By Jessica Mattern, CountryLiving
When
you think of haunted rides at Disneyland, the first one to spring to
mind is probably the Haunted Mansion. But for decades, rumors have
circulated that it's actually the Matterhorn that's truly haunted — and
it seems that there actually is a tragic true story behind the ghost tale.
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in 1984, 48-year-old Regena "Dolly" Young from California was killed on
the Matterhorn Bobsleds ride when she fell out of her car and was
fatally hit by another bobsled, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Since then, the section where she was struck—on the Tomorrowland side
of the mountain — has become known as "Dolly's Dip," and park employees
claim she still haunts the ride.
A former ride operator
named Kristen, who worked at the park from 1989 to 1995, claimed that
she could feel a "supernatural presence" while operating the
Matterhorn—and that other staffers told her they had seen a ghost while
on the job. "I worked on that ride for several years, and I never saw
her, but I sure did feel her," she wrote in a blog post for Wander Wisdom.
During
her time at the Magic Kingdom, staffers were required to walk the ride
after it closed everyday to look for lost and found items — and she
always dreaded it. "Every time I was (un)lucky enough to get a track
walking shift I had an uneasy feeling, like someone was watching me,"
she wrote. "I was always convinced that it was Dolly and so I would
often say 'hi' to her. The feeling was always the worst in the big
cavern in the middle of the ride, and at Dolly's Dip (the spot where she
died). In fact, the work lights in the tunnel near Dolly's Dip always
seemed to be burned out. In six years, I don't think I ever saw those
lights working."
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And
sadly, this isn't the only fatal accident to ever occur on the
Matterhorn. A teenage boy died after he stood up while the ride was
moving and was struck in the 1960s. The park has since changed the
ride's seatbelts, according to the Los Angeles Times (though Disney claims the redesign had nothing to do with the accidents).
So the next time you visit
the park, you can get your phantom fix by visiting the Haunted Mansion
ride... or you can say hello to Dolly and the other spirits that allegedly still lurk in the park (including Walt Disney himself!).
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