Pangani Forest Exploration Trail
Description
The Pangani Forest Exploration Trail is a walk-through live animal exhibit near
the exit from Kilimanjaro Safaris. Several species of
animals are visible in habitats ranging from savannah and water to forest and a
cleverly disguised aviary. While not as extensive as a large-city zoo, the
diversity and the quality of the exhibits is very impressive. Near the end of
the trail is Africa's Kid's Discovery Club activity
center.
History
This exhibit opened on April 22, 1998 under the name Gorilla Falls Exploration
Trail. Originally it was planned to be a research station, and those who
successfully aided the hunt for the poachers were rewarded with special access
to this usually private area. With the watering down of the poacher story in Kilimanjaro
Safaris, this explicit backstory was abandoned. Signs for the research
station can still be found in the area.
Review
The Pangani Forest Exploration Trail is a barometer of the Animal Kingdom itself.
If you get it, if you like it, you're going to like most of the park. If, on
the other hand, you see it as another Disney attempt to educate, you probably
will be disappointed in the park overall.
Not surprisingly, we here at NahTahZu.com get it, and like it. As with most of
the animal areas in the park, the trail is full of ingenious habitats, with no
obvious barriers. The theming is intricate, and now that the park is over a
decade old, the natural growth of the trees and plants really gives this
attraction a forest feel.
Photos
Touring Tips
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If you intend to ride Kilimanjaro Safaris first thing in the morning, consider doing the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail first. You will miss the first wave on the safari ride, and you'll have the trail almost completely to yourself, so you can linger if you so choose, or rush through some parts without knocking over grandparents and small children.
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If you want to finish the Kid's Discovery Club activity without walking the full trail, you can sometimes convince a cast member at the exit to let you go through in reverse. Don't be too rude if you are refused, however - the exit counts guests as they leave, letting the cast members know if someone is lingering too long too near to park closing.
Hidden Treasures
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Notice the aviary. You walk into one building to see some exhibits, then exit through a pair of doors. Once outside, you are actually under a large net, which keeps the birds in, yet you probably won't notice until you start looking for birds up in the trees. Not wanting to repeat the same mechanism on the way out, the Imagineers installed a bead door (you know, like from the '70s), which is enough to keep the inhabitants from flying into the building but doesn't impede the flow of guests.
Walkthrough
 The
areas that you will visit along the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail are:
Okapi observation post. Here you will see the Okapi, the strange animals that
look like zebra relatives but are actually closely related to giraffes.
Apparently it is the long, black tongue that gives it away. Also in this area
are Stanley Cranes and Yellow-backed Duikers (an antelope relative).
Gorilla Falls Research Station, which takes its name from the original purposing
of this exhibit. Here you find lots of small animals, or at least the skeletons
of small animals. But your visit will only be complete when you look in on the
world-famous Naked Mole Rats (who can't love an animal with that name?).
Aviary. We've said it already, but it bears repeating: this is very clever. On
our first several trips through the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail, we really
didn't notice the fact that we were inside a huge net, and only later noticed
the clever entry and exit system used to allow guests to pass while keeping the
residents in. The aviary is home to many exotic African species. The most
colorful are the Lady's Ross Turaco, Bearded Barbet (both red and black), and
the Taveta Golden Weaver, not to mention the four varieties of stunningly-beautiful
starlings.
Underwater exhibit. Here you look into a wading pool from below the surface, so
that at first you think it's an aquarium. Small fish dominate the view at first,
and it is always fun to watch for the first person to spot the Nile
hippopotamuses (usually a small child, but occasionally a taller guest sees them
from above the waterline). Further study will reveal turtles sharing the pond
with the large mammals.
Savannah overlook. You've been waiting for this, perhaps since the warthogs on Kilimanjaro
Safaris; meerkats! Yes, they are here, but for those of us introduced to
them by the more stylized Timon from The Lion King, it can be hard to
tell them apart from prairie dogs. Plus, even after watching for what seems
like hours, we have yet to see one of them burst into song while on guard duty.
Behind the meerkats are a variety of savannah vegetarians, like the Gerenuk (a.k.a.
giraffe gazelle), Gunther's Dik-Dik (named for the sound they make: zik-zik),
and Abyssinian Ground Hornbill.
Gorilla Falls. The biggest draw of the Pangani Forest Exploration Trail (and
therefore usually the most crowded and slow-moving) is the gorilla exhibit. A
troop (consisting of several families) of Western Lowland Gorillas call the
Animal Kingdom home, with members ranging from tiny diapered infants to the
silverback head honcho. There are several overlook areas, so if the first one
is full, move on to the next, and don't be afraid to backtrack if the crowd
thins.
One last thing: Beware of Buffalo!
Hidden Mickeys
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A Classic Mickey adorns a backpack in the Gorilla Falls research station (show picture).
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Behind the desk lamp at Gorilla Falls, a box of antiseptic soap sports a Classic Mickey (show picture).
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