Tom Sawyer's Island

[JoeCool]

HI.

Tom Sawyer's Island seems to be not what it used to be. The overall conditions of the Island and the fort are subpar. Maybe it is time to say good bye to Tom. But what could the island be used for? Any ideas? Feelings about TSI?

[revol yensid]

I haven't been there for a long time...it just doesn't seem worth it to wait to get on an island with nothing to do and then have to wait in a line just to get OFF. Its a nice place to do nothing, if that's what you're looking for, but it would be nice if they build a restaraunt on it or had something to do more than self-led expeditions to get lost in tunnels. I don't think there is enough room to fit a ride...so I'm not sure how they could do anything there. Fantasmic! is on Tom Sawyer Island so that's something that's good about it...

[AStarOnMars]

I have never been over to the island even as a child ... I have been on the raft but my cousin and I changed our minds and left the rest of our family over there ... it was funny though b/c the CM had a puzzling look when we said we did not want to get off the raft.

[Dirton]

[revol yensid]

They could try to do something like that. Maybe they could connect the landmass to fontierland by some sort of tunnel or bridge.

A bridge would have to be really tall to allow the Columbia pass, unless it is a drawbride...and a tunnel would be nice...no line for one of those.

[Villains Fan]

I think it should definitely stay. It's one of the few places kids can actually just run around and not get lost in crowds. As a kid, that was the first place my Dad would take us to. Of course, we just wanted to go on rides, but he made us go to TSI for an hour and let us run off that initial "we're at Disneyland, I want to go on every ride" energy and then we weren't quite so antsy when we had to wait in lines.

[MiceMan]

I think they should keep it but also create a rapids ride themed to going down the Missouri or something tied in with TSI

[xfkirsten]

I absolutely love TSI! I have had more fun playing hide-and-seek there, and exploring the caves, and taking photos... then again, I'm a 6-year-old trapped in a 22-year-old body. :lol:

[Jspider]

they need to get that fort reopend (fix it or take it out and build a new one) and fix up a few other places and they'll be fine

I would go crazy and wish for them to move BTMRR out there like it is in Paris but with fantasmic running out there it just isn't practical

[almandot]

I haven't been to the island in a very long time. Certainly not since they renovated a bunch and added things. I just couldn't get myself to spend time there when I just wanted to run around the park more. The thing I didn't like as a kid was that the caves were too small. I wanted to be able to get lost in them or get through some maze-like thing.

[desertdweller]

Welcome back JC!

My one and only real visit to TSI was in '59 and as a 13 year old I thought it was one of the highlights of my visit to the park. The pontoon bridge, suspension bridge, caves, fort and tilting rocks were a playground come alive. My cousins, sister and I still talk about how much fun we had that day. The island was a great idea for the original design and is the primary reason the RofA work so well. It's rebirth as the main stage for Fantasmic was a brilliant idea and has given pleasure to millions. The only thing I'm sorry about is the safe, friendly island it's become. When we crossed those bridges we thought we might break an ankle as children. Like crossing a log over a stream in real life or rocks, we were careful. That part of the "magic" has long vanished.

[kevdo]

I was impressed overall with the improvements they made a few years ago. I was particularly glad they didn't turn it into a version of the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail (which I actually like, but it isn't "natural").

They need to reopen Fort Wilderness and do stuff in there (didn't they used to have a snack bar there?).

I love Tom Sawyer even without kids. It is so peaceful walking around the island.

[Michelle]

They did used to have a snackbar in the fort. The island went downhill after the fort closed in general. I miss the guns.

[Ortizmo2000]

I miss that entire fort.

[SilentBob66]

Matt Ouimet, hear our cry. Bring back Fort Wilderness and the guns.

Speaking of guns, a revitalized Fort Wilderness (and Frontierland in general) could benefit from a revival of gunfighting stuntmen who stage mock "shootouts" to add some needed flavor to the land. The Old West was not filled with sensitive, gentle, understanding peaceful souls bent on retaining the natural environment. It was filled with insensitive, rough, violent souls bent on establishing a place for themselves on the American continent, and if that meant cutting down a forest to make a fort, or shooting a settler full of arrows and then burning his cabin, well so be it. Disneyland should be truthful to the spirit of history and present something modern Park guests rarely, if ever, see - people battling each other over a hunk of dirt.

[chadb14]

keep the island, there's not really enough room to add a ride out there, but it's a cool place for little kids to just go roam around and hang out for a little while

[Momzilla59]

Please bring back Fort Wilderness! TSI isn't the same without it.
I love going over there to escape some of the sun. There's nothing quite like resting on a rock and watching the Mark Twain chuff by.

[Dutchman]

A couple of years ago I attended an industry seminar where Disney's ADA man taught a course (which I was taking). He had commented that they really didn't know what to do with TSI. There are numerous compliance issues, not to mention the liability concerns. The fact that you can still go over there is somewhat amazing. It would be really great if it could be brought back to the way it was originally intended, but with the way things are today, I'm not holding my breath.

[Disneyfanatic]

If they add the guns i thought of a cool idea
like the shooting gallery by BTMRR, they should surrond the...surrondings with targets, add them to boats, and i would be there all the time

[Importance]

I think they should take the shooting gallery from its present location and move it into the fort. Turn the current shooting gallery and trading post into a Myths of the Old West dark ride (Pecos Bill, Paul Bunyon, Johnny Appleseed, etc.). The cars would new-fangled steam-powered automatic stage coaches that go hay-wired and take you on a slightly faster version of Mr. Toad's wild ride, only this time through the mythic West.