TCD's Flippin' Awesome July 4 2011 Fort Trip Report!

[Fortmommy 1]

Caught up again....

I think next trip I need to do some resort hopping. I've only seen All-Star Music, the military resort, the contemporary, and the fort. I want to see those hammocks.

What is the military resort?

[CCIntrigue...aka Gwen 547]

Loving your TR, as always!

BTW, the point behind the Polynesian is Sunset Pointe. It's used for Disney weddings. Our son got married there:

[Otter Spotter aka Debbie 58]

What is the military resort?

Shades of Green. It is only open to military personnel and their families. There is an MP stationed at the entrance and you either need to be a guest, visiting a guest (that they can actually verify), or have a golf reservation to get past said MP. Before 9/11, anyone could go into the resort.

[Lou... 3,118]

Shades of Green. It is only open to military personnel and their families.

There is an MP stationed at the entrance and you either need to be a guest, visiting a guest (that they can actually verify), or have a golf reservation to get past said MP.

It's also open to some non-military uniformed gov't agencies and some defense contractor employees as well.

The MP at the gate must be on leave. It's been a civilian security person whenever I've gone through there. But I only go through there during special events at the golf course.

[Otter Spotter aka Debbie 58]

It's also open to some non-military uniformed gov't agencies and some defense contractor employees as well.

The MP at the gate must be on leave. It's been a civilian security person whenever I've gone through there. But I only go through there during special events at the golf course.

The last time Al stayed there (I think it was 2008), they had MP's at the gate. Like everything else that could have changed. They had to call Al's room to verify that I was really visiting him. Also, when I took him in 2009 to go to the little PX there, there was an MP & he had to show his military ID.

Could this be the one of the budget cuts Barry is alluding to? "Read my lips! NO MP's at Disney!"

[Lou... 3,118]

Could this be the one of the budget cuts Barry is alluding to? "Read my lips! NO MP's at Disney!"

It is a Dept. of Defense facility.

Need I say more?

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

First, we will catch up with the comments.

And, then we will be moving right along.

TCD Here are pictures of the golf cart parking behind Pioneer Hall in 2009

Great trip report TCD

Thanks, Todd.

They did things differently this year.

On the 3rd, they diverted everyone trying to drive into the Settlement area over to the behind Pioneer Hall. And they started doing that really early- like before 6 pm.

But then on the 4th, they let everyone drive down the path and go wherever they wanted.

Which made getting our of there after the fireworks next to impossible.

I'll give more details about that later.

I really don't think we have to worry about snoopy rangers.

They probably have as much authority as bus drivers.

I don't know. The snoopy rangers have radios, and I saw them call in for back up on several occasions.

I am not sure whether or not I like the rangers.

I'll be addressing some of this later in this report.

Great pictures. The sunset was awesome. Congrats on snagging a lounge chair. The very first time I had a mai-tai was at the Poly. They were were included in the price of the luau. I had a lot of mai-tai's. They were good :banana:

That's awesome.

Mrs. TCD and I went to Maui on our honeymoon. I remember the Mai Tai's fondly.

I may have to quit my job to feed my fortfiends.net addiction.

Great updates!

I remember your report from last year, and your pictures from the beach. Wasn't there a hula hoop contest going on as well? There were a lot more people there then.

Huge props to Princess Nana for giving my fish more airtime!

I love your pictures of the beach and the Polynesian. Did you notice the nice camera on the tripod in one of your photos? I bet that guy got some nice fireworks shots.

Can't wait for more, and Thursday is my day off, so I'll be able to keep up

Yes, there was hula hopping, and the Macarena, and even the Chicken Dance last year.

This year, none of the above.

Like I said: some party.

There were actually quite a few cameras on tripods up there on the point. I would like to give that a try one of these days. As you will see in just a bit, using my DD's head in place of a tripod didn't work out all to swell.

First off, the sushi is amazing and you should go when the crowds are less intimidating. But remember, you can get it to go to.

The hawiian nachos are good too. We had them there as well. Nothing like the smothered hot dog at the Fort, but still good.

The Point is a prime viewing location for a few reasons. We watch from there all of the time. One reason is it ussualy isnt that crowded. You have nice soft grass to sit on rather than the sand. And, for special events like this, the Poly doesnt check for resort IDs here. Thier "jurisdiction" ends at the sand, which is odd because they do sell stuff this far down.

You haven't steered me wrong yet, so I am definitely going to get some sushi from the Kona Sushi Bar one of these days. Soon I hope.

Good to know about The Point. I know that they have checked ID's on the beach in the past. They did not on the 3rd this year or last, but if they had, walking over to The Point would not have been a problem.

Great pics - the sunset looks beautiful! Mother Nature always trumps manmade, if you ask me...

$10 is not bad at all for that drink - that's the same or less than you'll pay at most vacation-type spots. The concert venue that we try to frequent in the summer charges $8 for a beer and I've never even asked how much for the big margaritas. I know most folks will disagree, but I've found MOST things at WDW are not terribly out of line. Compared with over vacation spots/amusement parks, that is. For example, I helped chaperone a band trip to an amusement park and paid $18 for a BBQ sammich, fries, and diet coke. That's pretty strong - and it was a walk-up window with just some picnic benches sitting around.

Can't wait to see the fireworks pics!!!

Oh, and oh Disney-master please tell me - we are planning to do MK fireworks with DD3 one night this year - we think she can hang in there this year. Where should we watch them from inside the park?

I agree with you about the sunset.

And the drink prices. But I still like to complain about them.

As far as fireworks from inside the MK, we like to stand either right in front of the castle, back behind the hub, or off to the right side, as you are facing the castle, over in front of the restaurant next to the Main Street Ice Cream Shop (I can't remember the name of that restaurant at the moment). On busy nights, the area in front of the castle can get packed to the point of becoming scary, so I'm not sure that is a good place for your 3 year old. Over to the right might be a better bet. The only other thing I will add is that two of my DD's hated being in the parks for the fireworks when they were young- the noise really bothered them.

The nice thing about waiting to read a TCD report is that you can spend a concetrated amount of time almost feeling like you are there. Today was one of those days when I needed that. Thanks, TCD!

But here is the question I have - I saw the TCD hammock. Did anyone try spending the night in it?

Thanks.

I did try to sleep in the TCD hammock one night back on our Spring Break trip. We were one site over, so we were close to the bus stop. The buses kept on waking me (they run past 2 am). I will give it another try some time, but not in a site close to a bus stop.

Loving this trip report as usual. Though I do feel like an impatient two year old. I keep checking back to see if the fireworks pictures are posted yet. :rofl2:

Check back later this morning.

Caught up again....

I think next trip I need to do some resort hopping. I've only seen All-Star Music, the military resort, the contemporary, and the fort. I want to see those hammocks.

Yes, you must resort hop. There is a lot to see.

Loving your TR, as always!

BTW, the point behind the Polynesian is Sunset Pointe. It's used for Disney weddings. Our son got married there:

Wow.

What a nice photo!

I have heard of Sunset Point, but I didn't know that this was Sunset Point.

I always thought Sunset Point was over by the wedding pavilion.

Now I know.

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Shades of Green. It is only open to military personnel and their families. There is an MP stationed at the entrance and you either need to be a guest, visiting a guest (that they can actually verify), or have a golf reservation to get past said MP. Before 9/11, anyone could go into the resort.

It's also open to some non-military uniformed gov't agencies and some defense contractor employees as well.

The MP at the gate must be on leave. It's been a civilian security person whenever I've gone through there. But I only go through there during special events at the golf course.

And to add just a bit more info- Shades of Green was originally a WDW resort which was focused on golf. I think it was just called the Golf Resort.

It is one of the few places on WDW property that I have never visited.

When I could have gone, I wasn't interested.

And, truthfully, I am not all that interested now.

But, I will get over there one of these days.

TCD

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

What is the military resort?

I didnt remember... that was about 15 yrs ago. I went with a retired military family. Was my first trip to WDW and it wasn't so great. 18yr old with 2 13 year olds.... miserable

[Discamper 394]

Shades of Green. It is only open to military personnel and their families. There is an MP stationed at the entrance and you either need to be a guest, visiting a guest (that they can actually verify), or have a golf reservation to get past said MP. Before 9/11, anyone could go into the resort.

To add you have to be in the military to say their civilian can go there and eat and shop but you can only can stay a few hours Cheryle and I drove over there a few time to eat and just look around you either have to use cash or credit cards they don’t take KTTW card for payment. TCD you are right I stayed there when it was Disney Inn Golf Resort.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

It's time for some fireworks photos.

It's amazing that we have made it this far in this report without seeing any.

Because, the fireworks are a big part of the 4th of July weekend.

On July 3rd and 4th, the Fireworks are special.

It said so right on the 4th of July handout that we got when we checked in.

And on the signs posted at the boat docks.

Last year's handout did not tell us the name of the fireworks show.

Maybe the show didn't have a name last year.

This year, the fireworks did have a name.

The fireworks were called: Disney's Celebrate America!- A Fourth of July Concert in the Sky.

Great name.

The show started promptly at 9 pm.

On the Polynesian Beach, the audio is provided by speakers on the EWP boats.

That works great.

Loud and clear!

The narrator has a distinctive voice.

I think it's a famous actor, but I can't place who it is.

The narration adds a lot to the show.

The show basically is a loose history of America.

The narrator starts out talking about the pioneers, and various familiar songs are played.

And the fireworks are more or less continuous throughout. Calling this a concert in the sky is accurate.

Here's the first burst:

You can see the castle there in the back of the photo, and the EWP boats floating in the foreground.

Last year we had a possessed duck photobomb some of our photos.

He was back this year.

With a friend:

But, he saw that he had been spotted by us, so he moved down the beach to photobomb some other folks.

The EWP boats are not used in the first part of the show.

The first part focuses on the fireworks and building the story.

Here's some good old red, white and blue fireworks:

Last year, we were pleasantly surprised when the EWP boats lit up during the song She's A Grand Old Flag began to play.

This year, we knew it was coming, but it is still a great part of the show. And, you can only view this from the Polynesian Beach:

Note in the photo above, that you can see one of the special fireworks cruise boats floating right in front of one of the flags. I have never looked into this, but I think a fireworks cruise would be a lot of fun for the 4th of July fireworks. If anyone reading along has any information about how to sign up for one of these, and what it costs, please share.

The Grand Old Flag song gets me every time. I love it!:

During the show, there are times when the fireworks have certain shapes. They shoot up fireworks that are shaped like hearts during the song Clementine. After the flags are lit, and the Grand Old Flag song winds down, they play the National Anthem. This begins with star shaped fireworks in red, white and blue, I got photos of the white and blue for you:

You may have noticed that some of these photos are better than others.

The good ones were taken by my DD, who got a real camera for Christmas.

I just use a point and shoot. That works fine for me most of the time. But not so much on fireworks.

Aside from the finale, my favorite part of the fireworks show is when they get to the "rockets red glare" part of the National Anthem:

(These photos are by my DD):

As cool as this looks in the photos, you really have to be there to understand how dramatic this part of the show is.

The show then continues with more patriotic music and fireworks:

You can see quite a few of the fireworks cruise boats in the photo immediately above.

Then, it all builds to a dramatic finale:

Those four photos were from DD.

Here's the photos I got from the finale:

DD wins. Hands down.

I have a lot more fireworks photos.

But, these cover it all nicely.

So, I'll spare you the repetition.

The finale was followed by loud applause from the audience, and we tried to get a good USA! USA! chant going.

All of this was free to anyone who could find their way to the Polynesian Resort.

It made my $10 Mai Tai seem like a good deal.

Then the crowd of folks that we were in all collectively realized that it was time to go, and that we would all need to find our way out of there.

There were a lot of options.

We all discussed what we should do.

The best two choices we came up with were:

We could take the Polynesian boat over to the MK, and head to the Fort from there; or

We could take the resort monorail to the Contemporary and catch the resort boat to the Fort.

We went with the second option last year, and decided to do the same this year.

But, this year was way busier than last.

I'll give you all the gory details of our odyssey in the next post.

TCD

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

Fire works photos are really hard to catch. If the timing isn't exactly right you get a streak or small fading embers. Particularly when you are too far to hear the sounds.

[doodlebug....Cherie 461]

What kind of camera does your DD have. You're right her pictures are awesome. Thanks for sharing :banana:

[anolefan 8]

(These photos are by my DD):

TCD

Very nice!

She did a great job on these shots! I love the reflection off the water.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Fire works photos are really hard to catch. If the timing isn't exactly right you get a streak or small fading embers. Particularly when you are too far to hear the sounds.

True. Professional photographers do a much better job than amateurs do with fireworks photos.

What kind of camera does your DD have. You're right her pictures are awesome. Thanks for sharing :banana:

She has a Canon Rebel. It is an entry level 35mm camera. She is getting pretty good with it, and we have been looking at getting her some other lenses to try out.

TCD

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

True. Professional photographers do a much better job than amateurs do with fireworks photos.

We got about 5 fireworks pics on the 4th but didn't have a chance to try for more. The mozzies ran us inside. Swarms of them but we did get to watch the fireworks from the vista window in the trailers so all was good.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Now for the rest of the story about our July 3rd excursion.

As previously discussed, we had a few bumps in the road on the way to the Polynesian.

And we had a few on our way back to the Fort.

Right after the fireworks, we headed back along the beach to the Polynesian lobby and monorail station.

So did everyone else.

It was like leaving a concert or football game.

Wall to wall people.

All moving along slowly.

We walked with the mob into the Polynesian lobby, and up the stairs.

Still elbow to elbow.

Everyone was heading to the monorail.

As we approached, I could see that the line was out the door.

But, they were loading a monorail at that time, and that whole group moved ahead.

We didn't make that monorail, but we did make it out to the platform, and it looked like we would be able to load on to the next one if it wasn't already full when it arrived.

To my surprise, the next monorail came right along.

And, there was plenty of room for more passengers.

We crowded on.

That wasn't so bad.

It was EMH at the MK tonight.

And it looked like a lot of folks were heading there.

Folks with young kids.

At like 9:30 at night.

Good luck with that.

Our car just about emptied at the MK stop.

And no one got on.

And then we were off to the Contemporary.

All in all, that part of our journey wasn't bad.

It was just about 10 pm when we got to the Contemporary.

Which meant we wouldn't be back to the Fort before 10.

And everything would be closed there.

So, we decided to get some soft serve ice cream there at the Contemporary counter service restaurant.

It's good.

While enjoying our ice cream, I noticed that these folks at the next table were enjoying a Little Caesar's pizza:

So, why would I bother posting a photo of that?

Because this was something that we noticed a lot of on this trip.

When we had lunch at the Wilderness Lodge counter service place earlier that day, I noticed a lady in the dining area pull a ceramic bowl our of her purse, open up a can of soup, and heat it in the microwave that they have there. She helped herself to some crackers and napkins and plastic-ware. Then, no sooner did we see that when a guy comes in carrying a Kentucky Fried Chicken bag and an old refillable mug. He grabs a seat, and then proceeds up to the condiment bar that they have there, and fixes himself a plate of lettuce and other goodies, and brings it back to his seat. Then, he takes out his chicken sandwich, and fixes it up. He also went and got himself a drink in that old refillable mug.

When did this phenomenon start?

Because if this is cool, then I have some good ideas for some future camping trips.

TCD

[stefa70 205]

Whoa, Whoa! Slow down a bit! You posted twice within 2 hours :popo:

I agree with rebelstand. Firework pics are all about timing. Just a second too late and they look like a fuzzball.

Your daughters pics look great though! I actually looked at that camera, but sacrificed the technology for something I could stick in my pocket.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

And now, the rest of the story about our return trip to the Fort.

We hung out at the Contemporary Resort for a while.

There's lots of places to do that around there.

It was probably 10:45 or so when we finally headed down to the boat dock.

Last year, we got held up on our return to the Fort by a returning pirate cruise and the EWP, so we intentionally took are time in order to avoid all of that again.

When we approached the dock, though, we could see that the EWP was performing.

This was way after the scheduled time.

You can see the Octopus between the buildings in these shots:

And, there's the turtle:

The resort boats don't dock when the EWP is going on.

So we hung out here.

And took a group photo:

You can see King Triton's seahorses in the right background of that photo.

And here's a really interesting coincidence.

Mrs. TCD and I were doing some organizing this past weekend, and we came across a box full of old photos.

Including this gem from 1998:

The TCD twins were three and my oldest daughter was seven when that photo was taken. And I was still 30-something. Too bad I'm not in that photo.

My goodness, does time fly!

But, we sure have plenty of great memories.

After our photo op, we headed to the dock.

There was already a large group waiting.

Based on my experience, we weren't going to get on the first boat, which we could see heading our way.

As we waited a large group walked up.

They lined up on the other side of the dock.

Dummies.

The boats don't dock over there at night. They don't go in both directions at night. Just during the day. So the boats always just dock on the right side of the dock at night.

After this big group lined up on the left, a few folks who were behind us joined them. Even some people ahead of us did too.

They were going to be sorry.

By the time everyone shifted around, both groups were about the same size.

That group on the left was going to be upset when the boat came and picked up everyone on the right.

Then the approaching boat pulled up to the dock.

On the left.

What the Fort!

Remember when we left the Fort earlier?

The resort boats were still traveling in both directions.

I commented that it was odd.

Well, apparently it continued all evening.

So, those people on the left got picked up first. And there was no chance of us switching sides to go with them, as they were full.

And most of them arrived at the dock after us.

Now who's the dummy?

That boat had approached from the Fort, and was going to the Lodge, and then the Fort, and then, presumably, would be coming back here. But that would take 30 minutes or more.

As they left, a boat left the Wilderness Lodge dock and headed our way. This boat would be picking up here and going to the Fort first. But, based on our place in line, I don't think we would make it.

Which meant we would be waiting at least another 30 minutes for the next boat to come.

We held our ground.

The boat arrived.

It already had a bunch of passengers on it.

Fortunately, most of them got off.

The captain began to load the guests.

With about 20 people still in front of us, the boat was nearly full.

Apparently the next group to board was a big one, and the captain called out for a party of four.

Can you believe it?

We were a party of four!

There were a couple of parties of 2 or 3 ahead of us.

But he asked for a party of four.

There was some murmuring in the crowd.

For some reason, I thought of that photo of that last helicopter leaving Saigon.

You know, the one with all the people lined up on the roof waiting to get on?

Our hands shot up!

He called us up to board.

Past those 20 or so folks in front of us.

Great for us, bad for them!

We made it.

Our boat indeed headed straight to the Fort.

We beat the one that had left before us and went to the Lodge first.

Sweet.

Our cart was waiting for us.

Way over behind Pioneer Hall!

We treated ourselves to a behind the scenes tour on the way out.

You usually aren't allowed to drive golf carts back here.

But, the rangers made us do it.

Stick it to the man!

It was just after 11 pm when we finally made it back to 1501.

We looped over to the 1700 loop to see if we could catch the tail end of the pot luck.

But nobody was there.

All the carts were gone.

And so were all the Fiends.

We did a bit more looping.

And that was all.

Tomorrow is another day.

And, it happens to be the 4th of July!

In honor of this momentous day we had an early and uninvited visitor at our site.

You'll hear all about it in the next update.

TCD

[Nicki aka Rebelstand 272]

waiting with bated breath......waiting...waiting...

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Whoa, Whoa! Slow down a bit! You posted twice within 2 hours :popo:

I agree with rebelstand. Firework pics are all about timing. Just a second too late and they look like a fuzzball.

Your daughters pics look great though! I actually looked at that camera, but sacrificed the technology for something I could stick in my pocket.

Relax.

I know what I'm doing.

That's three posts today, but not quite as many photos as normal.

We just finished July 3rd.

And we still have all of July 4th to get through.

Which includes my visitor, the golf cart parade conspiracy, and the celebrity sighting. And much more.

Trust me, this TR is really just getting started!

TCD

[stefa70 205]

TCD

What a great picture of Dad & his girls! :heart:

It's tough when you see old pictures like that and realize how time just keeps ticking away. How sweet that you were able to recreate that shot though. The girls still want to hang out with you!

Now I'm feeling all sappy (remember, mine just turned 21!) AND this is the THIRD installment already today. I need a nap!

[anolefan 8]

She has a Canon Rebel. It is an entry level 35mm camera. She is getting pretty good with it, and we have been looking at getting her some other lenses to try out.

TCD

I'm confused, is it a true 35mm SLR film camera or a DSLR?

If it is film, how do you get the photos transferred digitally? I have 2 older Canon 35mm SLR camera's and would love to use them more often.

[anolefan 8]

Including this gem from 1998:

The TCD twins were three and my oldest daughter was seven when that photo was taken. And I was still 30-something. Too bad I'm not in that photo.

My goodness, does time fly!

But, we sure have plenty of great memories.

TCD

THAT, right there is what we are hoping to capture with our children!

I can only hope we create those types of memories so that our children can carry it on when they grow up and have families of their own.

I love it!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I'm confused, is it a true 35mm SLR film camera or a DSLR?

If it is film, how do you get the photos transferred digitally? I have 2 older Canon 35mm SLR camera's and would love to use them more often.

See? I am showing my ignorance. My DD's camera is a digital camera not film. I always called those things 35mm cameras. But I'm old.

THAT, right there is what we are hoping to capture with our children!

I can only hope we create those types of memories so that our children can carry it on when they grow up and have families of their own.

I love it!

You are well on your way already. Just keep doing what you're doing.

In that box of photos, I also found a bunch from our very first camping trip to the Fort in our pop-up. That was in 1999. We were in the 1400 loop. I even have the site number in one of the photos. I will share those in a future trip report. There's even some of TCD without gray hair (which proves it was my DD's who gave it to me).

TCD