The Hidden Mickeys of EPCOT's Future World East

Those of you that have no idea what a Hidden Mickey (HM) is need look no further then my first article which explains exactly what they are and how they came about.

Some days you just want to travel back in time and experience what life was like at the time of the dinosaurs. It's amazing to look at those miraculous creatures and imagine what it must have been like to be the dominant forces on Earth for a period of time. Maybe though you'd rather check out the farthest reaches of space and travel past the moon and all the way to Mars. If you're up for some even more thrills though, you can take the place of some crash test dummies for a day and make sure the vehicles on the road are safe for all of us. Well, guess they won't be very safe for you originally if you're a crash test dummy. All of these adventures seem overly dangerous so you better find your Hidden Mickeys quick.

EPCOT has only two main sections to the park unlike Magic Kingdom that has seven lands, but it's not like there isn't a lot of ground to cover. The park is separated into the front section known as Future World and the back section which consists of worldly countries known as World Showcase. To make this a bit simpler, I'll be dissecting the HMs of Future World first but splitting it up into three sections. Upon walking into the park you'll encounter Future World Central but after finishing with Spaceship Earth and Innovations, take yourself a left and head into EPCOT's Future World East.

Universe Of Energy

~ There were so many refurbishments over the years that I'm not entirely sure where any Hidden Mickeys are anymore in this pavilion. Ellen Degeneres took over the attraction with the ride not really changing, but the ending movie did. I'd love it if someone could tell me where to look for some HMs by e-mailing me at dacox415@yahoo.com.

Wonders Of Life

~ This pavilion has been rendered almost useless in recent years as there are no longer any shows or attractions inside of it. It is used now as a convention center of sorts during special events at EPCOT. I know that all signs were removed on any attraction that was in there and that is essentially where all of the HMs were. So if you find one now then I give you credit.

Mission: SPACE

~ The huge blue moon you see as you enter the pavilion has a nice tri-circle crater that is easily seen if you take time to look.

~ While walking through the queue, look for the mission control room and check out the monitors. There are numbers, planets, and other information strewn about on them. Check out one that has the planet Mars and you'll see a tri-circle Mickey head as it rotates around.

~ One of the coolest HMs is seen as you sit in the cockpit of the ship and right before takeoff. Look at the blast shield to the far right and far left and you'll see the silhouette of Mickey's head.

~ As you're landing on Mars, look to your right and you'll see three satellite dishes on top of a building that come together to form a Mickey head. Look quickly or you'll miss it.

Test Track

~ Unless you get a Fast Pass, then chances are you'll be standing in line a while. Do yourself a favor as you're waiting and look around to find tons of Mickey-related stuff. There's a Mickey pez dispenser, pictures of people in Mickey hats, and the Mouse himself even signed off on a lot of the tests that need to be done. Just look at everything and trust me you'll discover a ton of stuff.

~ Look at the grease board on the back wall in the Environmental Testing area to find a few HMs.

~ Upon entering the "Corrosive Chamber," there are two HMs to spot but you have to be fast. Look immediately to your right when you enter to see a car door with a tri-circle rust spot on a white car door. Immediately to your left as you enter is a truck fender with the same type of rust Mickey.

~ This next HM is really only visible in the post-ride photo you can purchase, but if you look fast then you can check it out while riding. As you get ready to head outside, it is on the side of your test car (your left) and is a length of hose in the shape of a tri-circle Mickey.

Wow, talk about going to totally different places in exact opposite time frames. It's not often that you can enjoy the past, present, and future all in one area and in the matter of a single day, but that's the joy of EPCOT. Hidden Mickey seekers are going to have some difficulty over in Future World East though because there is a great deal of speed at hand there and it's going to cause you all to be on your toes and have your eyes peeled. Chances are you'll need to ride these attractions multiple times to fully catch all the HMs, but there's never anything wrong with that.

Please feel free to let me know if there are any I've missed or that you think are truly there. Oh, and for those that are brand new to the world of Hidden Mickeys? Don't let searching for them ruin your trip to the happiest place on Earth please. Always make sure that you are taking in everything and enjoying all you can while there with friends and family. Hidden Mickeys are fun to look for and find, but there really is so much to do that you don't want to be on a wild goose chase for your entire trip.