Walkerfiend family's 2nd (annual?) trip and travel/transportation mishap report.

[WalkerFiend 22]

So this is how the MultiQuote thingy works!

 

 

I've had a similar conversation with my husband many times at the end of vacations. Ours has often been stopping in Williamsburg VA, totally out of the way but one of our favorite places, during the trip back to SC from NJ. We've never been sorry and I hope you weren't either.

 

I've learned over the years that a statement starting with "Would it be stupid..." Is normally something She really wants to do, and I'd better be paying attention!  

 

:)

 

- Yes She has trained me well.  Well - I say*.   I do need remedial training on a somewhat regular basis.

 

*Some opinions may vary...

 

 

Wow, there are quite a few updates I didn't get a chance to comment on.

 

I know I busted your chops earlier about some of your FP+ choices, but I have to say I like your style:

 

-great choice taking the MK boat, ferry and monorail to Epcot- why not?

 

-good idea to plan a Fort day.  It looks like your gang really enjoyed that.

 

-that spot you found at the end of the trail with the view of the MK is a good place to watch the fireworks.  Back in the day, they had speakers rigged up in the old cabin, and would blast the fireworks soundtrack from there.  They still stop the wagon ride there for fireworks and the EWP, but I don't think they have the fireworks soundtrack available anymore.  If you want to check out the fireworks view, you can park your cart at the outlet from the 300 loop, and it's not a far walk back to that spot.  But, it is dark.  And buggy.  And, I'm pretty sure you won't be able to hear the soundtrack.  But the view is still very special.

 

-good job going for Dole Whips at the Polynesian.  Those attraction posters you asked about are a great purchase.  All three of my daughters have a set, and they have some of the posters framed and hanging in their apartments.

 

-good job visiting Tom Sawyer Island.  That's a place too many people skip.  But, it's a great place to get away from the crowds.

 

-very cool about your last minute stop on the way home.  Great idea.

 

-and wow about that flat tire.  What if you had been on the road when that happened?

 

Looking forward to the rest of your report, but a bit bummed that it's nearing the end.

 

TCD

 

 

Thanks!  I really appreciate the kind words and encouragement from you and everybody else.  I have really had a *lot* of fun re-living this trip with the Fiends and world at large.  

 

I hope Snarky and the "Fiends Trip Report Review Commission" will deem it "Spike Worthy" in the end when I submit it for formal review.   :)

 

Fort day was such a good thing for us.  It was sooooo nice to have a day just to do whatever.  It was very relaxing.

 

Tom Sawyer Island is so neat!  It's great to escape and just have a place for the kids to play.

 

For Ben, pretty much anything that moves is an attraction in and of itself!   :)  Boat, Train, Bus, it's all good!  (We did keep the bus rides to as few rides as possible, mostly just to fetch, and then after returning the Golf cart.)  We will have another Gremlin visit related to Gatlinburg transportaion coming soon (believe it or not!)

 

 

Okay... so apparently several of us female Fiends (and maybe a few male too ), cry when we leave the Fort.  Ahhh... the Fort.

 

The KOA in Savannah... we were suppose to say there next weekend, but plans changed and I'm now flying home (eeckk... I hate to fly!  ) to see family.  Glad to know that you found it decent; might be somewhere that we consider at a later date.

 

TN, such a pretty area :)  Nice spot!  I like all the cement and all the foliage! 

 

Praise God that you were not traveling on that tire!  What a blessing.

 

I will not admit to shedding any tears.  But, I completely get the feeling. Couldn't blame anybody...

 

Sorry about the plane!  I'm am 100% with you.  I used to fly quite a bit for my job, and now...  I. Am. Over. It!  So much hassle it seems so I avoid it.  

 

As I said earlier Savannah South KOA is a place I'd definately recommend if you need a place to overnight, or even a couple of days to explore the area.   I'm not so sure it would be someplace I'd plan a long vacation around.  The sites are tight and close together.  But that is my chief complaint.  The staff is friendly, there are lots of trees, it borders a nice lake (mind the alligators.)  It is not fancy, but it is clean, the pool is very nice for relaxing, its  clean, and well kept.  For what it is, it is good.  That's not a huge endorsement maybe...  I'm not intending to bash it in any way, we've stayed there three different times now, and we'd use it again.

 

I love TN and the Smoky Mountains!!!!!!  If I could figure out how to make a living here...

 

And yes.  I've thanked God more than once for the decision to go to Gatlinburg instead of continuing on our way home.  The Wife and I talked about this several times in fact as we continue the journey...  I think we must have had somebody watching over and traveling with us besides the Gremlin.   :)

 

 

I meant to comment on your campsite, too:

 

 

So, you had a bench mounted there on your patio?

 

I can't say I've ever seen that before.

 

I like the patio, though.

 

And you need a longer post for your Mickey light.

 

TCD

 

Yep, as best I can remember - every site was like this.  Very nice patio with attached bench, and gravel in areas (I think) that would most likely be hard to keep grass growing.  I do not recall ever seeing another Campground with a similar setup.

 

And yes :)  I know that light is short.  Partly because it was constructed with the shorter members of the family in mind; partly because I did not trust the base to stand up to any wind - and I did not want it to get broken.

 

I do want to add some height and a sign hanger to it eventually.  That said... This Mickey light's part of our story is not quite done yet - but you'll have to wait a little more for that part.   :)

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Good job with the multi-quotes.

 

As long as you're answering questions, I have some for you about the use of the Disney Dining Plan at the Trail's End take-out.

 

I've witnessed people using credits for pizzas and for Giddyap and Go chicken meals, but the published menus don't indicate that DDP credits can be used for these items.

 

So what's the deal?

 

TCD

[WalkerFiend 22]

Good job with the multi-quotes.

 

As long as you're answering questions, I have some for you about the use of the Disney Dining Plan at the Trail's End take-out.

 

I've witnessed people using credits for pizzas and for Giddyap and Go chicken meals, but the published menus don't indicate that DDP credits can be used for these items.

 

So what's the deal?

 

TCD

 

 

 

I'm not 100% Positive, but I think our Dining plan covered just about everything at Trails End.  The one exception I can remember for sure is Sticky Buns!  The last morning we tried to get some and were told that they were not covered on the DP.

 

Pizza for sure and some of the other selections I think count as two meal credits...

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Pizza for sure and some of the other selections I think count as two meal credits...

 

Those credits would cover an $11 or $12 meal at a Quick Serve location, right?

 

So, you're paying the equivalent of $22-24 for one pizza?

 

TCD

[WalkerFiend 22]

Those credits would cover an $11 or $12 meal at a Quick Serve location, right?

 

So, you're paying the equivalent of $22-24 for one pizza?

 

TCD

Yup - That's about the size of it.  Reason 100 to ditch the meal plan next year...

[WalkerFiend 22]

Ok, sorry again for the long delay.  The DD ended up at the doctor because of a pretty high fever that did not want to go away.  Thankfully, by Friday she was doing better, and we even got to do some camping over the weekend.  But that's another report.

 

Ok, let's continue...  Just a few more installments left.  

 

Thursday 6/18

 

Up early and removed our flat tire.  At least the flat was on the low side of our site, and so I don't need to raise the camper any more to get the tire off.  The trailer is a tandem axle and these two wheels are on the levelers.  So, I have a pretty easy time of it. Getting the new tire back on will require a bottle jack I don't have right now to push that axel up an inch or two...

 

Off to Breakfast at the Log Cabin Pancake House If you visit Gatlinburg, the law requires that you eat at least one meal here!  

 

 

By the way, ornery children should not be allowed access to your phone while having breakfast, or you might find these later...

 

 

 

 

After having some breakfast we ventured into Pigeon Forge to find a tire shop.  The guy at the shop said:

 

"We can try to patch or plug the tire, but if you are not sure how long it might have run low...  You might want to think about just replacing it, because most of these trailer tires are junk to start with."

 

Actually, he was reading my mind.  I'd already decided to not take any chances and just replace the tire.  

 

That was not exactly a bad choice, but we left out a critical step that you'll learn about later...

 

For now, $100ish and we have a new tire all mounted and ready to go.  Walmart is just across the street and we made a quick stop there to buy a bottle jack so I could mount the new tire when we made it back to the camper.  

 

When we got home I got the new tire back on the camper in short order.  Thank goodness I didn't need to mess with the spare!  Even better:  I didn't need to mess with the spare on the side of an interstate freeway!

 

Now it's off to see a few sights.

 

We decided to venture out into the park and Visit Cades Cove.  This area is stunningly beautiful and we have not visited in several years.  If you love places like this as I do, the pictures just can’t capture it, you have to come here.

 

 

The loop around Cades Cove is dotted with preserved homesteads, old churches, and cemeteries from the communities that occupied the Cove before the National Park came into being.

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the visitors center they have a preserved  homestead, complete with old tools, barns, and a working water powered mill "Cable Mill". When it is operating the staff will demonstrate the mill in operation and show you how corn was ground into flour and meal.  The geek loves to watch this!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The kids are more interested in playing in the water. :)  I'm sporting my almost too small FW T-Shirt here...

 

 

You can frequently see Black Bears and lots of other wildlife in the open places, but today we only see one deer.  I believe the heat is keeping them deeper in the woods where it is cooler today.  

 

 

At the end of the loop is the Cades Cove campground.  We made a stop at the camp store to look around and get some ice cream and then drove through a couple of the loops to check it out.  I was driving and it seems we did not get one picture from here...

 

It's a nice campground. I think I could get our rig into some of the sites here, but, there is no electricity at any of them. 

 

We have a small generator at home that could run everything in the camper and charge the house battery...  But.  It's hot weather and it could not run the AC.  I can "rough it" with just battery power, in cooler weather maybe. But today this is one case where I actually prefer a site with full hookups, close in to Gatlinburg, and AC!  

 

By the time we got back to Gatlinburg it was time for dinner and we decided to stop at another of our standbys, Calhoun's for dinner:

 

It is a small Chain but we don't have them in Ohio.  The food is good.  We generally eat here at least once whenever we are in town.   

 

Calhoun's anchors a small retail shopping area that includes this giant Rocking chair.  The kids love visiting the "big chair".

 

 

All is well.

 

Except you know who is still around...

 

Pedometer : 9640

[WalkerFiend 22]

Friday 6/19

 

One more day here in Gatlinburg and then we are on the road for home and a day of rest before I have to go back to work on Monday. I'm Up early today and enjoy a nice cup of coffee before everybody else gets out of bed. 

 

Once I'm sure that I won't be disturbing any of the other campers I decide I'd better get out the air compressor and check all of our trailer tires before we start the 500mi trip home tomorrow morning.

 

Here's another pic or two of our campsite.

 

This is right beside and behind our camper.  The kids loved playing with this stick!  So much so, that it is now here with me at home in my garage...

 

 

 

As I was saying, time to check the tires...

 

I left the new tire for last because, uh, I mean it just went on the rim yesterday.  As a matter of fact, I think, I'll just give it a slap with my hand and skip it...  It looks great just eyeballing it... 

 

So, I give it a slap expecting to hear that happy full tire "thunk!" sound...  Except, it's flat!!!!!  Flat flat!!!  

 

What the!!!

 

Uh...  Dear Gremlin: We're over it.

 

Well.  The brand new flat tire comes off easily and back in the truckbed it goes.  

 

We need to do some laundry, and the kids want to go to the pool, so after we eat breakfast I head back to the tire shop to get it checked out while Abby and the kids enjoy the campground for awhile.   

 

Back at the Tire shop...  The guys assure me that most likely the tire was just not properly seated on the rim, or the valve is failing.  They apologize for the miss and air the tire back up to see what's the matter. 

 

Normally a good dose of soap bubbles will show you the trouble right away and on the soap water solution goes...

 

And, there does not seem to be any leak... Now.  We know something is leaking. Just not what. We watch and watch for any bubbles and add more and more soap solution...   Now, we are all scratching our head looking for the telltale bubbles...

 

Finally a bit of the solution runs down onto the rim itself. Suddenly the leak is obvious.

 

The air is leaking out through solid metal...  

 

At least that's how it looks.  The crack in the rim is so tiny that it looks like nothing more that a tiny hair laying on the rim.  So. It wasn't the tire at all, it was the rim. 

 

Ugggh... We shoulda checked that yesterday, but I’d just decided to buy a new tire and move on.  A good choice still in my head…  But, that prevented us from finding the real cause of the leak until now...

 

In the picture you can see where the shop marked the wheel with a wax marker so we could find it again later if needed. It looks like a tiny, tiny hair laying there if you look really close. 

 

 

Can you see it???  Now that we know the real issue...

 

It's time to either get a new wheel or get this one repaired. The welding shop next door didn't want to even try a repair and strongly suggested that I just buy another wheel and be done with it.  

 

Simple!

 

Well, not so much!  The next few hours were spent hopelessly looking for a replacement wheel. Even the local RV repair shop didn't stock any trailer wheels.  Well, because, they never go bad!!!! Ha!

 

Gremlin!

 

Finally the shop found a matching wheel in stock at a local warehouse. But the issue is that it would not be available until *sometime* on Saturday. 

 

Looks like we're spending a bonus day in Gatlinburg after all!  

 

That is *if* we can keep our spot at the campground, or find another.  It’s the weekend now. 

 

We had only reserved our spot though Saturday morning and I do not want to travel home without a spare. 

 

So, the wheel order placed.  I sent a message to Abby so she can check with the office to see if we can stay another night - into Sunday.  I left the new tire and the old useless rim with the shop so that they could get it mounted on the new rim as soon and they got it…  

 

As I make my way back to the campground Abby calls back with the news.  Our site is reserved for the flowing week starting tomorrow.  We are welcome to extend our stay for another day, but, we'll have to move.  So much for not having to deal with that spare...  Maybe the new tire will arrive early???    

 

Back at the campground, I decided to let the tire wait.  The kids have enjoyed the pool so now it's off to town to enjoy Gatlinburg for awhile.  

 

First we decide to visit another Gatlinburg landmark - The Gatlinburg Space Needle.

 

 

In the far background of this picture you can see a cell phone tower, our campground it just on the other side/at the base of that little hill.

 

 

 

 

You are 400 feet above downtown and the view is spectacular!

 

For the rest of the day we explored downtown Gatlinburg and one more mode of transport just for Ben.  

 

We finally Decided to ride the Gatlinburg trolley on a loop around town. As I've said this is for Ben, who loves riding anything, and off we went for our next encounter with the Gremlin… 

 

Oops! 

 

One of the trolley stops is at the Park Vista hotel that overlooks downtown.  

 

You can see it in the background of the picture above.  It's the farthest point in the route from town on top of a small hill. We reach this hotel and the Driver announces that we all have to exit the Trolly here because he has to "burn off" something...

 

These "Trolleys" are some sort of diesel powered bus conversion made to give you that Trolly look...

 

He's says another Trolly will be along soon and our fare will be good for it, or, we can wait for his "Burn Off" to finish and he'll come and pick us back up. 

 

And so.  Utterly defeated by the gremlin this time, we commence to wait for the other Trolly....

 

And we wait...

 

 

...and wait...

 

 

...and wait, and wait.  

 

Closing in on a full hour later...

 

Here comes our rescue Trolly...  Followed also by the original vehicle, which had finally competed it's burn off whatever. 

 

Heh.  Well.  We rode back into town and then just basically strolled down the main drag, doing some shopping, some people watching, and sightseeing.

 

 

 

I love the flaming fountain…  Y’all know it’s not called "Hillbilly Vegas" for nothin!   :)

 

Pedometer : 9582

 

I hope there are no more flat tires tomorrow...

[WalkerFiend 22]

Saturday 6/20

 

Well, today is our new unexpected last day at Gatlinburg. And we have to switch campsites. It's easy enough to get the spare mounted and instead of packing up everything we just tossed whatever we'd be using today into the back of the truck for our 175 yard trip to the other side of the campground. As I'm about to hitch up, I get the call that our new wheel has arrived, they have the tire mounted and ready to go.  

 

So we made short work of getting the camper moved, the new site is away from the creek, and it’s smaller, but very nice all the same.  The site next to us is unoccupied and that makes it even nicer.

 

 

Since I've already bothered to mount the spare on the camper it's gonna stay and the new tire will become our spare.  We did a return trip to the Log Cabin Pancake House (yes it's that good!) and then went to fetch the new wheel.  

 

Now, we’re another $100 poorer, but, I have a nice new spare, on a nice new rim, and we’ll be ready to roll in the morning.

 

Then one last visit to the park...

 

First stop was the Sugarlands Visitor Center to visit the displays and do some shopping.  But, we also had to visit “The Rock”…

 

This rock in front of the visitors center…  We’ve managed to get pictures of the kids here on this rock almost every visit.  And so this proud daddy has to share.

 

2008:

 

2009:

(Some pictures were easier than others.  LOL!)

2010:

 

2011:

 

2012:

 

2013:

 

2014:

 

2015:

 

My God they are growing so fast!  This is why we do it all, and they are all that really matter at the end of the day...

 

And then we visit another favorite, the Sugarlands Nature Trail.  This trail is flat, it’s all paved if you have wheelchairs or strollers.  It’s just a nice pretty, shaded place for a nice walk with some interesting artifacts from bygone times.

 

 

 

Remnants of the rock fences made by early settlers as they cleared the land.

 

 

I'm rocking the Perry t-shirt :)

 

 

This area was at one point in time used as a vacation/retreat area before the Park.  These are the remains of a fireplace from one of these old "Camping Cabins".

 

 

We bid farewell to the GSMNP and headed back for dinner, and to get ready for our trip home.  After dinner we spent some last hours relaxing by the pool and getting ready for the long drive tomorrow.

 

Another day, another campsite, new wheel, ready to roll home in the morning!

 

And, although I would literally love to be able to keep on writing this trip report forever…  Tomorrow, we go home.  

 

Just one more update to go.

 

Pedometer : 11,923

[WalkerFiend 22]

Sunday- 6/21…  

 

I think I have just this one more update for this report.  

 

Here we are at the end.

 

 

Actually, this is also where it all started...  The reasons I'm here writing this now are still sleeping soundly in the camper. 

 

I wake up with this fragment of a bizarre song parody playing in my head: 

 

"All the wheels are - round, wheels are round...

- and the sky is not grey, sky is not grey..."

 

LOL! Really!  My mind is a scary place.  

 

I double and then triple checked all the tires with this playing over and over in my head.  Heh, all is well, all of the wheels are round!

 

And, it looks like our unplanned trip extension has allowed us to miss pretty much all of the remnants of Tropical Storm Bill and the heavy rains and flooding that have been pounding Ohio and surrounding states for days.  The forecast calls for a slight chance of pop-up type storms, nothing severe is expected.

 

Today is also Father's Day... Happy Father's Day!  We'll be making a 500 mile drive today...

 

But today is special for another reason.  It really does mark the start of it all:

 

 

Remember, I told you that we were married in Gatlinburg?   Yah. Today is not just Father’s day, it is also our anniversary!  We were married here in this town, on this day, just a couple of miles away In 2003.  

 

 

Due to our unexpected one day extension of our stay…  We’ll be having a nice dinner at a slightly dingy truck stop Denny's later this evening on I-71 just north of Cincinnatti to celebrate both.   :)

 

No cards, no flowers, just us all together crammed in a truck for 12 hours of travel.  Heheh.  Not exactly how we planned it, still it’s all good.  Just how we roll!   :)

 

But before we get home we face a few challanges.  Todays route is 321 to I-40, and around Knoxville on I-640, then I-75 North to near Cincinnati.  There we will pick up I-71 North to the Columbus area.  The home stretch is I-270, to 33E on the South side of town, and then we are home (after a stop at the storage lot to drop off the camper.)

 

Since it is Sunday traffic is fairly light and the construction on I-40 is not a major nightmare.  Knoxville was no issue and northward we are headed.  Our plan is to stop for lunch someplace in KY.  That “Someplace” will become an interesting challenge because, well, we forgot, it is Farther’s Day…  Oopsy!

 

Normally we would stop someplace in southern KY at a particular Cracker Barrel that we know is an easy in/out with our rig.  No such luck today!  The parking lot is full and there is more that an hour wait…  Back on the road we go.  We don't have much left to eat in the Camper and so we need to find another place, but, place after place - everybody was out with daddy having their dinner.  

 

We continue north.

 

Another stop we always make in KY is the Kentucky Artisan Center at Berea.  So we decided that the food court here would have to do for lunch.  As it turns out, the food is good.  There is ample and easy RV parking.  And it is not very crowded today - because it seems all of KY is at their nearest Cracker Barrel!

 

This place is worth a visit if you are passing the area.

 

We proceeded north toward home.  Just past Lexington, the effects of the extra large lunchtime sodas had the predicted effect and an unscheduled potty break is in order.  

 

Normally it's the kids that make me stop before we need fuel or food.  And my dear bride sheepishly admits that maybe she should have stuck with a medium drink!     We had a laugh at that, it happens, nature calls!  Luckily, we see a rest stop just ahead and pull in to let everybody take a short break.  

 

I think this may have been lucky. Potty breaks when we do not need food or fuel are fairly short so we were back on the road in probably less than 15 minutes.  

 

Very shortly after getting back on the freeway all traffic ahead of us is stopped...  We knew something bad had happened when we noticed that we can also see no traffic in the southbound lanes.

 

The highway is actually closed, we just didn't know why yet.

 

No jokes about the Gremlin here.  We didn't know the details at the time.  Sadly a tragic accident had claimed the lives of two people less than a mile north of where we were now stuck in traffic.  Authorities had closed the freeway and started diverting traffic behind us, but we were past any point where we could be diverted off.

 

We learned the details later…  These poor people.  They had just stopped to change a flat tire on the side of the road.  

 

Just changing a flat on the side of the road…

 

Somehow another northbound driver lost control of their vehicle and struck them both.  I don't know any of these details at the time, but, afterwords I've thought a lot about our tire misfortunes on this trip, how it all worked out...  

 

It's enough to make a guy think some.

 

Certainly about how dangerous it is to be on the side of a freeway for any reason.  I knew how lucky we were to be in a safe place when ours gave out, and I was thankful then, and even more so now.  Later on we both wonder…  Judging by the time of the accident and our proximity to it, we both wonder what might have happened or what we might have witnessed had we not stopped for that extra unplanned potty break.

 

We ended up being delayed here most of an hour.  We finally saw a helicopter leave and traffic started to move again, they were letting those of us stuck north of the closure to pass the accident scene and proceed.  

 

Thank God we were not in the right lane.  I moved to the left just in time.  The kids could see some of the wreckage, but thank God they either didn't notice or did not realize the significance of everything that they did see.  Especially the one poor victim that was obviously still there despite authorities doing a decent job of shielding the victim from view.  Nor did they notice my wife quietly crying as we made our way by.  It was horrible to see, I'm so sorry for the tragic loss.  I'm selfishly so so happy we didn't have to explain any details.  

 

From here on we proceeded on homeward bound.  We took the only pictures of the day while crossing the Ohio River because we saw a train.  And well, you know, that is always picture worthy!  You can see Paul Brown Stadium in the pic.

 

 

 I still think "Riverfront Stadium" in my head...

 

The last stop on the road is the dirty Denys just south of Jeffersonville.  It was what it was.  From here we are just a hour and a half from home.

 

We arrived at the storage lot, unloaded the essentials, and got unhitched just as the security lights switched on for the night.

 

Back at home just before 10PM.  All is well and we unload.  I’m so tired.  I have to go back to work in the morning at 7AM.  It's hard to believe it's all over...

 

I'm more sad now than I was at the time.  I was tired!  

 

Welcome home.

 

Pedometer : 5846

 

And, well, this is the end.  

 

Except I have to tie up one loose end:

 

I promised all would be revealed and so it shall be.

 

At least one person has mentioned that our Mickey light needs to be taller.  I'd mentioned before that we'd left it short because.  Well. The kids are short and I made it for them more than anybody.  And. I did not trust the flimsy base I'd concocted and was worried that even a slight bump or wind would knock it over and break it.

 

 

Well, just to get a little revenge on the Gremlin.  I decided to take at least one of the lemons he'd given me and make lemonade.  

 

Here now is the new base of our Mickey light:

 

 

:)

 

I had this idea out of the blue and when I went to pick up the new rim I'd ask if they still had the old one.  They did, and I threw it into the back of the truck and took it home with me.  

 

(I think it looks OK!  I'm still trying to decide: Leave it white or paint it some other color, maybe Lemonade Yellow...)

 

Now I can make it taller, add a sign hanger, and it's not going to get knocked over in the wind or a careless kid bump.

 

And finally: 

 

You might have had a good time at the fort if...

• You decide poop in the pool is just part of the experience...

• You can't remember what day it is, you just know it's going to fast...

• Kids go to bed of their own free will, sometimes without even telling you...

• Your little Girl sobs when she learns we have to leave and go home...

• Your kids ask why we can't have a Golf Cart at home...

• You try to use your Magic Band PIN to unlock your truck…

• You find yourself wondering how many Geckos you may have in the camper, and then what the average towing capacity of a Gecko may be…

• You discover that your wife has researched (and found) "The Official Disney Album" on iTunes... Just in case "Its a great big beautiful tomorrow" is not already burned into your head forever, here's how you can get a booster!

 

And that folks, on a happy note, is all.  

 

I humbly submit this report to the review committee and hope it will be found to have been "Spike Worthy".  Unless there are either questions or comments, I'm done except to go back and correct my grammar, punctuation, and spelling for the next 100 years or so!

 

Thanks for riding along with us!

 

The end.       :)

[lightbikes 73]

What a fitting base for your Mickey Light - great trip report

[twiceblessed....nacole 433]

What a great report!  Loved every minute of it :)   We've been to Pigeon Forge, but never Gatlinburg... we need to go and we need to stay and that CG!   Doesn't looking at pictures of your kids through the years, just make you ache??!   It goes by so, so very fast.  Our little miracles are the main reason we started camping.  I saw a sign once that I loved and plan to order one for our TT:   Forced Family Fun.   Haha.  I'll be "forcing" this family time on our family, for (prayerfully) many...many years.

 

Oh... LOVE the Mickey light and the base is PERFECT!

 

Thanks for the TR :)

[BigTom 76]

Enjoyed your trip, good job on report.

[Littleolwoman.aka.Kristie 119]

Lol what an awesome base and story to go with it. On a more serious not, what a tragic accident. I must admit I too shed a few tears upon reading your entry. Just recently a good friend watched a fellow rv puller jack-knife right in front of him. Those moments are always a great reminder at how precious and short life is. Great TR and thanks for sharing

[Live4FW 30]

Excellent trip report.  So many things that remind me of how we have done WDW & FW over the years.  We didn't always roll with the crowd.  Sometimes we did.  But we always made memories that I wouldn't trade for anything!

[fladogfan aka Gretchen 259]

So sorry for the folks killed in the accident.  I'm very glad your family wasn't near it when that happened.

 

Good job finding good food at the Artisan Center in Berea.  The gift shops on Skyline Drive use to carry beautiful hand made items from Berea.  Not any more, most made in china

 

I like the way your family doesn't try to do every thing or ride at WDW, but go with the flow of your family and enjoy the time spent together.

 

YEP the base is cool, good thinking!

 

Thanks for this TR

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Great idea using the wheel as the base for your Mickey lamp!

 

But, What the Fort?  I've never heard of a wheel cracking like that and causing a tire to flatten.  That's not good.  Thank goodness you were parked when it happened.

 

I really enjoyed the comparison photos of your children.  You have a beautiful family, and I hope that you get to continue taking those photos.

 

So, when are you going to be back at the Fort?

 

TCD

[dvccamper 32]

I think you did a great job on your trip report! Thanks for sharing it!

[WalkerFiend 22]

What a fitting base for your Mickey Light - great trip report

 

Thank you - I had a great time reliving it all.  Now I have something to do (working on Mickey) over the long winter.

 

What a great report!  Loved every minute of it :)   We've been to Pigeon Forge, but never Gatlinburg... we need to go and we need to stay and that CG!   Doesn't looking at pictures of your kids through the years, just make you ache??!   It goes by so, so very fast.  Our little miracles are the main reason we started camping.  I saw a sign once that I loved and plan to order one for our TT:   Forced Family Fun.   Haha.  I'll be "forcing" this family time on our family, for (prayerfully) many...many years.

 

Oh... LOVE the Mickey light and the base is PERFECT!

 

Thanks for the TR :)

 

Pigeon Forge is cool...  Especially I love eating at "The Old Mill".  Yum!  :)  I do admit that I personally prefer Gatlinburg because it is much more pedestrian friendly.  You can walk the whole town.  It still has a old school downtown type of feeling that I really like.  It's actually quite the spectacle of people watching when it's busy.  They used to have a walk up dacquiri place...  (Sigh - it's gone now.)  I will say that it has gotten less kitschy in recent years with more well known brands moving in, and some old local establishments going away.   Still, there are a lot of local type of places, a lot of tourist trap places, the Aquirium of the Smoky's is (IMHO) a world class facility well worth a visit, and the Space Needle for a view of it all at dusk or in the dark is a great view.

 

And we loved Twin Creek campground.  Online reviews sometimes complain about noise from the nearby fire station.  I think I heard sirens once or maybe twice.  The location close to downtown and the Arts and Crafts loop make that a minor thing.  It's a clean and well maintained campground, nice friendly staff.  I recommend it without any second thoughts at all.  We'll be back for sure.

 

Enjoyed your trip, good job on report.

 

Thank you!  :)

 

Lol what an awesome base and story to go with it. On a more serious not, what a tragic accident. I must admit I too shed a few tears upon reading your entry. Just recently a good friend watched a fellow rv puller jack-knife right in front of him. Those moments are always a great reminder at how precious and short life is. Great TR and thanks for sharing

 

:)  Yah - When the idea struck, I figured for sure that they'd already tossed it in a dumpster or something, then I nearly forgot to ask about it.  But it all worked out.

 

I had assumed that the helicopter had perhaps taken somebody to the hospital to be treated and recover.  Sadly it was not to be.  Even knowing what I'd seen already.  Reading that article and finding out that they'd just finished changing a tire.  Yah...  That puts a lot of stuff in perspecitve.

 

Excellent trip report.  So many things that remind me of how we have done WDW & FW over the years.  We didn't always roll with the crowd.  Sometimes we did.  But we always made memories that I wouldn't trade for anything!

 

Thank you!  On our first visit last year we tried to cram so much in that it was actually kinda stressful at times.  It's vacation!  This year we focused on less and just tried to make sure everybody had fun.  It really worked for us.  I completely understand that it's a very expensive proposition and folks want to get the most out of it that they can.  I totally get that.  I think our two kids would have stayed at the pool the whole time left to their own devices!    :)

 

So sorry for the folks killed in the accident.  I'm very glad your family wasn't near it when that happened.

 

Good job finding good food at the Artisan Center in Berea.  The gift shops on Skyline Drive use to carry beautiful hand made items from Berea.  Not any more, most made in china

 

I like the way your family doesn't try to do every thing or ride at WDW, but go with the flow of your family and enjoy the time spent together.

 

YEP the base is cool, good thinking!

 

Thanks for this TR

 

That area is beautiful.  Love the Artisan center there.  I want to spent more time there someday, check out some of the Daniel Boone history.  Work my way west and see Mammoth Cave...  So much to see, so little vacation!

 

Great idea using the wheel as the base for your Mickey lamp!

 

But, What the Fort?  I've never heard of a wheel cracking like that and causing a tire to flatten.  That's not good.  Thank goodness you were parked when it happened.

 

I really enjoyed the comparison photos of your children.  You have a beautiful family, and I hope that you get to continue taking those photos.

 

So, when are you going to be back at the Fort?

 

TCD

 

Thanks! 

 

Nobody had ever seen a crack like that.  More than one shop told me it was most likely a defect in the metal that had been there since the day it was manufactured waiting to bite me.

 

Oh my goodness - I'd collected these pictures over the years, but had not really put them together like that till this report.  The wife says we'll have to get them printed out and farmed in a set.

 

Ahh...  When indeed...  The earliest we can get back is probably next June.    Unless I win the lottery or the Schools decide to close early.

 

I think you did a great job on your trip report! Thanks for sharing it!

 

 

Thank you!  It was a unexpected joy for me to do this.  I was sorry to finish it.

[WalkerFiend 22]

And - The Gremlin is still around!  Had a flat tire on my home from work tonight.  Sigh...  :)