Davy Crockett's Explorer Canoes Articles

On May 19 1971 the Indian War Canoes got a more politically correct name. Though Davy Crockett's Explorer canoes was basically the same attraction.The 35 foot long one ton canoes weren't made by Disney instead they came from a canoe building company in Maine.All power for the canoes come from the dozen guests and two strong arm cast members in the boat.The canoes launch from the northern most dock along the western bank of the rivers of America.The canoes have operated irregularly because weather concerns and there was some talk that they'd be permanently retired in the late 1990s. However today the canoes still exist as a rustic throw back to Disneyland earlier simpler years.Canoe capacity 20

In the 1970's a "D" ticket was required

From 1970's Attraction Showmanship
Racoonskin-capped Hosts paddle the Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes, encouraging their guest-crews to join in. Although the canoes are replicas of actual birch bark canoes used by trappers and explorers who tamed the West, the current canoes used in the Park are made of fiberglass and wood. Flotation tanks have been added for safety since the opening in 1957. Departing from the dock adjacent to the Mainland's Hungry Bear Restaurant, the canoes seat eighteen guests who use "paddle power" to propel themselves around the Rivers of America and Tom Sawyer's Island.

From Steve Birnbaum brings you the best of Disneyland 1982:
Of all the boats that circle the Rivers of America, these 35-foot fiberglass craft-replacements for the wooden originals made by Maine's Old Town Canoe Company may offer the most fun, at least for the stalwart. They're real canoes, and they're not on tracks. Though the helmsman and the sterns man are always strong enough to do the work, the guests' contributions also matter when it comes to completing the 2,400-foot trip. On fine sunny days, impromptu races spring up, complete with properly competitive hoots, whoops, and yelps. Note that the attraction operates only during busier periods, and that it closes at dusk on those days.