We're finally here! - Live Trip Report

[iuki]

Thank you for the kind words and for listening; I love my family, I love writing, I love Disney and I love writing about my family at Disney! I'm also flattered that anyone is listening so thanks! I'll upload some pics tomorrow, it's been a very busy day and I haven't had time yet. Thanks for asking, thought!

Ok, so where where we?.... we rode... oh yeah, at CoP the lady in front of us got into a tiff with a Cast Member (CM). I missed most of it but only saw the CM make a strong comment like "Why don't you keep your party together?!" and make a supporting hand gesture. Her response was to tell him to "Off" with something that rhymed with "Eff", and his response was to call security. I was completely taken aback; I'd never seen anyone at Disney treat a guest like that! I overheard him tell another CM that the 'doors were supposed to be closed 5 minutes ago and this lady....', that's all I got so I asked DW if she heard it all and she caught me up: The lady was talking with a group of adults and her kids (4 of 'em) ran off into CoP. First, I think they should be congratulated because this is a woefully under-supported attraction and a hidden Gem, but that's another story and not my business and doesn't make for a very compelling story, does it? Anyway, when the father saw that the kids left he went into CoP after them while she organized several strollers and other people. They aparantly called for her and gave several warning that they were closing the doors but she kept procrastinating and held up the show (literally). I am astounded and disgusted at the aire of entitlement and selfishness displayed by many guests at Disney, and I'm sure CMs are probably saturated with a hatred for mankind after the average day-shift but they're paid and here by choice so that kind of outburst, while likely deserved, was completely out-of-line. Oh well, I'll try to be nice enough for two people to make up for it; that's the best I can contribute (well, that and to teach the kids to be so).

After paying homage to Mr. Disney's CoP we met our family-friends (a couple with twin girls just days-older than DS2), picked up FPs for Buzz and they rode SM with my family while I took DS2 and their little-little girls on the PeopleMover, after which we met back up and splattered the kids around the insides of the Tea Cups then went back to Buzz Lightyear.

Shortly after the their cousin and neice (or whatever you call your cousin's kid) finally arrived and met up with us. Now we're all here.

Without getting into too many details (too late, but this is a camping site so I imagine (if I haven't lost anyone yet) that you're more interesting in the Fort Wilderness part of the report) we snacked, rode, watched and skipped around the MK with ease. The crowds are very managable (especially compared to our usual Thanksgiving timeframe), the weather cleared and warmed up, and a good time was had by all.

I mentioned earlier that the boat ride was enjoyable and since we just rode it again (twice now, and it's Sunday come-to-think-of-it) after Extra Magic Hours I have to concur with myself (and I checked with the wife for good measure), this is vastly superior to Value resorts and even rivals the Moderate. I love sitting in our own place but still being surrounded by Disney. Everyone, EVERYONE says 'hello' when you pass by. I've known 'campers' to be friendly people but these are our people, Disney Campers! We have a simple, no-frills rig (no TV even; we're camping so at most we listen to Bluegrass on the stereophonic or something (extra points if you've ever called it the 'stereophonic' )) but it's arguably our favorite posession so having it here is like... I don't know, but I don't have to think of some scrabble-winning description because if you're reading this then you already know what I mean. See how beautifully this works?

Anyway, we did the carry-sleeping-kids-home trudge and now I'm unwinding at the table with the aforementioned Adult Drink and talking to you good people and can't think of a better way to end a great Disney day.

.... actually I can so I'm going to sign off now and chat up DW for a bit since the kids are dead-asleep

Thanks again for reading, I can't wait to tell you what Disney does for Hanna (the 'niece' who lost her mother)(who is 14, I've come to learn since my first post).

P.S. please forgive any type-o's winding plot-lines; I ususally write these over time for MousePlanet and can edit them before posting but this is live so I'm winging it.

You're doing a great job! I'm really enjoying this. It's very thoughtful of you to take the time out of your day to post here. Thanks! We haven't camped yet at FW, so this will help me to have some idea of "camping" vs. moderate resort with free dining."

 

[kmccain]

Wonderful trip report! Thanks so much for sharing

Sounds like a great time for all! Our feelings about the Fort are the same!

Glad that Hannah is having a Magical trip. No better place!

 

[marclichon]

Your TR is wonderful!
I'm glad it's giving Hanna some time to live after what she's been thru. I lost my mom in October of '09 and there's days it's still hard to get out of bed (and I'm 36) so I can't imagine how hard it must be for her. This trip is a lovely thing that you all did for her (although there are obvious benefits for everyone )
Can't wait to hear more...and I like to hear about it all!!! Parks, food, Fort and more!!!

I'm glad you're enjoying the story; I'm enjoying writing it (and living it, of course).

This trip was actually planned last year with our friends. Then, as I understand it, when Hanna's Mother was diagnosed in October they decided to include her and her father. I understand things were pretty intense in the three months since diagnosis so this would get her some time out of the pressure-cooker. Then, when her mother passed it took on new meaning so we made sure to make it work out.

 

[marclichon]

Finally, PICS!

Here is most of us; I have to wait to post pics of Hanna because I want her fathers permission (can't just post a dude's kid online without their buy-in, ya know?) so while she's the star of the show here's the rest of us for now:

DD1 Singin' In The Rain

A very blury picture of our group @ Epcot (sorry)

The Mrs. and I on the Backstage Tour @ DHS

Us on our way to start what's soon to be an excellent day.

Me and one of our mini-traveling-companions

The Pre-permission "safe" view of Hanna and her father

Family Photo: DD1, DD2, DS1 & DS2

Our group in our special Illuminations viewing area dancing like fools

... site decoration pics to come soon.

 

[beccaewert]

thank you so much for taking the time and writing this trip report...your doing an excellent job! Sounds like your having a great time (how could you not, disney is magical) Can't wait to hear more and see new pics!

Keep up the good work1

 

[marclichon]

We're trying to decide what to do now; the inenviable task of determining when to leave tomorrow. If we leave early we'll get in around 0'Dark-Thiry Saturday morning and have to park the camper in the dark/cold/midnight. If we leave later we'd get in during daylight hours but I'm not sure when we have to leave. When does one checkout here? I'll ask the front desk.

Anyway, yesterday was a pretty good success. After a georgous day of biking, swimming and relaxing (and falling in love with the Fort all over again) we had everyone over for a steak cookout and fired up the pit while the kids played. Things got a bit boisterous and we tried to keep them down (sorry neighbors!) and finally got calm around 9:30-10:00, after which the kids watched Beauty and The Beast while us adults sat aound the fire talking of everything from Homeopathic medicine to Hanna's mom's journey and from theories of why older women don short-haircuts to Dennis' relationship with Hanna.

I was worried about being ordered to put out our fire but we kept it low and used VERY DRY wood from home (starts easier and limits popping and sparks) so no such edicts came and we enjoyed the evening talking to eachother, listening to the Electric Water Pagent, Wishes and boat whistles.

I learned the truth of some mistaken understandings I had; Hanna's father never really left or anything, he and her mom separated so he found a place nearby and drove Hanna to school nearly every day. Also, they seem to have a close relationship already so while the shock of this change-in-life is surely dramatic it's not as 'foreign' as I was led to believe. This is encouraging news and a good start for them.

Anyway, we made plans for Epcot today and everyone is up and moving now so I'm off. It's raining pretty well but due to clear up around noon. I think future trips will be in less-rainy times (if possible, I mean it's Florida and all) so that's been a bit of a damper on the week, but yesterday gave us a peek into how incredible this place is when its warm and dry

 

[bunny]

I love your report. You are a great writer. Your words are so descriptive that you don't even need pictures (although I do love the pics).

I have been trying to talk my husband into towing our camper to Fort Wilderness but the farthest we have ever towed is 4 hours away. Realistically how bad is the drive? We live in Washington, PA which is a hour south of Pittsburgh. Also how many days did you stay at the fort?

 

[Memph1s]

Great trip report. Sorry the weather is not more corporative. January and February are supposed to be the driest months of the year for us, but it's not working out that way this year. The drought police are very happy with the extra water. This winter has also been colder than normal. Glad ya'll are able to have a good time anyway.

 

[hotmamac]

Just checking in for the next installment...
Hey Bunny, I'm about 1/2 hour away from you in Bridgeville!
We're planning on heading down in Sept/Oct of this year, but we'll be tenting it. I think we may drive part way and take the auto train.

 

[shem]

The pictures are great! Thanks for taking me along with you on your trip...at least it feels like I'm there. You're a great trip writer.

 

[merbobear]

I loved reading this report! What Disney did for Hanna was just so nice, they really went above & beyond to make the trip special for her.

 

[marclichon]

It's 7:31 am and the boat whistles woke me. I've a little fog in the head from a few beers at Bw3 last night but the coffee's on and it'll go away soon. The weather is again cloudy and chilly and heavy as today we're to leave.

Yesterday we woke slowly and resumed cleaning from the cookout Wednesday night. We dodged heavy downpours to take showers and discard trash. Between storms, breakfasts, and continually losing things (keys, wallets, passes) we couldn’t make it out until 1pm-ish. We weren't in a hurry and the weather certainly didn't cooperate but it was a slower morning than usual. Our friends decided to visit Epcot again but the weather looked to be cold and troublesome so we opted to get a bite to eat, resort hop and meet them at Downtown Disney for shopping and Disneyquest. We wanted to stay warm, we didn't (... cool, there's the boat whistle AND the train whistle going off at once!...) want to use a park-day (we have non-expiring tickets) for a short and ultimately less-enjoyable day (for us, and Epcot day isn't complete without drinks and Illuminations). Besides, when we're around my kids attach to Hanna so we thought this would give her and her father more time together.

Resort hopping via Disney transportation is one of our favorite non-park activities. We love checking out resorts and riding boats and the Monorail, but this time we drove to The Polynesian and ate grilled cheese Paninis and Dole Whips at Captain Cooks, after which we monorailed to the Grand Floridian so DD2 could shop at Basin. I strolled around the lobby with the boys because we could care less about bath salts and Body Butter; we're dudes, as long as we're clean and don't smell bad it really doesn't matter what we smell like. After we'd exhausted shops around the lobby the boys stationed themselves before a screen to watch Goofy Cartoons while I found an impossibly comfortable couch at the base of the elevator shaft. We're always in the market for another couch (between 4 kids no couch stands a chance, so we're swapping our do-fers until they're old enough to stop spilling things) and this one is on the short-list.

Anyway, after they finished we got separated (due to an unknown shoe-tying incident) enroute to the Monorail and met back up at the Contemporary. We had no plan but to shop at the Fantasia (?) shop and check out the "We're At Disneyworld!!!"-ness of the lobby so we Monorailed back to the Poly for our car.

We've never seen the Saratoga Springs, Caribbean Beach or Old Key West resorts so we drove over to check those out. OKW was pretty cool; we got out and walked around. I know this is a DVC resort but I'd always wanted to see it. Saratoga Springs was nice but also not someplace we're dying to stay; maybe I didn't see enough? I dunno, it just didn't speak to me like Wilderness Lodge or Port Orleans did.

As the time piled up to 4:30 we moved on to DtD for shopping and eventually meet our friends at Disneyquest. We parked near DQ and hopped on a snail-walking-backwards (shaped like a shuttle boat) from to the dock behind House of Blues to the Marketplace. Anyone who's shopped with 4 kids at Once Upon a Toy, the Lego store, and (the time vortex) World of Disney knows what went down, and for anyone who hasn't shopped there no cacophony of adjectives that can describe it. Oh yeah, don't forget to check your calendars because Disney is also hosting a cheerleading/dance championship this week. Oh, yes they are. Guess when they arrived? Oh, yes they did. So now guess where they are on their big-night-out (distressed in their most uninformed teenybopper-dressed-for-a-night-on-the-town outfits they could hide from their parents)? Oh, yes they are.

I lost 3 weeks of my life in that place; it was like the torture machine from Princess Diaries. I love WoD but tonight was especially horrific. Add to the excitement that my kids already break apart like atoms when we open the doors, then add that 3/4 of them are smaller than the average display-height and Daddy needs a drink to calm down after 5 minutes. We eventually left after an eternity to meet the other half of the group at Disneyquest.

... so did half the cast of High School Musical, the line was outside into the walkway. Disney cashed in on the Teen-Bonanza by offering half-price tickets for DQ tonight. BRILLIANT!

... there's no way I'm going in there. That's a bad place tonight.

We called our not-yet-arrive-but-enroute friends to warn them and decided just to shop around, so when they arrived we walked back to World Of Disney. Oh goody, I was wondering what I'd do with that last patch of hair up on my head. What's this? DD2 wants to hop over to Basin next to WoD first? Stop, you spoil me.

Thankfully, there was a dance party going on at the stage outside the store and DD1 stopped to have a dance. Eventually, all the kids jumped in. Hanna, who (according to her father) never joins such celebrations twisted and turned with aplomb in lockstep with DD1. The little-little kids were shimmying all over the place between big and mid kids having a ball. Eventually, some of the distressed teenyboppers joined in, which precipitated more to jump in line. Before you knew it there was a core of little-to-mid sized kids surrounded by similarly-dressed dance crews. Parents soon got in the act and the whole joint was jumping. It was freezing cold and windy but no one seemed to notice or care.

We left the dance party after about 45 minutes to finish shopping, and then decided on a cheap dinner at Bw3 where a coupla Newcastles calmed my anxiety and slowed my pace after a fun, but stressful, evening at DtD.

We made it back at Midnight and crashed hard.

But, now it's 8:25 and I have to wake everyone up to start packing and preparing for travel home. Checkout is at 11 so it'll be tight. We plan to hitch up and leave the camper at the overflow parking then go to The Boardwalk for a Kitchen Sink at Beaches and Cream (quickly becoming a last-stop tradition) before setting sail for the frozen Tundra of Ohio.

Nuts, I don't wanna go now. We love this place more than I thought we would, but just as much as I'd hoped.

I'll update you with pics and travel details (hopefully they'll consist of "fine, weather was great") tomorrow. Until then, thanks for listening to me ramble. This trip started out as any Disney vacation does, then it became about getting Hanna out of the pressure-cooker of home with the pall of her mothers illness looming about, then ultimately about helping her move on and giving her something very positive after suffering after a terrible terrible loss. It doesn’t hurt that we all had a great time as well, but I hope that we helped our friends give her and her father a good start to rebuild on. I also enjoyed watching her father transition from “we’ll do the ‘Disney Thing’ for Hanna” to “Wow, I had no idea this was like this, I’m so glad we came; this is incredible.” Folks, we may have a convert here! Also, Disney's response was overwhelming. They could have rightfully charged for each niceity bestowed but went above-and-beyond and really made this an excellent experience, even by Disney's already-high standards! We're so extremely appreciative for all they've done.

This thread was intended as a "hey, we've finally arrived!" but quickly became live. I don't know if this forum is the right place for trip reports so mods, please forgive my ignorance if it isn't.

 

[Memph1s]

Great report.... Safe travels home.

 

[shem]

I've enjoyed your report! I'd love to see any more pictures you have! Drive safetly.

 

[OKGirlie]

Very much enjoyed it. Thanks!

Have a safe trip home.

 

[ghester]

I have enjoyed your TR very much We have been to DW once in 2009. In April we are taking our first trip to the fort. I am so excited. Thank you for sharing your trip and your family with us.

 

[CCIntrigue]

Great TR! Have a safe trip home.

 

[marclichon]

Well, we're home. Nuts.

We gassed up at Hess near The Boardwalk around 2:00pm and took Western Way to the toll road and up to 75. The weather was clear sailing and calm. DW and I switched off several times and stopped for a midnight dinner with my Brother in Atlanta. I tried to drive longer but after an hour I hit the wall and had to sleep so we pulled into a TA north of Atlanta for an hour and a half. I woke around 3am and drove until 5 when DW woke and took the wheel after gassing up at our favorite Flying J in Knoxville. If it seems like I was flying then I may have mistaken my times; I'm still a little groggy. It was a little rougher coming home than going, but that's always the case anyway. This was the big test for the truck, camper and us and everything performed admirably. We now have the confidence in ourselves and our rig to go almost anywhere.

It's agreed that this was our best trip yet. Some of it was due to Hanna, some of it was due to our other friends, but most of it was due to our ability to connect with each other. This was the first trip home (in recent memory) where the kids played together and no one was fighting or arguing (which tends to happen after a week in close proximity like that). They played "Name a Disney Movie that starts with A, B, C..." and "Name a Disney Female character that starts with A, B, C...", "Now Name a Disney Male that starts with..." and so on. After a long sleep they all woke and went a little nuts, goofing off and cracking up like maniacs from Lexington to Cincinnati. I think we broke them after 21 hours in the car.

I, on the other hand, am having reentry issues. I always do. I've gotten used to jumping on my bike and running to The Meadows for a Mickey Rice Krispy Treat or heading over to the campfire singalong or looping on my bike. It's too cold to do anything here and there's nowhere to "loop". Also, I have to go back to work Monday and that's always hard. I like my work but it's not as satisfying or fulfilling as playing with my kids. This thing with us parents going to work and leaving our kids, I think, is new to this era and not how God created us to be. In almost all civilizations, families lived/worked/learned/played together; going 'away' to work was fairly uncommon and I think that's how it should have remained. We're wired to be together, at least I am. I think they are too. Who knows, maybe they're crossing off days until they can leave but I think we get along and enjoy being together. My parents tell me this is the time of my life. I scoff at that thought when I'm knee deep in problem-solving, toy-fixing and herding the cats in a parade but also choke up when I think that some day they won't be around so until then I'll keep fixing their bikes for a run to The Meadows and hope they don't notice the calendar pages dropping away.

... I felt a little like Doogie Howser just then.

Anyway, thanks again for listening to my rambling. Thank you everyone for your well-wishes on our travels. Also, thanks to everyone for your suggestions, comments and information gleaned from DisBoards camping section; it's nice to know that true "campers" spirit is the same offsite as it is on, it really helped make our first Fort experience a great one. Once we can look at them without getting depressed we'll collate the remaining pictures and post the good ones

 

[Miss Peach]

I am glad you are safely home.

What a great trip report! It felt like I was there, too.

Thanks for putting your time into this, happy trails!

Cathy

 

[CCIntrigue]

Glad to hear you made it home safely. That's a long trip in a short time!