Trip report 1/3-20/2014

[jbrostek]

Spoke to the dealer this morning, the tech is working hard on the truck and trying to make sure my issues are cured and I can finish my trip problem free. I am just tired of the waiting game and being stuck so far from my destination and home. My fingers are crossed that their confidence I will be done and on my way south this afternoon is correct.

 

[nabi]

It's not the same, but glad you can be among friends here.

 

[KristinU]

Wishing you speedy and thorough repairs and a safe remainder of the trip!

 

[marybrat]

Fingers crossed for you!

 

[veraletta]

Sorry to hear about your truck being broke down, I hope that you will soon be on your way... Try to keep warm and think about all the fun you will soon be having.....

 

[articfox676]

We are saving some great weather for you coming up. There will be 80s Fri., Sat., and Sun.

 

[nabi]

Poor Florida students...no snow days.
Pixie dust for the next leg of your journey.

 

[jbrostek]

Sorry for the late update, but I did not take a lot of down time from the point of the call from the dealer and getting on the road. I started to make sure the 5er was nearly travel ready in case they did get the truck fixed. Well by 2pm it was finally done, well after the 10-11 I was told. As soon as the shuttle got me to the dealer, I paid and ran to the campground. I got all the final prep done, hitched out and triple checked everything (I did a pull test twice!!!) I was not going to have another issue.

Then I was on the highway and WOW my truck has not felt this peppy since I bought it. It really needed the injectors before this trip and I will invest and do the other bank myself in the spring.

So by 3pm I was rolling south, the trucks sweet spot went from 60-65 to 65-70, anything below 65 and it would drop a gear to say in the 2k rpm range. So holding about 68 most of the time (unless speed limit was lower) I ticked off the miles and earned my steel butt badge (only 1 stop for fuel after 3 hours and another 4 hours later.) At 1:15 in the morning I was passing under the Disney gates which I have never been so happy to see in all my vacations to date. I got to the Fort by 1:30 in the morning hoping I could get an easy to back into site. My friends though ahead and scouted the site I was given and there is no way my 40' trailer will swing in there without waking up neighbors to move vehicles. So Disney has me in site 331 which was not bad to get into, but I had to reset twice due to slide clearance issues.

By the time I was unhitched, leveled and enough hooked up for the night was 2:30. I took a little time to unwind and then hit the hay. At 7 this morning one of my dogs decided it was time to wake me up, I asked her if she could hold it and let me sleep in. She did with no accidents and woke me up at 9am with a NOW woof.

So I am sitting here sipping my first cup of coffee, and soon will start my setup. I don't know which park we will head to after noon today, but it doesn't matter. I am here and my vacation can finally begin.

 

[KristinU]

So I am sitting here sipping my first cup of coffee, and soon will start my setup. I don't know which park we will head to after noon today, but it doesn't matter. I am here and my vacation can finally begin.

Woo Hoo!!! Great news!

 

[jbrostek]

So far the only thing I really missed was the hard to get reservation for dinner last night. But I can deal, there will be next year (seriously we already started planning in December!!)

 

[veraletta]

Aww that's great news, I'm so happy you made it to the Fort Wilderness campground... Treat Yourself, You've Earned It..

 

[nabi]

Yay! You made it!

 

[jbrostek]

After 45 minutes this morning I am setup well enough. The rest can come out as needed which is usually the case for me. One of the other families of the group put together a nice "linner" as we called it and shortly we will be heading over to MK for the evening.

The pups love the dog park, I knew my Aussie would, she has been here every year with me. But my minpin is a new member of the pack and this is her first vacation. She was awesome with the park, but due to her 6lb size there is a hole or two that is bigger then her. I will say something knowing that the staff will take my concerns and see what they can do.

I have not taken any site pictures yet, been mostly trying to relax a little, let the dogs play and get setup. But I am sure there will be many pictures and I will get them up as soon as possible.

 

[North of Mouse]

Great! You made it!!

Have a wonderful time!

 

[FLBBQMAN]

That's so great to hear that you finally got to the fort. sounds like the weather will be getting better from here on too have a great time.

 

[bama_ed]

Wow. Glad you made it.

Take a deep breath and enjoy your surroundings at the Fort.

Bama Ed

 

[jbrostek]

Well as expected the CM I spoke to had someone swing by and ask me about the holes at the park and met my little one which he now understood why I was concerned. She is a busy little girl and always getting into near trouble. We are working on the whole barking thing, this is her first time at a busy RV park and like my last minpin, it takes some work to get them not to go off barking at every 'nat fart' in brooklyn as my father used to say.

Today its a little overcast with a bit of drizzle, but should be clearing up and is way warmer then when I was stuck in NC. Last night was great as we went to MK, had some ice cream and watched Celebrate the Magic and Wishes from one of the best locations in our opinion. By 11 we should be on our way to animal kingdom and testing our fastpass+ with our 3 selections made with about 2 hours to putter in between. That is about our normal pace so it works out perfectly. We plan to come back after all that for an easy taco dinner then off to Hollywood Studios for EMH.

I have gotten some nice compliments on my new rig and thankful for them. I really enjoy the rig and even if it is not the one for that one person, they look more at the quality and thought of the setup. Though one guy asked how I managed to get into this site, which was easy. Another asked how I was going to park the truck cuz it blocked the whole site entrance. I took the easy route and parked it in overflow parking, my golf cart is here and its not that big of a deal to go down there if I need to head out without disney transportation.

So thanks everyone, the relaxation is happening with ease.

 

[loislane]

So glad you finally made it! We were in site 555 in August and I think that whole area of the Fort is a really nice one. We didn't have any of our dogs with us, but saw a lot of action going on at the dog park while we were there since it was basically right across the "street" from us. Keep an eye on the minpin - that canal right behind the dog park is where we saw our little gator while there. You don't want the minpin encountering one of those if it sneaks out the fence!

 

[jbrostek]

We dont walk the canal as I dont feel like having to give the aussie a bath. Get her close to the water and shes in there in no time. Lilly bug (the pin) is settling in and just had a visit with her puppy pals. I am just getting ready for the parks now along with the rest of the crew. It should be interesting to see exactly how much we walk since I got a fitbit for christmas.

 

[jbrostek]

Yesterdays weather was perfect for a trip around World Showcase. We had a great time and finally feeling like I am completely on vacation. I been snapping random pictures and trying to get them online this weekend. Not sure of today's daytime plans, but our hard to get reservation for Ohana is tonight and looking forward to it.