It all started with a PIN . A first time TR - 3-5 Update

[B&WMickey]

Day 3 – Part 2 – AK – 1

We made it in time for rope drop. Or should I say a few moments before rope drop.

Being an EMH-AM we were able to get in the park before the waiting masses were let in. We had some specific things we wanted to get done today.

1. Safari
2. Nemo show
3. Lion King show
4. Bird show
5. Parade

After all this was going to be our only day at AK so we knew anything we didn’t get done today we might not get to see again until 201X????

We decided upon entering we were going to dash to the Safari ahead of the crowds. The park was pretty empty when we got in and in no time we were over in Harambe and boarded the Safari with virtually no wait. This may have been the earliest we had ever been on the Safari. It was great, the animals were extremely active today.

I’ll spare you all of the countless safari pics I took and just show you a few of the better ones.

Ostritch

We always love the Safari, great ride that the entire family loves. On our way out we decided to grab FP’s and come back later knowing that we can always agree on riding.

After that the kids really wanted to hit Triceratops Spin so we decided to head to Dinoland. As we were headed that way we passed the Tree of Life and DW suggested that I take DS to see It’s Tough to be a Bug. We weren’t even going to try this one with DD. She’s been a bit spooked since seeing Fantasmic on our first night. She likes Muppet Vision 3D but she isn’t a huge 3D fan otherwise.

Also, DW and I will never forget the first time we saw ITtbaB back when we went to WDW on our Honeymoon in 1998. Seeing all of those little kids screaming in terror having to be whisked from the theater by their parents leaves a lasting impression on you. So we weren’t going to chance it with DD.

The boy and I decided to give it a shot while the girls went shopping. I hadn’t seen it since before we had kids. It was still as good as I remember it. DS loved the part where we got sprayed by “acid” by the termite. Since he had a hard time seeing over the people in front of us, he wound up sitting on my lap. Therefore, he didn’t get “stung” by the bees in one of the more traumatic moments of the show for little kids.

When the show was over we met up with the girls with every intention of heading over to Dinoland and give Triceratops Spin a try. Both kids were dying to head over there. However, DW and I looked at our watches and then looked at the show time guides and realized the bird show was starting soon. So we told the kids, just one more stop before Dinoland.

I think the bird show is one of the more underrated things at AK. I think it’s really well done and funny too. The kids liked it, especially some of the low flyovers the birds do.

OK now that the bird show was over on to Dinoland.... Right? Wrong!!!!

We had every intention of actually making it there but on the way over we realized how close we were to the Nemo show and that another show would be starting shortly so we promised the kids again that after we see the show we’ll head to Dinoland.

The Nemo Show was great. We first saw it in 2009. I couldn’t believe how good it was. I love the “puppets”, especially the giant pelican. The whole thing is really true to the movie. Of course our kids love it too.

OK... now it’s Dinoland time.... or maybe not.

By now it was getting near lunch time and I think all of us needed something to eat. I’ve wanted to try Flame Tree Barbecue for some time now. I convinced everyone since we were close by it would be the perfect place to eat.

I love the seating areas, tucked in amongst the trees behind the restaurant. We had this guy hanging out near us during our meal.

Both DW and I got the BBQ pork sandwich. (I can’t remember what the kids had.) It was fine, nothing spectacular. I liked the sauce I bathed it in. Finding the condiments was the toughest part of the meal. They were tucked off way to the side.

 

[jandm]

Great trip report! How were the crowds the week you were there? We are trying to decide between Nov and Jan. Was free dining going on? Thanks!!

 

[B&WMickey]

I am really enjoying your TR. Nice to have a male perspective. You have a lovely family

Thank you.

I noticed you’re from Vermont. We had the privilege of going there on vacation a couple of years ago and loved it.

Just joining now

Welcome aboard!!!!!

Great trip report! How were the crowds the week you were there? We are trying to decide between Nov and Jan. Was free dining going on? Thanks!!

Thanks

The crowds and the weather were great. Really enjoyed this week since the parks were decked out for Christmas and we were able to do MVMCP, plus we were still able to do F&W at Epcot. We’ve done the second week in January in the past. The weather can be a bit more unpredictable, we had some warm days and some not so warm days. The crowds were very light in January once the marathoners left town. If I had my choice I'd pick the same week in November again.

I think there was a free dining promotion going on while we were there in November but we didn’t do a dining plan this time.

 

[Moodyzblu]

Great pics of AK !

AK is my most favorite park .. but can you believe we have never done Birds of Flight ?? After reading so many positive things about it .. I'm going to have to take the boys there this trip.

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 3 – Part 3 – AK – 2 – Dinoland at Last

OK…. we finally made it to Dinoland. It took awhile but after lunch we finally made do on our promise to the kids and headed to Dinoland.

I know I’m not the only one who isn’t a fan of this place. However, my kids, especially DD, really seem to like it though. They both really love Triceratops Spin even though it’s Dumbo without any of the endearing charm and sentimentality that goes with it.

It was at this time Junior was overcome with this enormous sense of adventurousness. Maybe it was the whole grandeur of the dinosaur theming that made him feel invincible. As we were waiting for Triceratops Spin he took notice of Primeval Whirl and was insisting that he really wanted to go on it. I kept telling him that I wasn’t sure that ride was for him.

(Side Note: I know some people may be reading this and thinking that their 4 year olds ride things like Rockin’ Roller Coaster without even working up a sweat. Not my kids. For a 6 and 8 year old they aren’t all that daring. Not to mention at times my DS exhibits symptoms of motion sickness so I didn’t think the up and down and whole spinning thing would sit well with him.)

After Triceratops Spin I convinced him that if he wanted to try a ride that was a little bolder we should try Dinosaur. He agreed and I took him over while the girls shopped and roamed around for awhile.

I’m always worried what do you do if you are on a ride and your child goes absolutely ballistic with fear. That’s my biggest worry with any of the kids. I mean you’re trapped and have nowhere to run literally. It turns out I had nothing to fear, he did great.

Sue

We met up with the girls near Triceratops Spin with the intention of going back on it. Well the boy wasn’t done taking chances. As we met up with mom and little sis, he insisted that we go on Primeval Whirl. Since he did fantastic on Dinosaur I said alright and we hit that while the girls did Triceratops Spin again.

This turned out to be the longest we waited for any single ride while at WDW. During our initial ride of TS the wait times for Primeval Whirl hung around 20 minutes. Well, by the time we made it back over there the wait times had jumped to around 40 minutes. From best I could tell they were only operating one side of the ride and that resulted in a crawling line, especially when the line was stopped to let FP people in.

After about 40 minutes (darn, the wait time posted out front was accurate) we boarded the ride. Once again nothing to worry about, Junior came through without a scare. 2 for 2.

 

[B&WMickey]

Great pics of AK !

AK is my most favorite park .. but can you believe we have never done Birds of Flight ?? After reading so many positive things about it .. I'm going to have to take the boys there this trip.

Thanks

I’d highly recommend taking in the bird show next time you are there. It’s one of those underrated gems.

 

[FosterA]

Finally got caught up tonight.
Looking at your photos may not be a good idea though because they make me really really want to go back!
Did a CM take the family one in Dinoland? Great pic!
You also did 2 things that I really wanted to do and didn't have time.....the bird show and ribs from Flame Tree

 

[IluvXU]

Joining in... I am a huge fan of POR too!

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 3 – Part 4 – AK – 3 – Lion King/Parade

We still wanted to catch the Lion King show, always one of our favorites and see Mickey’s Jingle Jungle Christmas Parade. So when we finished Dinoland we hustled over to the Camp Minnie and Mickey area.

We got there moments before they started letting people in the theater. This was one of the first times while we were in AK that I felt like it was actually crowded. I think as we were getting there the previous Lion King show was letting out, which kind of meant we were swimming upstream of the crowds.

Here is a shot of the crowds waiting to get into the theater.

We were let into the theater and seated in the Elephant section. As always the show didn’t disappoint. I’ll spare you all of the half blurry pictures I took of the show from a distance. I know they’ll never really turn out when I'm taking them but I still keep clicking away.

We were in the Elephant section

It was definitely a warm one and when in the sun you could feel it. Of course it felt great but we were all kind of dragging by now. We made our way towards Harambe. Our plan was to see the parade and then head over and ride the safari again with our FPs before we left AK for the day (and for our trip).

It was still about an hour before parade time but we needed to sit and chill out for awhile.

As we were heading towards the general direction of Harambe looking for places to sit I noticed an empty bench. We decided to grab it. It was in the sun, which was annoying since it was right in our eyes at this point but with the sun going down fast and it was only a matter of time before we would be in the shade. At this point DS was craving a frozen lemonade so while DW sat with the kids I went to grab one for him and I to share. Delicious.

A few pics I snapped on the way over to find the frozen lemonade.

Before we knew it the parade was starting.

Notice the guy on the far right. DW and I referred to him as the Parade Police Chief. He took his job very seriously (and rightfully so) directing traffic and keeping people out of the way of the parade route.

We’ve always liked this parade. It has a different sort of vibe from the other parades in the parks. It often feels less crowded and it seems easier to get a good seat without having to fight the crowds.

Gotta Love Pluto!!!!!​

 

[B&WMickey]

Finally got caught up tonight.
Looking at your photos may not be a good idea though because they make me really really want to go back!
Did a CM take the family one in Dinoland? Great pic!
You also did 2 things that I really wanted to do and didn't have time.....the bird show and ribs from Flame Tree

That is the worst things about reading TR’s is how much it makes you miss the place.

A CM took the picture of us, I don’t even remember asking, I think she noticed that I was going to take a picture of the kids and she just offered.

I know in your TR you mentioned that being from Texas you guys are BBQ connoisseurs. I’m not sure if Flame Tree will live up to the lofty Texas standards. It was good but nothing special.

Joining in... I am a huge fan of POR too!

Welcome aboard, always room for a POR fan.

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 3 – Part 5 – AK – 4 – Safari – A Little Privacy Please

Part of our master plan this morning was that when we rode the Safari we would grab FP’s for later in the day so we could ride it again without any wait. So after the parade we hightailed it over to Harambe.

When we got there it turns out there was no wait and they weren’t even collecting FP’s. We literally had a shorter wait than we did in the morning and that was virtually wait free.

I thought that this was going to be a busy day at AK. After all it was an EMH AM day and I’ve been taught to avoid EMH AM parks like the plague. Well I think this was one of the benefits of travelling this time of year. Fortunately for us while the parks overall never felt deserted crowds generally were on the crowds were on the lighter side.

Anyway we hopped back on and were soon on our way for our second safari of the day. At first I was a bit disappointed. In the morning as we were going around all of the animals really seemed quite active but now after 4 PM they were a bit more subdued.

I managed a few pictures along the way that were worth posting.

Things finally changed when we came to Pride Rock. As we were rounding the corner the guide mentioned that this is the time of day the lions are pretty active. Sure enough when we got there the male lion was up on his feet and moving. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the male lion not lying on the rock sleeping, maybe with his head up from time to time but not actually moving on his legs and all.

However, that wasn’t the best part. The guide went on to say that typically twice a day he does this and will alert others that he is awake. And that is when he started growling...... well more like barking, he was making this woofing sound. It was amazing!!!!!!!!

Now this is the point of the Safari ride where things kind of took a PG-13 turn. As we were moving around Pride Rock you could see the female lion was still lying down. Well daddy lion was heading in her direction getting closer. Before you knew it, it appeared that he was about to get close to her, real close to her. That’s when our guide floored it and got us out of there. Cover your kid’s eyes!!!!!!!!! I’m glad we got out of there quickly enough before I had to have the birds and bees talk with my kids.

 

[DisneyDreamerMom]

Just wanted to tell you I love this TR! We're headed to WDW the week b4 Thanksgiving in 2012 and staying at POR, so this is perfect reading to get in the mood. I'm so glad the rides worked out so well for your son!

 

[Moodyzblu]

Your lion "shots" are awesome ! Great timing.

Kilimanjaro is my most fav AK ride .. it just never gets old !

 

[FosterA]

Yep, the Safari is my favorite AK thing or quite possibly my favorite WDW thing all together! That's hilarious about the lion's getting frisky!

I also want to make seeing the AK parade a huge priority next time we go. I still have yet to see it and it looks so awesome!

oh and I love that photo you took with Everest in the background!

 

[meggiebeth]

Great updates! What luck on the safari, I would love to see the lions up and active like that. It sounds phenonomal.

 

[rdkeim]

Really enjoying your trip report! We were there in early December and it was pretty good crowd-wise and great weather-wise. I think next trip we'll try November. Keep up the good work - looking forward to your next installment!

 

[suzieQ36]

Checking out your TR...we are thinking of going this same time this year! Looks like a great time to go!

 

[B&WMickey]

Day 3 – Part 6 – AK – 5 – Expedition Everest – Let’s Dance

Well whatever it was we all seemed to have unlimited energy today. It was now close to 4:30 and the park had really emptied out at this point. I don’t think we had ever intended to stay this long without taking a break to leave the park but our kids were doing so great we just kept going. They didn’t seem to want to leave either.

Well I still hadn’t had a chance to do EE yet so from Africa to Asia we go.

While DS had found some hidden courage earlier in the day that seemed to have disappeared when I asked him if he wanted to give EE a shot.

When we got over to EE the line was virtually nonexistent. I walked right in and only had to wait for one or two trains before I was able to board.

I really do like this ride a lot. I love the queue area. I didn’t get to spend much time in the queue this time since there was virtually nobody ahead of me in line. I remember my first time on this ride several years ago and had to wait in line for about an hour. You really get the sense that you are on an “expedition.” One that is truly fraught with peril. At times I found the atmosphere in the queue took on very somber and reflective moments. Especially as you pass through the temple like area with the scarves and bells. Even going through the Yeti museum. So well done.

Of course the ride itself is fantastic. I love the speed and the big drop and the backwards parts, through the dark. I’ll never forget seeing the Yeti for the first time in all his original glory. Fierce!!!! Alive!!!!!!

Unfortunately this time as well as the last time I rode EE it was Disco Yeti.

I hope against all hope that one day WDW can restore the Yeti to his former glory. Nonetheless EE is still a good ride.

After EE it was time to leave, the park would be closing soon. The park was also pretty deserted. We moseyed our way to the exit and to the bus stop.

DS got pretty emotional at this point. He had really enjoyed AK, more so than any other time before, it was a break out day for him in some ways and he was aware that we weren’t coming back here the rest of the trip.

We got back to POR at a reasonable time. We still had several hours to kill before the 8 PM MNF kickoff. We were still pretty full from lunch so we decided to go swimming first before dinner. This was our first time at the pool at night. We had a blast but the water was pretty cold. I’ve heard they heat their pools at WDW but it sure didn’t feel this way tonight. I hung in there for about a half hour before coming out to warm up. We let the kids go for another 30 minutes before we got them out.

After swimming we went back to the room then headed over to Riverside Mill for dinner. I had a cheeseburger and for the life of me I really can’t remember what anyone else in our group had. By this time it was getting close to 8 PM.

From there we headed back to our room. As we were crossing Ol’ Man Island I wanted to stop at Muddy Rivers to pick up my favorite drink in all of WDW... the pinacolava!!!!!! (I know, I know, it’s not the most masculine drink in the world but I love the fruity tropical drinks while on vacation in a warm weather destination.)

We grabbed my drink and headed back to the room just in time for kick off where we watched the game. A great night for the Packers 45-7 and we were 9-0. (Of course this was back in November and the Packers finished 15-1. Unfortunately it was all for naught as our dreams of back to back championships came to a crashing halt at the hands of the NY Giants.)

This brings us to the end of Day 3. Tomorrow is an off day in the morning and early afternoon and then MVMCP at night... stay tuned.

 

[Moodyzblu]

AK .. my favorite park ! Love EE .. but I don't think I've ever seen the Yeti. I try to find him .. but can never seem to see him.

Sorry about the Packers. It was a tough game to watch. Even though we're Pats fans .. we were rooting for the Packs to take out the Giants.

 

[B&WMickey]

Just wanted to tell you I love this TR! We're headed to WDW the week b4 Thanksgiving in 2012 and staying at POR, so this is perfect reading to get in the mood. I'm so glad the rides worked out so well for your son!

I hope you enjoy this time of year and your stay at POR as much as we did.

Your lion "shots" are awesome ! Great timing.

Kilimanjaro is my most fav AK ride .. it just never gets old !

I agree, it’s never the same ride twice.

Yep, the Safari is my favorite AK thing or quite possibly my favorite WDW thing all together! That's hilarious about the lion's getting frisky!

I also want to make seeing the AK parade a huge priority next time we go. I still have yet to see it and it looks so awesome!

oh and I love that photo you took with Everest in the background!

Thanks…

The parade at AK is one of those underrated things at WDW. We always like the fact that it’s very laid back and it never seems as crowded as some of the other parades.

Great updates! What luck on the safari, I would love to see the lions up and active like that. It sounds phenonomal.

It was quite a thrill to see the lion that active, up and moving and all. Especially when he started growling/barking that was intense.

Really enjoying your trip report! We were there in early December and it was pretty good crowd-wise and great weather-wise. I think next trip we'll try November. Keep up the good work - looking forward to your next installment!

We’ve been to November several times and have always enjoyed ourselves. The crowds are usually pretty light and the weather is still awesome.

Checking out your TR...we are thinking of going this same time this year! Looks like a great time to go!

Can't beat the crowds and the weather. Plus with the Christmas decorations up that was also a big plus. It was a great way to kick off the Christmas season for us.

AK .. my favorite park ! Love EE .. but I don't think I've ever seen the Yeti. I try to find him .. but can never seem to see him.

Sorry about the Packers. It was a tough game to watch. Even though we're Pats fans .. we were rooting for the Packs to take out the Giants.

Thanks for the kind words, we'll evenutally get over it up here in Wisconsin and go on with our lives.

Since they switched it to Disco Yeti it's difficult to find him if you aren't looking for him. The first time I rode EE after he was switched off I never saw him. When he was fully lit up and active it was awe inspiring.