~ A 21 month old, a celebrity sighting, & a whole lotta food~2 week trip~ 2/28 update

[Sunset Cliffs]

There's no petting zoo at Fort Wilderness?! Oh my, I think I may have been one that encouraged you to check it out. I was SURE it was still there, but after checking it out, it seems all of the petting zoo animals have been moved to Rafiki's Planet Watch Affection Section in AK. So Sorry!

I've been on a few buses that were crowded like that and they're no fun. Sounds like your driver was a transfer from the Richard Petty driving experience!!

Give Ft. Wilderness another chance someday. The first HDDR show is at 5, so maybe mid morning or early afternoon would work better to see some horses, etc.

Don't worry! You were not the only one that mentioned the petting zoo. I'm almost wondering if that guy didn't know what he was talking about. He seemed a little confused...so maybe he was wrong. I'm pretty sure that I read in multiple places that there was a zoo, so we'll just have to try again next time.

Our driver was deceptively sweet looking. I actually felt sorry for her first because she looked like a grandma driving a bus, and I thought how hard it must be for her. Apparently, I was wrong!

That was a great update! sorry to hear about your crazy bus rides! We were pretty lucky in that a majority of our bus rides were not full. I am also surprised that no one got up to let you or Todd sit down with Dylan. the couple of times we had to stand on the bus, someone offered us a seat so we could sit with our DD. Towards the end of the trip, it became more challenging since she didn't want to sit still on the bus and just wanted to run and play. I felt bad for anyone riding the bus with us those days as she would throw little tantrums or screamed when we told her she had to stay seated so she wouldn't get hurt. The joys of parenting. I loved the pic of Dylan sitting out on your deck. he is a cutie patootie!

I was surprised people weren't offering seats either. If I saw someone struggling to hold a small child I would definitely offer my seat to them. There were a lot of men sitting by themselves (no family around) and they didn't offer to get up. We weren't the only ones holding a child, either. I think Dylan was in shock that he wasn't strapped down in a vehicle. LOL I bet he would want to run around too if he got used to the idea of freedom.

Oh my gosh, reminds me of that song "The Little Old Lady from Pasadena" with the lyrics "Go granny, go granny, go granny, go."

How scary to say the least! Glad you had a fun time swimming and that dinner was good! Truly the evening was a memorable experience!

LOL. That's so funny because my grandma lived in Pasadena for a lot of years. So that song has special meaning to me.

Oh goodness! What an evening. The little old lady bus driver had me cracking up!

I've wanted to go to Fort Wilderness but we never made the time. The smores thing always makes me want to go.

Can't wait to hear about the rest of the night.

The bus driver is another person going down in our family vacation history books. She has no idea what a good story she has given us to tell.

I really wanted to do the S'mores thing too. We were so confused out there, and we couldn't figure out where anything was. We should have studied a map first but I thought it would be easy to find your way around.

Well, we go home every weekend because we're only about an 1 hour and 45 minutes away. I'm just used to seeing him every day.

Aw, I hope Dylan gets better! My little guy had a bad fall a few weeks ago...ran into the corner of the side table by the couch. Hit him right by his eye, so he had a good bruise!

That's nice that you live close enough to go home. When I left for college in San Diego it was a 12 hour drive home! I only made it home for major holidays and that was pretty hard at times.

Dylan is recovering really well from his fall. He tripped on our back patio and had quite a bit of "road rash" on his face. By now it is almost all healed, thank goodness. It was his first major boo-boo and that wasn't to easy on his mom & dad (or on him!). Hope your little guy's eye is doing better!

Wow - what an update! I can't believe that bus driver. I was thinking to myself while reading about your bad experience on the busses that I hope this didn't discourage you to try Disney transportation in the future. We've had wonderful (and some not-so-wonderful) experiences relying totally on the WDW transportation but the good outweigh the bad.


I felt bad for you that Dylan didn't get to pet any animals or enjoy a pony ride but you all were real troopers regardless

I'm sure we will try the buses again. We really enjoy the monorail and how convenient it is. We just had bad timing to get there during a really busy part of the day. Plus, I set myself for major disappointment by thinking the bus ride was going to be this great thing. It's so weird some of the things that I think are going to be so cool. Who else would look forward to a bus ride? LOL

 

[tinkgurl]

That's nice that you live close enough to go home. When I left for college in San Diego it was a 12 hour drive home! I only made it home for major holidays and that was pretty hard at times.

Dylan is recovering really well from his fall. He tripped on our back patio and had quite a bit of "road rash" on his face. By now it is almost all healed, thank goodness. It was his first major boo-boo and that wasn't to easy on his mom & dad (or on him!). Hope your little guy's eye is doing better!

Oh my gosh, a 12 hour drive!

I know what you mean about them getting hurt. I hated seeing it happen and then to see his bruise the next day just made me feel horrible because there was nothing I could do about it.

I did have to laugh another time he fell...He fell while he was hopping on the sidewalk and skinned his elbow. He got up and said he was fine and that it didn't hurt, but it was bleeding pretty bad. I kept begging him to let me wash it up and finally got him in the bathroom..When he looked in the mirror and saw the blood, he started crying.

 

[mickeystoontown]

What an update! You have got to love what we call our "down day". Nothing planned, just take your time and decide what, if anything, you want to do.

The food looks absolutely delish. It always seems like I look at food pictures around lunch time and I end up starving!

I understand your whole "Oh my goodness, I get to ride a Disney bus!" thoughts. For years and years, we stayed offsite and drove to all of the Disney parks. Four years ago, we started staying onsite. That first bus ride was...let's just say "memorable". They packed us on like a bunch of sardines and just when we thought we were as close as we could get, they'd pack on a few more sardines.

I can't believe that there isn't a petting zoo area at Fort Wilderness. I always thought there was. I hate that you went all the way there and were disappointed.

We like to people watch too. Sometimes, I wonder what in the world people are thinking with some of the stuff they wear. I guess they figure they are in Disney and they'll never see these people again so what does it matter. But, still, it makes you wonder how they dress in the "real world".

Looking forward to reading more.

Lisa

 

[Sunset Cliffs]

What an update! You have got to love what we call our "down day". Nothing planned, just take your time and decide what, if anything, you want to do.

The food looks absolutely delish. It always seems like I look at food pictures around lunch time and I end up starving!

I understand your whole "Oh my goodness, I get to ride a Disney bus!" thoughts. For years and years, we stayed offsite and drove to all of the Disney parks. Four years ago, we started staying onsite. That first bus ride was...let's just say "memorable". They packed us on like a bunch of sardines and just when we thought we were as close as we could get, they'd pack on a few more sardines.

I can't believe that there isn't a petting zoo area at Fort Wilderness. I always thought there was. I hate that you went all the way there and were disappointed.

We like to people watch too. Sometimes, I wonder what in the world people are thinking with some of the stuff they wear. I guess they figure they are in Disney and they'll never see these people again so what does it matter. But, still, it makes you wonder how they dress in the "real world".

Looking forward to reading more.

Lisa

I seems to always look at food pictures when I am hungry too. I don't know why we torture ourselves...

I couldn't believe how many people were on the buses. We were packed so tight in there that when someone was trying to get off, they were having to push their way through because no one could move out of their way. It was really bad.

As far as the petting zoo goes, I started thinking that maybe the guy was wrong or didn't know about it. He was in the ticket sales booth and he looked very confused when I was asking him questions. If we go back again, I will probably try to confirm it ahead of time.

 

[Sunset Cliffs]

After an insane hour and a ½ at Fort Wilderness, we got in our car and cranked up the air conditioning. The heat outside had really drained us and as we were driving away, we realized that we were VERY low on gas. As in, “oh my gosh, where is the closest gas station?” Considering where Fort Wilderness is, that is not the best location to be searching for a gas station.

We headed towards the MK because we knew that the Hess station was right there. Thank goodness it was close! We made it and Todd filled up on gas while I ran inside and got all of us cold drinks. The inside of this place was big! I was surprised because I thought it was a normal gas station. It had different food stations and tables & chairs to sit and eat. I didn’t check out the food since I was only getting drinks but it’s good to know that it has all of that stuff available.

It was still early and we didn’t want to end the night being disappointed with our trip to FW, so we decided to go to the Wilderness Lodge and check it out. We had been there one time a few years ago, and it was at Christmas time so we went there to see all of the decorations. It had been pouring rain outside so we didn’t walk around the grounds at all and we only stayed a short time. So basically we felt like this would be a new adventure.

We drove in the entrance through the tall arched thing that goes over the road. I wish I had taken a picture of it, since it was so pretty. We pulled into the parking lot and saw the first signs of the hotel. OH MY GOODNESS! This hotel is HUGE and it is gorgeous! I could not get over how big it was from the outside. It looks like this amazing cabin in the mountains that you would see from the road but never be able to afford to stay in.

We walked up to the front doors (even those were impressive in their size) and walked into the lobby. The space inside the front door is massive. Your eyes go up immediately and you see these great chandeliers and big logs that are holding up the roof. I thought the animals on the tops of those logs were such a unique touch! This lobby really reminds me of the Grand Californian hotel at the DL resort in California, only the theme out there is Arts & Crafts style. This has a more comfortable lodge-type feel to it, so even though it is massive, you don’t feel overwhelmed by it.

The front doors

We wandered around for a bit and checked out the Whispering Canyon Café, which is a place that I always want to try but I never remember to make an ADR for it. We also found the fountain (?) in the lobby where the water flows to the outside by going underneath the bridge. What a fun thing to put in a lobby. As we walked around the property we were amazed to figure out that the water flows from that spot all the way through the courtyard, down the waterfall and into the pool! Pretty cool.

We walked outside in the back to the courtyard area and were looking at all of the landscape and Dylan spotted a rabbit. We stood and watched it for a long time. It didn’t even act like we were there and we were probably only 5 feet away from it. This area was so pretty and once again I was just impressed by how Disney takes an area in Florida and makes you feel like you are completely in some other world. When I look at all of the pictures from this resort, it looks like we are somewhere in the Pacific Northwest. I love to feel that escape from reality (isn’t that the whole point of WDW?), and I always seem to get that feeling while visiting the resorts.

We couldn’t figure out how to get down to the pool with Dylan’s stroller and it turns out that you have to go back inside and then go down the ramp from the lobby towards the Roaring Fork. Once we got down there, we were surprised by the size of the pool. It seems really small for the size of this resort! It had quite a few people in it and they all didn’t seem to have much space. I thought it was cute that there were ducks in the pool (since they had ridden the river all the way down from the courtyard area into the pool).

Look at the birds, mom!

They landed on the roof. I told you he thinks birds are so cool!

We headed over to see the geyser because I had heard so much about it, but it had a sign up that said it wasn’t working. That was disappointing, but it gives us something to come back to see next time. We wandered down to the boat docks on the wooden path. Again, we felt like we were in another world back there. So pretty & peaceful!

It was my favorite time of day…dusk. The docks were quiet as there were only a few people getting on one of the boats. We watched it drive away and then just stood out there for a long time watching the birds hunting for fish in the shallow water. Those big white birds can swoop by pretty fast! They are so stealthy when they are looking for fish, and we saw them catch quite a few while we were there. Other than it still being incredibly hot & muggy, it was one of the best moments of our trip. I can’t really explain it…it just was. Todd even turned to me and said, “We’re having a Disney moment right now.” He was feeling it too.

I LOVE this picture. The lanterns are so pretty and the water so calm….sigh!

We stayed out there as long as we could stand it, but the heat was making us feel sticky & gross. We made our way back into the lobby and headed for the gift shop. Outside of the shop, we saw the totem pole that everyone takes pictures next to. I read how some people take pictures of their kids next to this on every trip, so that over the years you see them growing taller. I loved that idea, but of course Dylan wouldn’t stand still next to it by himself. So we had Todd holding him in the picture. Hopefully next time he will be standing on his own. My camera did not like the lighting in this hotel. This picture turned out really dark.

After a quick trip through the gift shop we were ready to go. Heading back out to the car, there was a flight of steps to go down (or we had to take the long way around down the ramp). So Todd leaned Dylan back onto the back 2 wheels in his stroller and bounced him down all of the stairs. Dylan thought that was hilarious and he was cracking up. Todd said it was the only free ride that he would go on this week.

We got back to the condo about 9:30 and my parents were watching the news. They said that they were having a lot of weather warnings for the following day. Based on how hot it was today, I believed them when they said it was reaching record high temperatures for the area. The heat index was supposed to be over 110 degrees and they kept strongly suggesting for elderly people or small children to avoid being outside for long periods of time. We were scheduled to go to the Animal Kingdom the next day, but I was worried about that because it feels so much hotter at that park than any other parks. We all talked about what we should do and we came to the conclusion that we were not going to risk Dylan getting overheated. We changed up the schedule for the rest of the week and decided that tomorrow would be a free day as well. We were just going to have to do some back-to-back park days later in the week.

We told my parents about our Fort Wilderness adventure. I am so glad that they decided to keep shopping instead of coming with us. It would have been a lot worse if they had been there because I would have been feeling bad for dragging them out there. I wrote up my TR for a while and then we went to bed at 12:30.

Up next…what did we do with our next free day?

 

[AlohaPolynesian]

The WL is so pretty! We ate at WCC (gross!) but I loved the atmosphere of the resort. We didn't explore like you did, and I wish we did because you got some really great photos and it sounds like you had a good time! I don't understand why AK is hotter than the other parks, but I totally agree!

 

[SleepingBeautyOH]

Great update! don't you just love the WL? We stayed there this summer and loved it! You're lucky to be able to schedule free days during your trips. Can't wait to hear more!

 

[SunnieRN]

That is actually one of the best pictures I have seen of the totem pole in the lobby!! Great color and you can really get a good perspective of Dylans size!! Great job!!

I am so excited. Our trip starts now the 21st as my daughter surprised me by making a reservation at the Wilderness Lodge Villas for a night, prior to checking in to AKV on the 22nd!! It really makes me think of Yosemite and the Big Trees area!!

Looking forward to more!!

 

[jordanyosh]

I read your last 2 updates and when I was finishing your update about the Fort Wilderness Debacle, I was thinking that you should've gone to the Wilderness Lodge. I laughed when I saw that's exactly where you went.

I'm sure the pictures of you on the boat dock don't do the moment justice. I hope you have several more of those moments throughout your TR.

I am beginning to think that down days are the best....

 

[cjackearl]

Was this the 21st or 22nd?

I'm glad you ended your day on such a positive note. The WL is gorgeous! Thanks for the picture tour. What a doll Dylan is checking out the birds!

Good idea to switch up your plans. When we were experiencing that heat I thought to myself a couple of times that I was glad we weren't in AK!

 

[wdwgirl03]

OMG, beautiful pictures of the Wilderness Lodge! We absolutely loved staying there but sadly I hardly took any pictures. Thanks for sharing yours!

I have to agree about the pool. The main pool is not that big and the only other one they have is the quiet pool near the villas. Strange.

 

[sharonW]

The pics of WL are so gorgeous!
I love that resort, if we ever get
to go back to disney that is where
I want to stay!!!! Well, I can dream!!

 

[aaaateamsgrandma]

So sorry about Dylan's fall. I hope he is recuperating nicely. I have been involved with Sheri's Birthday surprise (I got it posted last night) and had missed dissing for a couple of days.

My idea of outdoors and camping is: TV, microwave, air-conditioning and a real shower. Outside of that I can do about anything. I am a modern girl who is not at all interested in 'roughing' it.

Ginny

 

[LilAnn]

oh my gosh, I love your photos from the WL! I have never wandered the grounds there either because the one time I went to visit it was pouring rain outside. We also wanted to try Whispering Canyon one day, but didn't have room this past trip. That sounds like it was such a nice relaxing family day at the lodge. Those pics on the dock are gorgeous! I hope Dylan feels better. Sometimes the falls are worse on mommy and daddy than for the little ones.

 

[RobinHoodGirl]

WL may be my favorite WDW resort (leaving an open mind for my Feb trip to the BWV though ). You're pictures are wonderful!

 

[tinkgurl]

*Sigh* LOVED your WL pics. Definately made me miss staying there. It's just such a peaceful, quiet, and beautiful Resort. As the spiel on the monorail says, "WL is nessled on the shores of Bay Lake" and we love that it's just around the corner from the MK!

 

[Sunset Cliffs]

The WL is so pretty! We ate at WCC (gross!) but I loved the atmosphere of the resort. We didn't explore like you did, and I wish we did because you got some really great photos and it sounds like you had a good time! I don't understand why AK is hotter than the other parks, but I totally agree!

I have heard mixed reviews about WCC, and maybe that is why I haven't been as persistent to get an ADR there as I have at other places. That hotel is so pretty and it is hard to take a bad picture. I'm glad we spent the time to walk around it and see the grounds especially. The outside is as impressive as the inside.

Great update! don't you just love the WL? We stayed there this summer and loved it! You're lucky to be able to schedule free days during your trips. Can't wait to hear more!

Ooohh, you are so lucky to get to stay there. How nice to think of that as "home" for a little while. We have always scheduled free days, even when we go on shorter trips. I hate coming back from vacation and being more tired than when I left. The free days help us to not be exhausted.

That is actually one of the best pictures I have seen of the totem pole in the lobby!! Great color and you can really get a good perspective of Dylans size!! Great job!!

I am so excited. Our trip starts now the 21st as my daughter surprised me by making a reservation at the Wilderness Lodge Villas for a night, prior to checking in to AKV on the 22nd!! It really makes me think of Yosemite and the Big Trees area!!

Looking forward to more!!

We took quite a few pics of the totem pole (& kept changing the camera settings) and that was the best one. You are right that the colors turned out good. It just feels dark to me.

What a nice surprise to find out you are staying at the WL! I bet that was a good day. The AKV is pretty amazing too. You are going to have such a good time!

I read your last 2 updates and when I was finishing your update about the Fort Wilderness Debacle, I was thinking that you should've gone to the Wilderness Lodge. I laughed when I saw that's exactly where you went.

I'm sure the pictures of you on the boat dock don't do the moment justice. I hope you have several more of those moments throughout your TR.

I am beginning to think that down days are the best....

The WL definitely saved our night. Nothing against FW but it just didn't do it for us. The boat dock was such a great moment. It was beyond words but when I see that first picture, it reminds me of exactly how I felt. Love that!

Was this the 21st or 22nd?

I'm glad you ended your day on such a positive note. The WL is gorgeous! Thanks for the picture tour. What a doll Dylan is checking out the birds!

Good idea to switch up your plans. When we were experiencing that heat I thought to myself a couple of times that I was glad we weren't in AK!

THis was actually Saturday, June 20. Father's Day was the next day.

The WL is amazing. Of course, we are just in awe of the property and are soaking it in....and all Dylan cares about are a flock of birds going by in the air.

I'm glad that we were flexible to switch our days. My parents had their conference at the end of the trip, so it made it a little more difficult to fit everything in, but what is the point of going to a park if I was going to worry about Dylan all day? AK would have been miserable!

 

[Sunset Cliffs]

OMG, beautiful pictures of the Wilderness Lodge! We absolutely loved staying there but sadly I hardly took any pictures. Thanks for sharing yours!

I have to agree about the pool. The main pool is not that big and the only other one they have is the quiet pool near the villas. Strange.

Thanks! It is easy to take good pictures there since it is so pretty! About the pool, I can understand that they used a lot of the property's space to do the waterfall & courtyard, but you would think they would have left a little more room for a bigger pool.

The pics of WL are so gorgeous!
I love that resort, if we ever get
to go back to disney that is where
I want to stay!!!! Well, I can dream!!

I can dream about it right along side of you. Not sure if we will ever get to stay there, but we will definitely be returning to visit on our next trip.

So sorry about Dylan's fall. I hope he is recuperating nicely. I have been involved with Sheri's Birthday surprise (I got it posted last night) and had missed dissing for a couple of days.

My idea of outdoors and camping is: TV, microwave, air-conditioning and a real shower. Outside of that I can do about anything. I am a modern girl who is not at all interested in 'roughing' it.

Ginny

I'm not a real "roughing it" kind of person either, which is funny since I grew up in Northern California and everyone here seems to like camping. I think it's fun...but it's MORE fun to stay in a cabin.

Dylan is doing much better. It was a pretty bad scrape on his face and so it made me sad every time I looked at him for the first couple of days. Of course, he got over it 10 minutes after it happened. He just needed a few days to heal.

oh my gosh, I love your photos from the WL! I have never wandered the grounds there either because the one time I went to visit it was pouring rain outside. We also wanted to try Whispering Canyon one day, but didn't have room this past trip. That sounds like it was such a nice relaxing family day at the lodge. Those pics on the dock are gorgeous! I hope Dylan feels better. Sometimes the falls are worse on mommy and daddy than for the little ones.

That was our first experience too. It was raining outside so we ran in from the parking lot and stayed inside the whole time. The dock was an nice, unexpected surprise.

Todd and I felt horrible about his injury! He plays on the patio all the time, and it was just a fluke thing that he tripped. But like I said, it was a pretty bad fall and his first major injury. I gave him a popsicle to distract him while we cleaned him up, and he forgot all about it. We are the ones that needed to recover from the ordeal!

WL may be my favorite WDW resort (leaving an open mind for my Feb trip to the BWV though ). You're pictures are wonderful!

BVW would not be a bad runner-up. I was surprised by how nice the WL was. We will definitely be visiting again.

*Sigh* LOVED your WL pics. Definately made me miss staying there. It's just such a peaceful, quiet, and beautiful Resort. As the spiel on the monorail says, "WL is nessled on the shores of Bay Lake" and we love that it's just around the corner from the MK!

LOL - you crack me up that you know all of the speeches. But wow! The location to MK is great. I didn't realize it was so close. One more benefit to staying there, for sure.

 

[tinkgurl]

LOL - you crack me up that you know all of the speeches.

I'll take that as a compliment!

 

[ibedancin824]

You got some gorgeous pictures of wilderness lodge im so jealous!!! We ate at whispering canyon cafe.... if ur following my TR you will eventually find out that I didn't get one single picture at WL due to me getting sick