A few years ago most guests wandering near Casey Jr. Circus train in Fantasyland were oblivious to the alpine chalet on a little hill half hidden among lush trees.. this chalet was the old Fantasyland station of the extinct Skyway to Fantasyland Skyway to Tomorrowland attraction. Guests who never got to experience the Skyway may find it hard to appreciate its greatness but great it was especially back in the 1950s and 60s when cable suspended gondolas were still a decade away from becoming ambiguous transit systems at ski resorts. Disneyland souvenir books claimed that the Skyway was the first elevated aerial tramway of its kind in the United States though a larger and higher elevated aerial tramway the Sky Ride had operated at Chicago's Century Of Progress exposition in 1933
Like the PeopleMover and Monorail the Skyway was an ambitious attempt to introduce efficient public transportation into Disneyland unlike any other attraction the Skyway afforded guests a lingering view of Disneyland from high above the park the attraction poster certainly emphasized the ride vista views making it look as if guests were hundreds of feet aloft and rising on steeply pitched cables. While the ride was not quite that dramatic the site of Disneyland from 5 stories up in the air was even more breathe taking than it was at ground level providing a full open air view of the parks vast expanse
The Skyway to Fantasyland and the Skyway to Tomorrowland were really the same attraction operating in opposite directions both Skyways ran on the same cable both shared the same support towers and both connected the same two stations in Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. The Fantasyland station had a Swiss theme though the inscription on the building came from Alice In Wonderland "Up above the world you fly like a tea tray in the sky said the dormouse" the futurist station a quarter mile away near Autopia had a more spartan design.Guests rode in small red, blue, yellow and green gondolas with flat roofs and no glass in the windows
Over the years the design changed while the 1956 originals were cylindrical and included only 2 individual patio style chairs by the mid 1960s the gondolas were rectangular and contained benches for four passengers In the early years the ride could be taken for either a one way pass or a seven minute round trip but in later decades all trips were one way only the altitude varied depending on where the 42 gondolas dangled along their journey but usually they averaged a height of between 40 and 60 feet. The central suspension tower standing tall on the hill where the Matterhorn would be built topped out at 85 feet
Along the way guests got incredible views of Tomorrowland and Fantasyland because it would block the Skyway path when built the Matterhorn was erected in 1959 with a passageway running east west through its center enabling guests to make an exciting trip through the mountains interior. Inside the mountain guests witnessed bobsleds hurtling through the mountain on their angled tracks also on view below the Skyway was the Submarine Voyage, Alice In Wonderland, the Pirate Ship restaurant and Casey Jr. Circus train..
Stories of severe accidents and even deaths have long swirled around the Skyway all of these rumors have been exaggerated however and none of them pertain to the reason the attraction finally closed in the fall of 1994 A more probable reason was the irresistible temptation for some guests to spit, litter or pour beverages over the side of the gondolas onto visitors below there was also the more serious possibility of an eventual calamity plus the presents of the steel towers and cables in the charmingly remodeled Fantasyland
After the Skyways last celebratory run with Mickey and Minnie aboard the Matterhorn's holes were sealed up the Skyway towers removed and the Tomorrowland station disappeared into memory. The Fantasylan chalet was removed in 2016 The Skyway was simultaneously a mild sightseeing ride and a bit of a thrill ride. Some guests find it scary to be dangling from a slender cable high in the sky. The bucket sways back and forth whenever the cable goes over a support tower, causing occasional gasps from guests.
The cable was 2,400 feet long with 44 gondolas. The Skyway stations were equipped with a large digital meter to gauge wind speed. It usually fluctuate between zero and three knots. If the meter hit twelve knots employees shut the ride down.For dangerous situations, in the mid-1970s Disneyland installed speakers on the Skyway towers and microphones in the stations. By depressing the "All Ride" switch, operators could give announcements or warnings "from on high." Hosts were to use the device for emergencies only, since upon hearing a deep voice suddenly resounding from the sky, guests typically froze in terror. As such, the device became known as "the God Switch."
The drive mechanism was in the Fantasyland side with a 35 thousand pound ballast on the Tomorrowland side to keep the cable tight.Skyway was built by Von Roll Iron Works of Bern Switzerland. From WED Disneyland Dictionary 1968 From a modern station in Tomorrowland, the four-passenger cars rise above the Monorail Station and Submarine Lagoon, drift through Matterhorn Mountain caverns with views of racing Bobsleds and emerge high above Alice in Wonderland's Adventure, the Pirate Ship and other features of Fantasyland. The 1,200-foot journey ends in a quaint Swiss Chalet. There are 44 streamlined gondolas.Skyway is the first of its kind installed in the United States. It carries streamlined gondolas aloft on a moving cable for an unobstructed view of the "Magic Kingdom" 60 feet above ground level.
Specs Capacity 2500 per hour -- Capacity per gondala 4 -- Cycle Time 8:02 -- Load Time :09 -- Unload Time :07 -- Trip Time 3:30 -- Trips per hour 312 -- Distance Traveled 1155 feet -- Speed 3.8 MPH
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