After the splash down, another oil rig can be seen burning fire far off in the distance. Another, much smaller, Nixie appears and taunts riders, ending with 'Over the falls with you! Muhahahaha!' The boat then plunged down a shallow 28 foot drop, narrowly missing a giant oil rig as lightning flashes in the sky. Odin informs riders that 'Today, Norway's spirit thunders in her great fjords!' Before riders are sent over the edge of the waterfall, the boat is turned around to another track once again. The boat is now in a dense, sunny forest. Then, the area begins to brighten up from the aforementioned hole in the wall outside the ride's entrance. Shortly afterward, the boat enters into a snow-covered tundra, drifting past polar bears, one of which paws at riders as they pass by. The boat floats past a cliff side in the distance being illuminated by the Sun. The troll banishes riders 'over the falls!' Now going backwards, the boat travels down a very tiny and shallow dip while a man's screams are heard throughout the room. As all this happened, the boat would slowly and gently be rotated onto another track via a hidden turntable. The spell appeared on the ceiling in a bright swirl of lights. The three-headed troll is furious at riders for entering Troll Country and retaliates by casting a spell. To the left of the troll is a large Nixie (or a Nokken as most people call it) who rises from the water and stares at riders with its flashing yellow eyes. Afterwards, the ride goes dark again, and Odin warns riders of the Trolls who 'prowl the water's edge.' The boat then enters a thick swamp overlooked by a large three-headed troll. Large ships are seen in the distance, and a woman blows her horn on a nearby rock. Next, the boat drifts by the ocean shore. Then, a woman is seen by a small camp fire, a man and a boy stand atop a boat, and a different man reads to another. The boat then emerges into a room dimly lit by fiery torches. As the boat nears the top, Odin's face suddenly disappears, his eye staying visible briefly before closing. The boat climbs up a lift-hill while Odin stares riders down. Those who seek the spirit of Norway face peril and adventure! But more often. Then, the voice of the Norse god Odin suddenly speaks to riders. Soon, guests would board their viking ship ride vehicle and be sent off into total darkness. The theming stepped up once guests neared the loading area, where a massive mural depicted the various aspects of Norway, both past and present. Guests entered the queue in a large building with the ride's logo hanging on the wall, which stated the ride was a 'High Seas Norwegian Adventure.' The inside was barely themed at all, mostly just being a standard line amidst colorful walls and several Norwegian flags. However, if guests stared inside the hole a little longer, they would have noticed one of the boat ride vehicles appearing to go over the edge of the waterfall, before moving the other direction just in time (we'll get back to this part later). At first glance, this hole just looked like a standard set-piece with a waterfall flowing from it. There was formerly a hole in a wall to the left of the ride's entrance. The experience began before even entering the queue. It officially opened to the public on July 5th, 1988, and would be a staple at the park until 2014. Shortly before the ride's opening, the name was changed to Maelstrom (strange, considering there was no actual maelstrom in the ride). The name SeaVenture lasted for a very long time, with a sign even being installed at the time of the pavilion's official opening on June 3rd, 1988. These were then placed into a film which guests would watch after the ride. Unfortunately for Disney, the ride had a limited plot of space to be built, so some elements of the ride were cut out.

They wanted the ride to teach riders about Norwegian folklore and legends, but also Norway in the present day. However, the Norwegian sponsors of the ride wanted the ride to be more of a history lesson than a mythology showcase. The ride would culminate in guests crossing the rainbow bridge to the blessed regions of Valhalla. The original name for the ride was to be 'SeaVenture,' and it was to be a whimsical adventure through the lands of Norway, with some Troll encounters along the way.

Imagineers had planned for the headlining attraction of the pavilion to be a boat ride themed around Norse mythology. In fact, it is the youngest of the pavilions in the land. The Norway Pavilion didn't originally open with EPCOT.

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