Finding the Grand Canyon At Disney – Up the Waterfall

Grand Canyon at Disney? Well sure, I’m sure everyone knows about the Grand Canyon Concourse at Disney’s Contemporary Resort, and perhaps the Grand Canyon Diorama on the Disneyland Railroad, but there are more than just those connections between the Grand Canyon and Disney.

On this episode of Up the Waterfall, we share and discuss the first appearances of the Grand Canyon as it relates to Disney, and all the way up to current representation in the Walt Disney Parks and Resorts. Of course as usual, we inject our own memories, experiences and thoughts on all of these connections.

The blog post from Passport 2 Dreams, I will link here. Foxxy actually has two posts on the Contemporary if you’d like to read, they are fascinating and accurate historical accounts of the creation and changes to Disney’s Contemporary Resort.

Passport2Dreams: The Contemporary Resort in the 1970’s

and The Contemporary Resort through the 1990’s

Additionally, I wanted to share some photos from our family’s trip to the Grand Canyon in 2016. This was part of a multi-part summer vacation, where we visited Arches National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Zion National Park, Capitol Reef National Park, Canyonlands National Park, as well as the North Rim and South Rim of the Grand Canyon National Parks. (And ended up in Disneyland!) (you can click on any photo to enlarge it)

I mentioned on the show the Grand Canyon Lodge where we had lunch, but I didn’t really have good photos of that, just one from inside showing the view from the windows. But be sure to watch the show on the video below for even more photos, including the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone, one of the inspirations for Disney’s Wilderness Lodge. So be sure to check those out!

The Grand Canyon North Rim — You can see where Disney gets many of its names – National Parks!

Grand Canyon North Rim — North Rim Visitor Center, where the Lodge is

Grand Canyon Lodge view — Grand Canyon Lodge dining room

The Grand Canyon Lodge — Dining room view

Grand Canyon Watch Tower — The Watch Tower at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

The Grand Canyon South Rim — View from the top of the Watch Tower at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

Grand Canyon North Rim Elk — The big Elk we saw leaving the South Rim of the Grand Canyon

We hope you enjoy this week’s episode of Up the Waterfall!

How to Listen to Up the Waterfall

You can listen anywhere you download and listen to podcasts, including:

(If there’s a podcast service where you can’t find our show, let us know and we’ll get it added there!)

Where to Watch Up the Waterfall

Head to our Up the Waterfall YouTube Playlist – where you can see our opening sequence and some images of the Grand Canyon represented in Disney over the years. Here’s the latest episode:

Feel free to comment below with your memories of the Grand Canyon at Disney, any questions or info you’d like to add, or if it’s easier, head to the Zannaland Facebook page and join the discussion there with fellow Disney or Grand Canyon fans!

How Can I Learn More About This Episode?

Here are some of the books we referenced for this episode (the links will go to the item on amazon.com and are affiliate links – meaning no extra cost for you but a small portion goes back to zannaland if you make a purchase – thank you for supporting our site!):