Westward Ho!
Westward Ho! is a thrilling and turbulent dark ride that is located in Frontierland. This ride takes place in modified conestoga wagons, which take a journey along the historic trails to the west. Guests experience some of the thrills and dangers of the trails in a high speed ride from the “east” to the “west”.
Ride Vehicle
The ride vehicle is shaped like a classic conestoga wagon, with wooden sides and wooden wheels at the corners (these wheels are purely decorative). The only thing missing is the covered top. This allows guests to feel the extra exposure and danger, and it heightens tension and reactions. The ride vehicle is a “shell” over an EMV base. It handles and maneuvers the same as the Dinosaur ride vehicle does. There are four rows of seats in the ride vehicle, which guests enter from doors to each side of the vehicle. They are individual seats, again like Dinosaur, with seat belts. there are mesh ‘bag areas’ in front of each person, as well as a long bar for use as a grip. Everything on the interior if the wagon is painted or covered to seem to be made of wood. The bars are bright red metal.
Ride Building & Queue
The ride is housed completely indoors, as is most of the queue. The building’s facade is made to look like a general store from the era of westward expansion. It is fairly tall, with the “second story” of the facade painted to look like additional shops in the space upstairs. The queue begins outside, under the usual signs showing the name of the ride and the time for fastpasses, warnings, etc. This ride will offer fastpass, and has a separate line for these guests. The line begins by stretching along the front of the “store”, following long lines of bags and barrels that are marked as holding various supplies. There are also saddles and horseshoes and wagon parts lying around as well, all marking one full twist of line. That is: the line starts on the far left, runs to the far right of the store, turns and runs back left before turning to then enter the store through it’s middle doors. The fastpass line bypasses these turns and simply goes straight to the building, and then along the front wall to enter through the same center doors.
Once inside the building, guests see more supplies as well as multiple signs for the Westward Ho! Trail Guide Service. There are many posters along the walls that speak of the riches and splendor of both Oregon and California. The queue enters the store and follows it through several twists and turns, being marked by separate rooms. The entrance room is laid out like an old fashion general store, with a counter on one side with an array of glass jars behind it. The other side of the room is stacked with barrels, boxes, and other items historically offered to travelers at the time. Each item is marked with the prices from the westward expansion era. Children will notice that one area of the store is devoted to jars of candy, which is marked for pennies. The line makes several switchbacks in this room before moving through a doorway marked “Westward Ho! Trail Guide Services Office”.
This next room is supposedly the office of the service the guests are seeking. It is a room that makes a large “u”. The walls are covered in posters that warn of the dangers of the trail, and that will highlight the experiences of guests. Indian attacks, prairie fires, stampedes, river crossing, deserts, and other dangers will be highlighted. The outside wall of the U is purely covered in posters. The inside of the U, and closed off from guests by waist high walls, is the office area. There is a large desk covered in papers and supplies, such as bullets, a bag of sugar, a pair of dirty socks, etc. Observant guests will notice one small burlap bag on the corner, almost covered by papers. It is open, and there are gold nuggets visible. The walls of the office hold a large map showing the true routes of the western trails, as well as various notes. These could include “Watch for falling rock at Devil’s Gate”, “DO NOT attempt to ford Columbia River. Lost 3 wagons.”, “Hostile indians reported along Platte River”, “Al, need shipment of mules sent to Fort Hall asap”, etc. The line switchbacks all along this U.
Pre-Show
At the end of the U guests enter the pre-show rooms. There are 2 rooms for this. The room is standing room only, and guests look through a glass window into a back room, saloon looking place. This is set up like the pre-show from RnR, where the front area is all props, and the “back” area is a projection. The projection shows three cowboy looking men seated around a barrel playing cards. The guests file in and watch them play cards together for a short time. Once all of the guests are loaded into the room, one of the cowboys notice them. He nudges the others, and they all look up. It is the cowboy in the middle of the three who narrates the pre-show.
“Looks like we have company boys. Howdy folks. I reckon you’re here looking for a trail guide. Well you’ve come to the right place. We’ve travelled that trail hundreds of times, and there isn’t a single mile of trail that we don’t know. There ain’t a river we haven’t crossed. There isn’t a danger we haven’t survived. Yes siree, folks, the trail ain’t no picnic. There’s a lot of danger out there, especially for some greenhorns like yourselves. Now, I ain’t puttin’ you down, but that’s how it is. Ya’ll are gonna need guides. The west is a wild place.
But no worries, folks, you’re in good hands. We’re the best there is, and that’s a fact. Now, we’ll be traveling in conestoga wagons, the best wagons there are for the trail. We’ve had a lot of excitement lately, and so we’ve installed a few safety features. Once we get out to the wagons, ya’ll will want to slide all the way across your rows, placing one person per seat. You best store your personal items in the bags provided. We can’t be goin’ back for any lost stuff. You’ll find one seat belt per seat. Buckle it up and pull it tight, it gets pretty rough out there.
If any of you folks are havin’ second thoughts, you best head back out to town. Folks with back problems, motion sickness, or any similar conditions had best find a different way to get out west. Parents, you best put your small children in the middle of the wagon, we wouldn’t want them fallin’ into a river. And speaking of rivers, well, ya’ll might be gettin’ a little wet. Well folks, I reckon it’s time to head out. We’ll go ahead and get the suppiles set. You folks head out to the wagons. We’ll be headed out west before you know it. Yee haw! This is gonna be an adventure! Westward ho!”
Throughout the film, the other cowboys interject with a comment or two, and also stand up and move about, gathering supplies. One disappears with a large bag halfway through the film. the second one heads out near the end, carrying a saddle. The narrator grabs his cowboy hat as he says “Yee Haw” and exits after saying “Westward Ho!”. The guests then exit.
The line then goes through another door way, where guests have reached the loading area. It is made to look like a back porch, with one wall looking like the back of the store. The wagons load along one track, two at a time. There is loading area A and loading area B. Wagons are empty when they arrive at this area. Guests follow the queue through a couple of long switchbacks before being assigned rows. The far side, beyond the loading area and track, is “landscaped” to look like the prairie, and has some trees, more supplies in piles, and other items.
The wagons move forward to a seatbelt check area. The first wagon is checked and then moves into the ride. The second wagon then moves up the seat belt check and moves into the ride shortly after. Each wagon moves through the ride on its own.
The Ride
Scene 1 - The Prairie
The wagons move out into the open prairie, swerving around bushes, and moving up a hill. At the top, guests are treated to a view of the prairie, which seems to stretch on and on. The guide, which is the narrator cowboy from the show, can be heard through the speakers throughout the ride.
“Yes folks, look at that. Open land as far as the eye can see, and it’s all available for the taking. Let’s head on out!”
The wagon plunges down the hill, picking up speed. Guests are whipped around the base of the hill, around the corner into the second room.
Scene 2 - The Storm & Fire
Guests are plunged into the dark. Suddenly lightning flashes and there is the roar of thunder. The wagon bounces along the trail, jerking guests around as it heads forward. Lightning illuminates several tornadoes off in the distance, each glowing slightly to the sides of the vehicle. Guests begin to wonder if the tornadoes are a threat.
“Don’t worry folks, storms are common out on the prairies, we should be ok.”
Suddenly another flash of lightning occurs right ahead of the wagon. It stops and idles for a moment as a prairie fire begins to build.
“A fire! Dang, and it’s a close one. Hang one, we’re outta here!”
The wagons whips to the right and bounces past several spots of “flame”. Lightning continues to flash and guests plunge down a hill and into the next scene.
Scene 3 - River Crossing
Guests emerge in a slightly brighter area, although it is clearly still cloudy out. There is a roar of water ahead, and guests power up a hill and reach the top to see a river raging below. The wagons plow down the hill and head for a rickety bridge seen across the river.
“We’ll head for the bridge, folks. Lucky for us we have one. The earlier settlers would have had to cross without it. Very dangerous. Now hold on, folks, this could be rough.”
The wagon heads over the bridge slowly at first, then jerks as guests hear the bridge crack and break.
“I was afraid of that! Hold on!”
Mist is shot at the guests as they cross the “river”, and the wagon bounces over a rock and then out of the river.
“Whew, that was close. We didn’t lose anyone, right? Good, cause we ain’t turning back now.”
The wagons bounce up a hill and into the next room.
Scene 4 - The canyons
Guests now find themselves on a narrow rock ledge along a canyon. Forced perspective makes it seem as if they are high up, with a narrow river down below. The wagon goes slow.
“Folks, this is one of the most dangerous parts of the trail. Everybody hold real still, or we’ll be over the edge!”
The wagons speeds up and takes several twists and turns as it follows the narrow ledge. Various animals can be seen on the ledge on the other side, including mountain goats. Suddenly the wagon stops completely. There are several boulders blocking the main trail.
“Well folks, we can’t keep goin’ along this way. Looks like its down the canyon we go!”
The wagon turns and makes a sharp plunge down the side of the “canyon” and turns sharply into the next area.
Scene 5 - Parting of the Ways
Here the track splits into two different rooms. The landscaping is sparse and desert-ish looking. A wooden sign hangs in the middle of the room, with one wooden arrow pointing left and one right. The left one says California, and the right one says Oregon.
A: “Well folks, look at that. We’ve made it to the edge of the west. This is where the wild truly begins. We’re almost there! Oregon or bust!”
The wagon turns to the right and enters the Oregon room.
B: “Folks we’ve made it to the edge of the West! Look at that, we’re almost there. California, here we come!”
The wagon turns to the left and enters the California room.
Scene 6A: Oregon & the Columbia River
The wagon comes in along a stretch of woods, with plenty of green plants and animal life. It is still fairly dark.
“Alright folks, we’re almost to Oregon. All we have to do is raft down the Columbia River. It can’t be that hard, right?”
The wagon comes around the trees to a long downhill stretch painted to look like a raging river. Mist flows around the scene. After the guide’s dialogue, the wagon plunges down the river, in the longest, roughest part of the ride yet. Guests bounce off of rocks, plunge under downed trees, and in the finale, plunge down a “waterfall”. The guests hear the guide call out “Waterfall! Hold on!”, and the lights go out as they plunge down. This is where the picture is taken on the Oregon side.
The wagon then bounces out of the river and through some more trees and into the unloading room.
Scene 6B: California and the Desert Sandstorm
The wagon enters along a stretch of desert scenery. Cactus, rocks, animal bones, and other dire signs are visible. It is bright out, but the lights quickly dim. Mist begins to filter in around the wagon. Soon visibility is close to zero. The wagon moves slowly to start.
“Folks, we’re almost to California. All we have to do is cross the deserts of the southwest. Early settlers nearly died of thirst in these parts, but I reckon we’ll be okay. All we have to watch out for is...Sandstorms!”
At this the wagon lunges forward and begins descending down the longest downhill in the ride. The light is yellow and reflects off the mist. The wagon swerves and bounces around rocks and bones. Howls and growls can be heard. Suddenly the wagon halts.
“Woah! Stop!”
Fans blow the mist away and guests see they are on a narrow ledge, dropping off at both sides. Suddenly the wagon lurches and the lights go out as guests plunge down the final drop. This is where the picture is taken on the California side.
Unloading Area
The wagons now enter the unloading area, which is the only outside portion of the ride. As guests move towards unloading, they can see the shops and sights of Frontierland laid out in front of them.
“Well folks, welcome to the west. Ya’ll have survived and joined thousands of others who have made the perilous journey across our wild country. Now make sure you gather those children and supplies. Once your wagon completely stops, ya’ll can take off your seatbelts and move out of the wagon. Have a good day ya’ll.”
The wagons move forward to two unloading areas, and the guests make a short walk out the exit and into the start of Frontierland.