hollowed trees and skulking silhouettes of Brer Rabbit's pursuers lend mystery and magic to the show as the story unfolds.

At first, the clever rabbit outsmarts his bumbling pursuers, but as guests proceed along the winding flume ride, they soon discover Brer Rabbit is heading for trouble.

The rollicking adventure is loaded with twists, turns and splashes of excitement. It culminates when guests, tucked into their flume logs, plunge over the top of a steep spillway, whizzing from the mountaintop to a briar-covered pond five stories below.

From the start, guests are drawn into the Splash Mountain legend when they enter an old critter building -- part barn, part silo. From there, they wind their way to a secret passageway leading to the Critter Cave.

After meeting Brer Frog, who begins to narrate the tale of Splash Mountain, guests board their flume logs to complete the exciting journey.

Along with the special effects and state-of-the-art animated characters, the attraction features one of the biggest animated props ever. The showboat in the rousing final scene is 36 feet wide and 22 feet high and carries 12 animated characters singing "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" as the ship rocks in time to the music.

When guests disembark, they'll find the Briar Patch merchandise shop -- a rustic retreat tucked into the mountainside and themed as Brer Rabbit's cottage.

Splash Mountain is located in Frontierland's west end, between Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe and Big Thunder Mountain Railroad.

• Walt Disney World's Splash Mountain opened on October 2, 1992 , just one day after the ride opened in Tokyo Disneyland, and almost three years after the ride premiered in Disneyland on July 17,1989. The 87-foot tall mountain and attraction covers an area just over 9.2 acres, which is much larger than Disneyland's, which is only 2.3 acres in size. Splash Mountain opened in 1992 and quickly became one of the most-beloved (translate that: it has really long lines) attractions in Walt Disney World. This 11-minute flume ride takes you through the 1946 Disney film, "Song of the South" (good luck finding this on DVD). The ride features 68 Audio-Animatronics figures including bears, rabbits, birds and foxes, and is home to what was once the largest animated prop in any Disney Park. The Mississippi Showboat in the final scene is 36-feet long and 22-feet high. (It's even bigger in the Disneyland version!)
• Did you know that you will reach speeds of over 40 MPH on the the final plunge, which is a 52 foot drop (about 5 stories) on a 45 degree angle? If you want to ride the rapids and get wet on Splash Mountain, a multi-drop flume ride, you have to be 40" tall (or wearing very high heels). There are between 50-54 logs on the waters of Splash Mountain when it is running at full capacity.
• Each of the logs in operation is closely monitored by a computer, which knows where each log is on the track at all times. This will prevent the logs from not only crashing in to one another, but for safety purposes in case the ride needs to be evacuated. "Brer" (as in Brer Fox, and Brer Rabbit, two of the characters you'll find on Splash Mountain) is an way of saying "Br'er", which is an abbreviation for "Brother". Brother and Sister are Christian terms of kinship especially prevalent in the South. This ride is based on the 1946 Disney film, "Song of the South." Many of the audio Animatronics in Splash Mountain, such as the frogs, chickens and foxes, were originally used in Disneyland's America Sings attraction, which was located in Tomorrowland from 1974 until 1988. Slippin' Falls is the name of the first drop for Splash Mountain. You can see the sign near the stairs on the right hand side as you approach the drop. The giant paddlewheel boat that can be found in the final scene of Splash Mountain, the "Zip-A-Dee Lady", is one of the largest Animatronic props in the entire park, and many of the swamp's residents on board singing and dancing "Zip a Dee Doo Dah."
• Walt Disney World's version of the Zip-A-Dee Lady is 36 feet wide and 22 feet high, while its Disneyland counterpart is 50 feet wide by 30 feet high. The hollowed-out logs that take you on your 11-minute journey through Disney's "Song of the South," on Spash Mountain are adorned with an image of Brer Rabbit on the front. While the Walt Disney World version has guests sitting in four rows with two seats each, its Disneyland counterpart has guests sitting front to back "tandem-style" on a single bench that runs down the center of the log. Much to Disney's dismay, one its most popular rides has acquired a nickname not in keeping with it's clean-cut family image. "Flash" Mountain refers to some women lifting their shirts when the camera takes the souvenir picture on "Splash Mountain." Although the pictures will never make it to the reviewing monitors (and doing this prank will get you immediately removed from the park), about a dozen have found their way onto the Internet. Disney has reportedly put additional controls into place to prevent this from happening in the future. Located at the exit to Splash Mountain, the "Laughin' Place" is a great place to keep some of the smaller children occupied if they are not tall enough to ride the attraction.
• Grand openings:
  • Disneyland: July 17, 1989
  • Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom: October 2, 1992
  • Tokyo Disneyland: October 1, 1992