kadancer 82 Posted June 19, 2017 Report Share Posted June 19, 2017 I found it interesting that the three hand prints take the same shape as the three circles of a hidden Mickey. I have really enjoyed the report - it sounds like a wonderful trip. Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DaveInTN 3,247 Posted June 20, 2017 Report Share Posted June 20, 2017 Looking at those handprints, and considering the Phil Holmes painting, the guy who constantly Instagramed about ROL, and many other examples of current management, Imagineers and key employees, it occurs to me that Disney's culture today has fostered a great deal of attention-getting and narcissism. Are they trying to build on Walt's legacy, or create their own? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
lightbikes 73 Posted June 20, 2017 Report Share Posted June 20, 2017 3 hours ago, DaveInTN said: Looking at those handprints, and considering the Phil Holmes painting, the guy who constantly Instagramed about ROL, and many other examples of current management, Imagineers and key employees, it occurs to me that Disney's culture today has fostered a great deal of attention-getting and narcissism. Are they trying to build on Walt's legacy, or create their own? I think the current management wants their own "new" culture and it has nothing to do with Walt's legacy or anything that can be deemed "old". For me this also ties into the other thread here about the "magic being gone". The magic we all used to feel was in the enchantment we all felt when we visited WDW. The delight at the wonder of it all. We even felt the CMs exhibited their own delight at their employment in a magical place. We have become a cynical, narcisistic, self-centered society. Nobody believes in anything "magical" anymore. So Disney management feels no need to provide it. Nor do they care if the customer finds it. As long as we keep paying and enhancing the bottom line. No magic required. No legacy to respect. Makes going for the improved profit line much much easier. (Sorry for rant - just not feeling the magic) Quote Link to post Share on other sites
sherryberry 35 Posted June 21, 2017 Report Share Posted June 21, 2017 I was a Navy brat so we had SOS quite often, but in our case it was for Dinner and it was made with Ground Beef. I always loved it that way and it was never too salty. I have also had the chipped beef version and it always seems too salty..... go figure. Here's the kind we had growing up on the Navy Base: http://www.food.com/recipe/sausage-or-beef-s-o-s-stuff-on-a-shingle-152508 My dad was in the navy for 20 years and I don't remember him mentioning SOS. I just looked at that recipe you posted and realized that's his famous sausage gravy that he made on Saturday mornings (had it on biscuits)! Avatab.... Steve 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LONE-STAR 370 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 S.O.S is good every body ate it in Texas. Although I haven't had it in years. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tri-Circle-D 2,059 Posted June 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 On 6/19/2017 at 2:18 PM, DaveInTN said: When we pull out of the Fort it's usually around 6am. But I have everything packed, loaded and ready to roll in the morning, so I get up, brew coffee, unplug the electric and we are on the road. That's amazing to me. Since my trips to the Fort are typically just long weekends, and I have a less than two hour drive to home, I don't even think about packing up until the morning of our last day. It makes for a long day, but I hate the idea of packing up when I still have a night left to stay at the Fort. On 6/19/2017 at 3:28 PM, Littleolwoman.aka.Kristie said: Would you recommend the grass area for watching the fireworks now? Yes, I do recommend it. But, it's not perfect. You still need to stake your claim to a spot about an hour before the fireworks, and it does get crowded in there. Plus, the view is not directly head-on. I recommend claiming a spot in the back, along the rail. That way, nobody can push in behind you. But, you could get late comers who shove in front of you. Still, in my opinion, it's better than being out on Main Street or in the Hub where there are no barriers to keep people away from you. In my opinion, being able to see the castle projections is essential for this show. And, it's hard to get a good unobstructed spot for that. On 6/19/2017 at 5:14 PM, kadancer said: I found it interesting that the three hand prints take the same shape as the three circles of a hidden Mickey. I have really enjoyed the report - it sounds like a wonderful trip. Thanks for sharing. I didn't even notice the possible Hidden Mickey. I wonder if that's what they intended? On 6/20/2017 at 10:15 AM, DaveInTN said: Looking at those handprints, and considering the Phil Holmes painting, the guy who constantly Instagramed about ROL, and many other examples of current management, Imagineers and key employees, it occurs to me that Disney's culture today has fostered a great deal of attention-getting and narcissism. Are they trying to build on Walt's legacy, or create their own? It's a fair question. I don't think the handprints, and the little photo of Joe on one of the dogtags hanging over the outdoor bar are on the level of obnoxiousness as the Phil Holmes portrait, but it is disingenuous that Joe decided it's OK to have hidden nods to him, James Cameron and Jon Landau, but it's not OK to have any images of Mickey Mouse in Pandora. On 6/20/2017 at 2:21 PM, lightbikes said: I think the current management wants their own "new" culture and it has nothing to do with Walt's legacy or anything that can be deemed "old". For me this also ties into the other thread here about the "magic being gone". The magic we all used to feel was in the enchantment we all felt when we visited WDW. The delight at the wonder of it all. We even felt the CMs exhibited their own delight at their employment in a magical place. We have become a cynical, narcisistic, self-centered society. Nobody believes in anything "magical" anymore. So Disney management feels no need to provide it. Nor do they care if the customer finds it. As long as we keep paying and enhancing the bottom line. No magic required. No legacy to respect. Makes going for the improved profit line much much easier. (Sorry for rant - just not feeling the magic) No apology needed for that rant. It was a good one. Your points are well taken. On 6/20/2017 at 8:26 PM, sherryberry said: My dad was in the navy for 20 years and I don't remember him mentioning SOS. I just looked at that recipe you posted and realized that's his famous sausage gravy that he made on Saturday mornings (had it on biscuits)! I never associated SOS with sausage gravy. I like sausage gravy on biscuits, so I think I'd like SOS, as long as it was prepared with something less salty than the dried beef the chef used for the version served at the Fort. 10 hours ago, LONE-STAR said: S.O.S is good every body ate it in Texas. Although I haven't had it in years. I figure any beef dish would be big in Texas. TCD Quote Link to post Share on other sites
slices 16 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 35 minutes ago, Tri-Circle-D said: That's amazing to me. Since my trips to the Fort are typically just long weekends, and I have a less than two hour drive to home, I don't even think about packing up until the morning of our last day. It makes for a long day, but I hate the idea of packing up when I still have a night left to stay at the Fort. TCD Presumably easier when you have a camper, I'm not much further and seemed to take me ages to pack up everything last time after a 3 day trip. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
DaveInTN 3,247 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 39 minutes ago, Tri-Circle-D said: That's amazing to me. Since my trips to the Fort are typically just long weekends, and I have a less than two hour drive to home, I don't even think about packing up until the morning of our last day. It makes for a long day, but I hate the idea of packing up when I still have a night left to stay at the Fort. That's like any typical weekend camping trip for me....I just pack up in the morning when we are ready to head out. But imagine if you were camping someplace 12-14 hours away from home, and you wanted to make the drive home in one day? The earlier I hit the road, the earlier that evening I can be home. If I hit the road by 6, we can be home in time for dinner, or shortly afterward. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 14 minutes ago, DaveInTN said: That's like any typical weekend camping trip for me....I just pack up in the morning when we are ready to head out. But imagine if you were camping someplace 12-14 hours away from home, and you wanted to make the drive home in one day? The earlier I hit the road, the earlier that evening I can be home. If I hit the road by 6, we can be home in time for dinner, or shortly afterward. That is how we do it also for camping trips to Disney, especially long ones. We have to pack up the night before. Although we do have the advantage, that when Rick comes along, we don't have to be on the road quite as early, as he can sleep late the next morning, and I can sleep in the car and still get to work the next morning. I drive the first half of the trip while he naps, then he gets us home. When I go solo, I now actually have to break up the trip. The 12 hour driving days solo just aren't possible any more. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tri-Circle-D 2,059 Posted June 26, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 Well, we've reached the end of the line here. I just have these last few photos from Tuesday morning, May 30th, and that will be all. Well, plus some bonus photos from a couple of subsequent developments. It turns out that I there is a strange twist and a great photo to go with that story that will provide the exclamation point for this trip report. As I mentioned above, I ended up packing up the camper on Monday, and slept on the sofa bed in the cabin on Monday night. I've seen a few reports from folks complaining about the comfort of the cabin sofa beds. Anyone complaining about those beds must not have slept on the murphy beds or on some of the sofa beds you can still find in some of the DVC resorts. These cabin sofa beds are a huge improvement over those. Twin #1 was able to call and arrange for us to have a late checkout today. Which was awesome, as we now just had the stuff in the cabin to pack up, and we had plenty of time to do that. So, I headed out on patrol on Tuesday morning. I laughed when I saw that this expensive fishing excursion guide had taken his customers into the canal where Fort guests can wet a line for free. Of course, those guests on the boat didn't have to contend with the alligator fence: There's a nice big heron sitting there on the other side of the fence, and the rotting old cabin beyond that: One last stop and photo from my favorite spot: The gates were open behind the Settlement Trading Post, which would have given me a good shot of a photo of the rotting wagon, but a bait truck partially blocked the view. Don't worry, though, the wagon is still there rotting, and you can see a bit of it in this photo if you look: All of those cones that they had set up over the weekend were now gone, and things were back to normal around the marina: I enjoyed some rocking chair time. We had a nice view of Pioneer Hall over to the side: The water of Bay Lake kind of blends in in this photo, but you could definitely see it from the porch: I never did get a photo of one of the horses and wagons, but they were going back and forth along here all night long every night of our stay: On Monday, these campers arrived on the 700 loop, and set up these decorations on their site: I think I've seen these same decorations around Halloween, which is fine. But, what's the deal with setting these up after Memorial Day Weekend? I guess it's a tribute to the new Pirates of the Caribbean movie? A little strange. We had noticed this big lizard hanging around the cabin porch all weekend. The kids named it Andi Mack (a new Disney Channel show which we all saw for the first time on the cabin TV): It's kind of a big lizard: I had to take the golf carts back. That went fine. And, then we packed up the cabin, and I headed to the 800 loop to hitch up the camper and head home. My oldest daughter gave me this Big Al tsum tsum as an early Father's Day gift: And, that's my last photo from Memorial Day weekend. We did not get a drop of rain the whole time we were there. And, I was able to go home and put my clean and dry camper right away. I love trips like that. Of course, in the almost month that has passed since this trip ended, it seems like it's rained every day. Last weekend, for Father's Day, I had a quick day trip to Disney with the twins. We visited AK, and ate dinner at the Satu'li Canteen in Pandora. I used the App to pre-order, and it went without a hitch. To my surprise, the restaurant was not busy. I'm afraid the weird menu is not popular with guests who prefer hot dogs and burgers. Too bad. Because I'll bet that means they'll have to dumb down the menu. By the way, I was able to book same day FP+'s for the Navi River Journey ride that morning. So, getting same day Pandora FP's is possible. That night, we popped over the MK to watch Happily Ever After. This time, we stood on Main Street, about where the moat used to go under the bridge there. There was a lot of pushing and shoving in this area, but it does offer an unobstructed view of the castle (as long as iPad guy and Kid on Shoulder guy don't stand in front of you): Check out Tinkerbill about to fly in these photos: I really enjoyed the view from here. But, it's very crowded. I have one more story to tell, and then I'll be done here. This past weekend, Twin #1 headed down from Gainesville to spend some time with her sisters in Orlando. Yesterday morning, Twin #1 saw a post on Instagram from Joe Rohde stating that he was on his way to Orlando. So, she convinced a couple of her friends to head over to the AKL last night to see if they could possibly bump into Joe. And she did: So, the twins went from geeking over getting a tweet from Joe Rohde during their birthday party and seeing his handprint in a cave to actually having an in-person conversation with him a few weeks later. You never know what's around that river bend. TCD Lantana 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Travisma 1,317 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 1 hour ago, Tri-Circle-D said: Since my trips to the Fort are typically just long weekends, and I have a less than two hour drive to home, I don't even think about packing up until the morning of our last day. It makes for a long day, but I hate the idea of packing up when I still have a night left to stay at the Fort. Yes, I do recommend it. But, it's not perfect. You still need to stake your claim to a spot about an hour before the fireworks, and it does get crowded in there. Plus, the view is not directly head-on. I recommend claiming a spot in the back, along the rail. That way, nobody can push in behind you. But, you could get late comers who shove in front of you. Still, in my opinion, it's better than being out on Main Street or in the Hub where there are no barriers to keep people away from you. I never associated SOS with sausage gravy. I like sausage gravy on biscuits, so I think I'd like SOS, as long as it was prepared with something less salty than the dried beef the chef used for the version served at the Fort. TCD We break down all the non essential items the evening before, especially if the daughters left and are no longer in the tent. Same thing, the screen room gets packed along with the grill, chairs, etc. Then it's just a matter of having a quick breakfast and taking down the PUP. Even then it's pushing to be out by 11. On a side note, we saw my nephew in NY this weekend, and they usually pay for an extra night and take their time breaking down during the day then leaving in the afternoon. Just like you did for Memorial Day TCD. But at the NY State campground they go to it's only $20. Everywhere gets crowded to see the projections. We found a spot 1 1/2 hours early, and the places were already filling up. I always heard from my relatives that were in WW 2 that SOS was creamed chipped beef on toast. Depending on how it was made it could be real salty, but I guess they never complained about a hot meal. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Memphis 105 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 Great report as always and so cool Twin #1 got to meet Joe. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
kadancer 82 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 Really enjoyed the trip report. Thank you for sharing. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Heidi-meetsTCD@TSM 5 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 Back when I was a kid and then as an adult, when we joined my parents on trips to the Fort in their motor home, my Dad always packed everything up the day before we left. Course we had to drive 1,400 miles to get home to NH and my Dad generally left between 3-4 am to get an early start. We always left on Saturday and everyone had to be back at work/school on Monday. Yes, it was/is a drag to pack up the day before and have to leave so early. I could only dream about being 2 hours away instead of 25-28 hours!!! I am setting my sights on getting one of those two cabins on our trip in October/November!!! Wish me luck!! Ha, ha!! Thanks again for writing up a trip report to share!! I have really enjoyed it! Hopefully you have another one for us soon! In the meantime, I am going to read your Easter trip report! Quote Link to post Share on other sites
ImDownWithDisney 342 Posted June 26, 2017 Report Share Posted June 26, 2017 Great report! Btw, thanks for bringing that french onion soup mix to me! The potatoes were delicious. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
caveat lector 181 Posted June 27, 2017 Report Share Posted June 27, 2017 Outstanding TCD! That's really cool that your young uns' met JR. He's the closest thing we have to modern day Disney Pure. I'm also an early departer. I actually hook up the trailer before I catch some sleep the final night. If I get on the road by 5ish am, I can sleep in my home bed at a normalIsh time that evening. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
LONE-STAR 370 Posted June 27, 2017 Report Share Posted June 27, 2017 3 hours ago, ImDownWithDisney said: Great report! Btw, thanks for bringing that french onion soup mix to me! The potatoes were delicious. You just made me hungry. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
dvccamper 32 Posted June 27, 2017 Report Share Posted June 27, 2017 Enjoyed your trip report. I don't think I would have recognized Joe Rohde, well, except for that nasty earring. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Tri-Circle-D 2,059 Posted June 27, 2017 Author Report Share Posted June 27, 2017 On 6/26/2017 at 0:19 PM, Travisma said: I always heard from my relatives that were in WW 2 that SOS was creamed chipped beef on toast. Depending on how it was made it could be real salty, but I guess they never complained about a hot meal. The thing about this Fort Wilderness chipped beef is that they used something called Bresaola beef: Apparently, a lot of salt is used in the process of making that kind of beef to begin with:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bresaola So, that wasn't a good choice of beef to use for making a creamed chipped beef. On 6/26/2017 at 1:21 PM, Memphis said: Great report as always and so cool Twin #1 got to meet Joe. Thanks, and it was a very cool meeting for Twin #1. 23 hours ago, kadancer said: Really enjoyed the trip report. Thank you for sharing. Thank you for reading it, and for commenting. I appreciate it. 18 hours ago, Heidi-meetsTCD@TSM said: Back when I was a kid and then as an adult, when we joined my parents on trips to the Fort in their motor home, my Dad always packed everything up the day before we left. Course we had to drive 1,400 miles to get home to NH and my Dad generally left between 3-4 am to get an early start. We always left on Saturday and everyone had to be back at work/school on Monday. Yes, it was/is a drag to pack up the day before and have to leave so early. I could only dream about being 2 hours away instead of 25-28 hours!!! I am setting my sights on getting one of those two cabins on our trip in October/November!!! Wish me luck!! Ha, ha!! Thanks again for writing up a trip report to share!! I have really enjoyed it! Hopefully you have another one for us soon! In the meantime, I am going to read your Easter trip report! Good luck snagging a VIP cabin. I hope that the twins want to do something else for their birthday next year. It would be such a disappointment to have to stay in a regular cabin. 17 hours ago, ImDownWithDisney said: Great report! Btw, thanks for bringing that french onion soup mix to me! The potatoes were delicious. Ha! I forgot all about the onion soup mix. I meant to stop by at dinner time to see if I could get a taste! Glad it all worked out. 15 hours ago, caveat lector said: Outstanding TCD! That's really cool that your young uns' met JR. He's the closest thing we have to modern day Disney Pure. I'm also an early departer. I actually hook up the trailer before I catch some sleep the final night. If I get on the road by 5ish am, I can sleep in my home bed at a normalIsh time that evening. This would be a good time for me to count my blessings that I can leave the Fort in the afternoon. or even the evening, and still be home in plenty of time to sleep in my own bed. 14 hours ago, LONE-STAR said: You just made me hungry. Me too. Maybe IDWD should share that potato recipe? 1 hour ago, dvccamper said: Enjoyed your trip report. I don't think I would have recognized Joe Rohde, well, except for that nasty earring. Twin #1 barely recognized him at AKL. He just walked in like a regular guest- no entourage. No special treatment. According to her, he is totally down to earth, and he's very passionate about Disney. He'd be a good Fiend. TCD Quote Link to post Share on other sites
mouseketab.....Carol 1,261 Posted June 27, 2017 Report Share Posted June 27, 2017 5 minutes ago, Tri-Circle-D said: Twin #1 barely recognized him at AKL. He just walked in like a regular guest- no entourage. No special treatment. According to her, he is totally down to earth, and he's very passionate about Disney. He'd be a good Fiend. TCD Well, then he needs to get Disco Yeti fixed!!! (Now that Pandora is open, they can survive having Everest down for an extended rehab!!) Avatab.... Steve 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Momof6....aka Marty 769 Posted June 27, 2017 Report Share Posted June 27, 2017 I didn't read all the comments, so forgive me if this had been pointed out before. I think the reason they offered the SOS on Memorial Day was as a salute to the troops who have eaten it in so many mess halls over the years. The chocolate bar was, I believe, a nod to soldiers eating military rations during WWII. In the days before MRE's, soldiers would get daily rations, which always included a chocolate bar. Laura 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
Starbuc71 162 Posted July 10, 2017 Report Share Posted July 10, 2017 Once again Andrew, great trip report. I have to give you kudos on the FP for Pandora. Only you can pull that off. I said it once and I'll say it again, it's so great the kids still enjoy Disney...and you too. People at my work look at me crazy when I say we're are going to Disney or I'm making dinner reservations 6 months out. I guess you need your own reasons for loving the mouse. We still love Disney, but just can't fathom the prices. I know things go up but it's ruining Walts dream for a place everyone can enjoy. It look like we only have one trip to the fort scheduled this year. Maybe not even that. Keep up the great reporting Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AC in A2......Aaron 693 Posted September 20, 2017 Report Share Posted September 20, 2017 Another great TR entry..... Still not enamored with the Avatar idea at WDW....we will definitely see it in November but not expecting much. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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