Grizzly Peak (location)

“Land of Scenic Wonders”

―Slogan on map

Grizzly Peak
Attractions	The Buena Vista Bugle Grizzly Peak Grizzly River Run Humphrey's Service and Supplies Red Car Trolley Redwood Creek Challenge Trail Rushin’ River Outfitters Soarin' Smokejumpers Grill
Type	National park
Location	Bearpaw Basin County, California
Inhabitants	Oo-Soo-Ma-Te Bearpaw Basin Smokejumpers Eureka Gold & Timber Company Grizzly River Rafting Company Jakob Probst Herb Madera Millie Madera Ranger Hibler Humphrey the Bear J. Audubon Woodlore The Wilderness Explorers Patrick Soarin' Kenai Nita Koda Rutt and Tuke Bambi (possibly) Faline (possibly) Thumper (possibly) Flower (possibly)
Visitors	Bullwhip Griffin (possibly) Camp Inch Russell Dug Phiphi Francis Maleficent (possibly) Mother Gothel (possibly)

Grizzly Peak is the fictional setting of the land of the same name in Disney California Adventure.

Description

Grizzly Peak is a nature park region located in Bearpaw Basin County, California. The park is centred around the mountain of Grizzly Peak.

Features

• Antelope Meadow:
• Bobcat Pass:
• Bullwhip Griffin Trail: A trail on the outskirts of Grizzly Peak which passes from Mule Deer Meadows into the mountains by Every Man's Bluff. The trail appears to be named after Bullwhip Griffin, a 19th century hero of the Californian gold-rush.
• Eureka Lake:
• Grizzly Peak Lodge:
• Grizzly River: The Grizzly River is a river which passes throughout the Grizzly Peak region.
• Little Growler Springs:
• Mule Deer Meadows:
• Old Sequola Road:
• Raccoon Creek:
• Red Top Road: The Red Top Road is a road through the region connected to California route 49. The road also connects to the Mountain Road which passes through Grizzly Peak.
• Rushin' River:
  • Grizzly Falls:
  • Rushin' River Pass:
• Wildwood Road:

Bearpaw Basin

Frog Jump Falls

Bearpaw Basin is a basin along the Grizzly River and namesake for Grizzly Peak's county.

• Bristlecone Bend:
• Frog Jump Falls: Frog Jump Falls is a small waterfall along the Grizzly River.
• Geyser Gauntlet:

Grizzly Peak

Grizzly Peak is the mountain which the area is named after. It resembles a large grizzly bear's head, considered in the local Indigenous lore to be the petrified bear spirit Oo-Soo-Ma-Te.

• Badger Brook:
• Bear Claw Falls:
• Camp Inch Trail: A trail used by the all girls summer-camp, Camp Inch which was active at-least during the 1960s.
• Grizzly Summit:
• Every Man's Bluff:
• Mountain Road:
• No Man's Bluff:
• Red's Ridge:
• Snowfall Summit:
• Spotted Bat Caves:

Grizzly Peak Airfield

Mt. Muir Lookout and Soarin's hangar at the Grizzly Peak Airfield

This is an airfield located in Grizzly Peak used by firefighters and scenic airplane companies.

• Hangar: This is a large hangar, mainly used by the hang glider company Soarin'. Inside is the, "Californian Aviators Wings of Fame" exhibit commemorating various Californian aviators from history.
• Honeyrock Ridge:
  • Whistling Sherman Trail:
• Humphrey's Service and Supplies:
• Mt. Muir Lookout: A lookout structure located directly outside of Soarin's airline hangar.
• Refreshment Point:
• Smokejumpers Grill: This is a restaurant which was established by Herb and Millie Madera. The restaurant is themed around honouring local firefighters and pilots.

Grizzly Peak Recreation Area

The main recreation area of Grizzly Peak national park.

• Bear Creek:
• Eureka Gold & Timber Co building.:
• Greater Grizzly Lake:
• Pelton Wheel:
• Redwood Creek Challenge Trail:

  

  A map of the Redwood Creek Challenge Trail

  • Mt. Lassen Lookout: A headquarters for the park rangers.
  • Mt. Whitney Lookout:
  • Pine Peril Bridge:
  • Quail Trail:
  • Redwood Creek:
  • Sequoia Smoke Jumpers Training Tower:
  • Spirit Cave:
  • Wawona Walk:
• Steam Donkey:

History

Background

Pre-contact history

According to Indigenous lore, the origin of Grizzly Peak is as follows:

“Long ago, Ah-Ha-Ee, the Coyote, met Oo-Soo-Ma-Te, the Grizzly Bear on top of the mountain. Seeing the Grizzly was a powerful being, Coyote asked him to watch over and protect the land. Then one day, people came and tried to chase Oo-Soo-Ma-Te from the Mountain. But Grizzly was strong and held his ground. When coyote saw the brave bear standing alone against so many, he turned Oo-Soo-Ma-Te into stone so he could never be driven away. To this day, people claim they can hear the great bear spirit in the wind that roars through the caverns and trees of Grizzly Peak”

―Legend of Grizzly Peak

During North American pre-history, the region was visited by Kenai, a man from what is now Alaska who was turned by spirits into a bear. He was accompanied by his adoptive younger brother, Koda, and a pair of Canadian moose named Rutt and Tuke. Kenai was affiliated with a mystical, "Spirit Cave" of animal cave paintings made in the Redwood Creek area of the region. Rutt and Tuke's likeness would be used in a totem pole which appeared to carry on their spirits thousands of years later.

19th century- 1960s

In the 19th century, German emigrant Jakob Probst happened upon gold in the rivers of Grizzly Peak when he angrily threw his hat in the river and pulled it out with a 1lb gold nugget inside. Jakob staked a claim in the region of Grizzly Peak which he then sold for millions of dollars to the Eureka Gold & Timber Company. Throughout the late 19th and early 20th century, the company took gold from Grizzly Peak and shipped it to San Francisco.

In the 1950s, the timber company ran out of gold to extract and closed down. The US government turned the region into the national park Grizzly Peak Recreation Area. As a national park, many took to white-water rafting in the Grizzly River.

In 1957, the Bearpaw Basin Smokejumpers were established. World War II veteran pilot Herb Madera trained firefighters who worked for the Smokejumpers. At one point, a large fire devastated the county and the Bearpaw Basin Smokejumpers were able to save the citizens. Herb Madera and his partner Millie Madera later opened up the Smokejumpers Grill quick-service restaurant as a tribute to the pilots and fire-fighters of Grizzly Peak.

Around the 1960s, the park was visited by the girls' summer camp, Camp Inch. At some point, Toon park ranger J. Audubon Woodlore of the Brownstone National Park moved to Grizzly Peak to work as a park ranger and hiking expert there. His frequent adversary Humphrey the Bear also wound up in Grizzly Peak and appeared to be the namesake of, "Humphrey's Service and Supplies".

1980s onwards

In the 1980s, a group of entrepreneurs repurposed the old mining buildings to make the Grizzly River Rafting Company. Ranger Woodlore would conduct some safety procedures on the company's rafting services.

Around the 21st century, the Grizzly Peak Airfield became a base of operations for the advanced hang glider company Soarin'. The company and their chief flight attendant, Patrick, oversaw flights over California and even across the world, at the end of which at-least one flight encountered the Neverland pixie, Tinker Bell.

By around the 2000s/2010s, the Wilderness Explorers had activity in Redwood Creek. At some point after c. 2009, the creek was visited by Wilderness Explorer Russell and his talking dog companion, Dug. Russell made an alteration to the Spirit Caves, adding a short depiction and description of tropical bird, "Kevin" from South America. Through unknown circumstances, Kevin appeared to have also made his way to the Redwood Creek forest, leaving footprints behind in it.

Appearances

Disney California Adventure

Buena Vista Street

The Buena Vista Bugle

The bugle has had many stories and photos related to Grizzly Peak. Volume 1 Issue 1 had the story, "Grizzly Peak Named National Park!" while Volume 4 Issue 3 had the story, "Adventure Awaits Grizzly Peak". Volume 5 Issue 4 had a story titled, "Flights Departing Daily!" which announced Soarin' Around the World.

Red Car Trolley

A sign for the Red Car Trolley promoting Southern California tourism travel features an image of Grizzly Peak along with other locations of Disney California Adventure.

Condor Flats

A removed billboard in Condor Flats had a painting of an airplane directing guests to Grizzly Peak which told them to, "BEAR LEFT". This land was later absorbed by Grizzly Peak.

Grizzly Peak

Grizzly Peak is the setting of this land.

Trivia

• Grizzly Peak has influence from and references to Disney's, "True-Life Adventures" documentaries In Beaver Valley (1950) and Bear Country (1953). This line of Disney documentaries is notorious for having lied about the animals it recorded, and staged scenes of violence against animals (most infamously chasing a group of lemmings off a cliff and claiming it is group suicide, and showing footage of a polar-bear cub falling down an icy slope which was actually staged in a Calgary film studio).
• Characters from the Country Bear Jamboree have sometimes made live appearances in this area.
• A map of Grizzly Peak has, "Bullwhip Griffin Trail", a reference to the protagonist of The Adventures of Bullwhip Griffin (1967).
• Grizzly Peak and Grizzly Gulch are both fictional locations from the Disney Parks centred around mountains shaped like bears, have histories of mining, and which are affiliated with characters from Brother Bear.
• A, "Prevent Forest Fires" sign has Bambi, Thumper and Flower from Bambi (1942).
• There is a flyer at Smokejumpers Grill promoting Camp Inch, a fictional location from The Parent Trap (1961). The flyer says, "Time to switch places" referencing the plot of the film, and, "Let's get together" referencing a song from the movie. Camp Inch Trail is also a location in Grizzly Peak's mountain-range.
• Grizzly Peak is similar to Disney's Animal Kingdom locations such as Anandapur, Harambe, Discovery Island and the Valley of Mo'ara in being a Disney Parks location which the Wilderness Explorers from Up are active in.
• During Oogie Boogie Bash, Grizzly Peak is host to characters like Maleficent and Mother Gothel.

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