AK - Dinosaur Fossil Display, still there?

[ILoveLegos]

Around the year 2000, my parents went to Animal Kingdom for the first time. In the Dinosaur area of the park, there was a museum-like walk through display of casts of dinosaur bones, fossils and the like that took 20 minutes or more to examine (read the display cards etc.). There was also a walk through area where there were a lot of ferns an living animals from the Jurasaic era - like turtles and lizards on display. I have seen their pictures of the area, but have never found the area personally. Is this exhibit still there? If not what if anything has taken it's place?
Lastly what ever happened to the fire breathing dragon of animal Kingdom, if memory serves it was inside a cave that you could see along the way of a boat ride (I've read early park descriptions that say it is there never seen it with my own eyes). Just wondering...

[joelkfla]

I think the museum was called Dinosaur Expo. It was replaced by Dino-rama. A shortened Cretaceous Trail still exists near Dinosaur, but there are no more animals, AFAIK.

The dragon was in a cave along Discovery RIver below Camp Minnie-Mickey. As a boat went by, you could hear the dragon roar and flames would shoot out. Even after the boats were discontinued, the flames would still shoot out every few minutes, and could be seen from the bridge into Camp Minnie-Mickey. The effect was discontinued a few years ago.

Another discontinued effect I miss is the leap-frog fountain on the creek through Camp Minnie-Mickey.

[DizneyRox]

Yeah, Dinosaur Expo is indeed gone. I liked it, but it was obvious that it ws meant to be temporary. The building itself was an inflatable if I recall correctly.

There was a little booth where they worked on a Dino fossil. Well, that work has been completed and is now "Sue" who is on display along the walkway towards Dinosaur.

The firebreathing effect is now gone as well as the Discovery River Boats, or Radio Disney Cruise, or whatever the boat ride was called.

Loads have changed since 2000, some for the better.

[ILoveLegos]

Okay, thanks for the updates - Animal Kingdom is the one park that I visit the least, usually because it's so hot & humid in there when I go. But it is also one of my favorite places to look for "unusual" Disney sights. Up until recently I thought my parent's pictures in the dinosaur display area of AK were taken during their 3 month cross country drive (I thought it was a road side attraction). And although they did visit a few of those type of places, they assured me that those particular pictures were indeed taken in Disney's AK.

I really like the Imagineering story telling effect of making the prior dig site - now Sue. That's clever.

I've got to check out the shortened Cretaceous Trail (not Jurassaic - thanks to the book/movie that's the only dinosaur era that comes to my mind, ugh), botany is one of my lesser explored hobbies.

Too bad the fire breathing Dragon effect is gone, it would have explained the dragon on the AK logo and could have made a really "different" area in the park. Like maybe an extension to the Fantasmic dragon or something along that line with thrill rides. (Maybe someday... :))

You're right Disneyrox, some changes in AK have been for the better, Expedition Everest comes to mind! :mickey:

Hopefully I'll be checking these things out in just little 10 days - if I can stand the heat! :blush: (In July, yeah right !!!)

[joelkfla]

Too bad the fire breathing Dragon effect is gone, it would have explained the dragon on the AK logo and could have made a really "different" area in the park. Like maybe an extension to the Fantasmic dragon or something along that line with thrill rides. (Maybe someday... :))
Legend has it that Camp Minnie-Mickey was a low-cost, possibly temporary replacement for a section of the park to be known as Beastly Kingdom, which never came to be. It was to be the "imagined" part of "animals past, present, and imagined", and was in fact rumored to inlcude a dragon-themed roller coaster and a unicorn-themed family attraction (perhaps a maze or a dark ride) in the plans. That's why there was a dragon living rather incongruously under Mickey's Adirondacks campsite.

[ILoveLegos]

Legend has it that Camp Minnie-Mickey was a low-cost, possibly temporary replacement for a section of the park to be known as Beastly Kingdom, which never came to be. It was to be the "imagined" part of "animals past, present, and imagined", and was in fact rumored to inlcude a dragon-themed roller coaster and a unicorn-themed family attraction (perhaps a maze or a dark ride) in the plans. That's why there was a dragon living rather incongruously under Mickey's Adirondacks campsite.

Wow, I'd love to see that legend become a reality! :D