Well, it seems as if we have gone off on a bit of a tangent.
How did that happen?
Let's get back on track here.
These next photos are from Sunday night, June 13th.
We left the Fort on Monday the 14th.
So, sadly, that means we are approaching the end of this little report.
But, we're not quite there yet.
On Sunday night, June 13th, we decided to watch the EWP and Fireworks from the lakefront behind the 300 loop.
It has been a while since we have watched either the EWP or fireworks from this vantage point.
I have a friend who insists that this is the best place from which to view the fireworks.
He drives his golf cart down there, and watches the fireworks right from his cart.
The only problem with this is that there are several no electric cart signs right outside the 300 loop access to this area.
But, my friend Brian still exclusively stands guard at Clementine's Beach.
Which means no one guards the 300 loop access.
I'm just sayin'
Anyway, here we are at the edge of the lake to watch the EWP:
I must say that the EWP and fireworks schedule for this weekend was quite convenient for us campers.
The EWP, as always, was at 9:45.
And, then the fireworks were at 10.
Perfect.
We were the only ones there to watch the EWP.
But, as soon as the last strains of Yankee Doodle Dandy echoed off of the lake, we hear someone or something approaching. We heard many voices, and an odd creaking sound.
It was the hayride!
Minus the hay!
I guess it's just a wagon ride.
Well, whatever you call it, this big wagon full of people, pulled by two huge horses, approached, and pulled right in front of us.
The driver said hello, and welcomed us to come stand in front of the wagon.
So we did.
And then the fireworks began!
As I mentioned earlier, the Summer Nightastic fireworks involve fireworks shot up high in the sky, and then some that are just shot off around the castle. You can't see these lower fireworks from the Fort beach. But, here, we can see the castle, so logic would dictate that we will be able to see all of the fireworks.
Oh, I should mention one more thing before we look at the photos.
There was no audio for the fireworks here.
None.
At least not on Sunday June 13th.
There have been innumerable reports from people saying that the audio accompaniment is provided for the fireworks on the wagon ride. Some say that a truck with a speaker parks there. Some say there is a speaker in the window of the little cabin across the canal here. Fort Wilderness Guy once confessed that it was just him hiding in the bushes imitating Jiminy Cricket. But I am telling you there was no audio here on this night.
And that diminished the experience.
Especially since there was a particularly loud guest on the wagon interrogating the driver about the campground, and asking how anyone could possibly be camping here in the summer heat. The driver offered that he had once seen a tent with an air conditioner hooked up to it. The loud guest was amazed. And so it went. I love a good inane conversation. If they only knew. But I digress. Again.
Here are the fireworks photos:
In the photo above, you can see Space Mountain, and the castle. It is interesting to see how far the fireworks are actually shot off from the park. When you are there, it seems like they are right overhead, but they really aren't.
Here we can see some of the lower level fireworks being shot off around the castle, both in front of and behind the castle:
When you see these lower level fireworks in the MK, they are impressive.
Not so much from this far away.
The one thing that you can see from this vantage point, is that there is quite a bit of distance between the fireworks. From the park, and from the Fort beach, for that matter, it seems like the fireworks are all very close to each other:
I think the view of the big finale is good from this point:
When the wagon brought these folks back, they were dropped off right in front of Crockett's Tavern, and the wagon headed back to the barn from there:
After having seen the fireworks from Clementine's Beach and then from behind the 300 loop, I would say that Clementine's Beach is definitely the better location. True, you can't see the lower level fireworks, but they are so far away that they really aren't very impressive from behind the 300 loop. Plus, if they aren't providing audio back behind the 300 loop, then you most definitely would want to stick to the beach.
So that's my $.02 about the fireworks.
Next up- photos from Monday morning.
And a preview of the next mystery TCD will be solving.
TCD