TCD's Pre-Halloween 2012 Trip Report

[YENSIDCAMPER 66]

Bulletin Board was always out of date. Yes the construction at the outpost was in early June. It took your famous Purple Crayon drawing but I saw the bear in bear rock. I now have one picture of that rock from everyday I walked by it. Looks like some fun groups around for Halloween.

[anolefan 8]

The Bulletin Board of Useless Information (or since we love acronyms here the BBUI) :

Wait a minute, you say . . . There is a lot of information posted there- it can't all be useless.

Can it?

Let's look.

First, we have this letter warning that Fort guests are at risk of being mauled by bears:

Note that letter is dated August, 2012.

According to a recent report made right here on ff.net, they actually came around the loops and distributed a similar letter just a week before this.

We checked in just the day before, on October 18.

Do you know what information we were provided about bears in our check in documents?

Did anyone guess we got no information?

If so, you are right.

We got nothing. No letter. No nothing. And the bulletin board on the 400 loop comfort station didn't have a copy of the letter posted.

I don't know. Call me funny. If there was current information about bears roaming the Fort, I think it should have been posted here.

But, that August bear letter wasn't all that was posted on the BBUI. There was also this helpful notice about Construction in the parking lot:

I think this was from a couple of months ago too.

There wasn't any construction going on in the Outpost area this weekend.

Then there was this very elaborate two page letter providing information about a running event that might cause some disruptions for WDW guests:

As you can see, this all related to an event that took place on September 29th. This was October 19th.

In defense of the BBUI, not all of the information posted was that out of date. This time guide, for example, was just a week out of date:

See what I mean?

Was there a single useful thing posted on the BBUI?

No, there wasn't.

That's how it got its name.

In just a few minutes, breakfast was ready, and I woke the girls up to come out and eat. Here's what we had:

That's scrambled eggs, sausage and tater tots. For some reason, it is a tradition for us to have tater tots for breakfast when we camp. I don't even remember how it started, but we do it on every trip. The pumpkin plates were courtesy of Mrs. TCD. We always camp in style thanks to her.

Love the BBUI. I visit it on every trip also hoping to find some classics. I have to share a picture I took in October of 2010. It might just take first prize as far as useless information goes :)

Notice the date on this flyer 2009!

That breakfast looks awesome! I'm not sure why, but we aren't much of a breakfast crowd when we camp. I love the smell from the other sites, but we usually have the basics, cereal, granola bars and my favorite pop tarts. I know, pretty boring.

[Discamper 394]

Dam TCD that site has changed a lot sinces 2009/2010

[dvccamper 32]

It doesn't look like much, but I can make anything with that set-up. Anything.

I think I detect a challenge...anything? Poached Salmon? Pizza? Pork Shank?

[stefa70 205]

Dame TCD

Is that like Dame Edna? :thumbsup1:

[ftwildernessguy 778]

Dame Judy Dench?

[Big Kahuna aka John 71]

TCD... Where did you get the toater/oven in your kitchen set up. That is really nice....

[PlaneCrazy 0]

I have the same camp kitchen from Cabelas. It works really well and folds pretty flat. The toaster oven is a good idea. I think I'm gonna have to get me one of those.

But here's a question: what do you use for refrigeration? Tater tots don't do well thawed.

[LONE-STAR 370]

That picnic table in the trees by the Meadows is where my little girl had her first premium Mickey bar in 2010. She was covered in chocolate and ice cream with the biggest smile.

[dblr....Rennie 224]

That picnic table in the trees by the Meadows is where my little girl had her first premium Mickey bar in 2010. She was covered in chocolate and ice cream with the biggest smile.

I'n sure if you have a picturere of that it is one of your favorites!!!!!!!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Bulletin Board was always out of date. Yes the construction at the outpost was in early June. It took your famous Purple Crayon drawing but I saw the bear in bear rock. I now have one picture of that rock from everyday I walked by it. Looks like some fun groups around for Halloween.

Glad to know you took all those photos of Bear Rock! Well done. You are a true Fiend!

Yes, there were some fun groups for Halloween. Fun for them, but maybe not for the other folks on those loops. Avoiding that type of thing was the main reason we went premium on this trip.

Love the BBUI. I visit it on every trip also hoping to find some classics. I have to share a picture I took in October of 2010. It might just take first prize as far as useless information goes :)

Notice the date on this flyer 2009!

That breakfast looks awesome! I'm not sure why, but we aren't much of a breakfast crowd when we camp. I love the smell from the other sites, but we usually have the basics, cereal, granola bars and my favorite pop tarts. I know, pretty boring.

Very good, Tom. That does beat anything I saw on this trip. And probably on previous ones too. I do remember the Easter schedule being posted on the 4th of July, but that was from the same year at least.

Generally, on a weekend trip, I only will cook up a big breakfast once. We usually go with the cereal and pop tart plan too. I do like the breakfast sandwiches from Trail's End, though, and we try to get those when we can.

Dam TCD that site has changed a lot sinces 2009/2010

I think the only change is all the bushes. I like the ones on the sides, but wish they weren't across the back.

I liked the site OK, and would camp in it again, but it isn't my favorite.

I think I detect a challenge...anything? Poached Salmon? Pizza? Pork Shank?

OK, OK, maybe "anything" isn't 100% accurate.

I should have said "anything that a normal person would want to eat while camping and not readily available from other sources."

I don't think I would try poached salmon camping, but I would make up a big pot of Tuna Helper.

And would enjoy it more than I would the salmon.

The pizza and pork shank I would get from Trail's End and Gaston's Tavern.

Is that like Dame Edna? :thumbsup1:

Dame Judy Dench?

These comments don't make sense since Rudy tried to fix the misspelling of damn. The funny thing is, he still misspelled it. But, as I have said before, he still spells pretty well for a dog.

TCD... Where did you get the toater/oven in your kitchen set up. That is really nice....

I stole it from Mrs. TCD.

My Mother-in-law swears by her toaster oven. She comes from the days before microwaves, and has a toaster oven that she uses all the time. She gave us that one as a gift early in our marriage, and it sat unused in one of our cabinets for years. I finally put it in the camper for one trip, and it has been there ever since.

I have the same camp kitchen from Cabelas. It works really well and folds pretty flat. The toaster oven is a good idea. I think I'm gonna have to get me one of those.

But here's a question: what do you use for refrigeration? Tater tots don't do well thawed.

I tried to find my little kitchen on the Cabela's site so I could post a link, and it looks like they don't sell this one anymore- just fancier versions. I like this one because it folds flat and fits easily in the storage compartment of my camper.

Good question about how I handle frozen stuff. I just have the small fridge in the camper and ice chests. I generally keep all the frozen stuff together in one of the ice chests, and use that stuff first. The tots were frozen when we started out our trip, but were pretty much thawed when I cooked them. That wasn't a problem. Maybe after a couple of days it would have been.

That picnic table in the trees by the Meadows is where my little girl had her first premium Mickey bar in 2010. She was covered in chocolate and ice cream with the biggest smile.

That is an awesome memory!

I'll bet you will always think of that when you see that table.

I'n sure if you have a picturere of that it is one of your favorites!!!!!!!

Yeah, Michael, where's the photo?

TCD

[fortpartyof4 108]

Well those 2 large groups you reported on in the full h/u loops explain why I wasn't able to book mine. BTW we ended up at Jekyll Island Campground in late Nov. instead. Should be fun even though it's not the Fort. My second favorite campground close to home. I told the pack they really need to book their 2013 Fort trip now. My son crosses over into Boy Scouts in Jan. and I will no longer be around to help them. So far no one has heeded my advice so I think their days of Disney camping may be numbered.

FWG's comments are cracking me up!

I love tots also, and used to buy crowns all the time but have been unable to find them. Where do you buy yours? The Publix near me doesn't carry them. They used to sell them with onion in them, yummy!

We have the same folding cook station. My in-laws got it for us years ago when we bought our pop-up. However, they bought it at Kmart. I love it. When we got the TT, it came with a mini outdoor kitchen - just a small fold-down one, not like the nicer ones you see on newer rigs - but I still use the fold-up. I use it in addition to, or in place of the built in. If we're not camping more than a night or 2 or are not cooking much I don't bother, but it really is very handy and I highly recommend it. It has it's own carrying bag for storage.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Well those 2 large groups you reported on in the full h/u loops explain why I wasn't able to book mine. BTW we ended up at Jekyll Island Campground in late Nov. instead. Should be fun even though it's not the Fort. My second favorite campground close to home. I told the pack they really need to book their 2013 Fort trip now. My son crosses over into Boy Scouts in Jan. and I will no longer be around to help them. So far no one has heeded my advice so I think their days of Disney camping may be numbered.

FWG's comments are cracking me up!

I love tots also, and used to buy crowns all the time but have been unable to find them. Where do you buy yours? The Publix near me doesn't carry them. They used to sell them with onion in them, yummy!

We have the same folding cook station. My in-laws got it for us years ago when we bought our pop-up. However, they bought it at Kmart. I love it. When we got the TT, it came with a mini outdoor kitchen - just a small fold-down one, not like the nicer ones you see on newer rigs - but I still use the fold-up. I use it in addition to, or in place of the built in. If we're not camping more than a night or 2 or are not cooking much I don't bother, but it really is very handy and I highly recommend it. It has it's own carrying bag for storage.

I don't know if it's true, but I heard that there was a big mix up with one of those groups, and that a lot of full hook up people were upgraded to premium sites to make room for the groups.

The Publix stores here seem to always have the crowns in stock. Mini tater tots too, which I sometimes will buy. I don't recall ever seeing any with onions included, but that does sound good.

I know I saw a folding kitchen like mine at a local store- I thought it was KMart or Dick's sporting goods. I have been trying to find one to post a link, but so far, I haven't found one.

It sounds like we have similar approaches to cooking while at the Fort- I don't cook all that much, and when I do, it's always outside. We have a stove in the camper, but not good ventilation. Nobody wants the camper smelling like Tuna Helper for the rest of the trip.

TCD

[fortpartyof4 108]

I found one at Camping World. It is a lot more expensive than ours was, but looks to be the same one. Ours still has the price tag on the carrying bag and says $59.99. This one is selling for a hundred bucks!

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[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

FP4- that is really funny- because I found the same one (it even has the same photo) on Amazon.

For anyone wishing to be cool like TCD, I found a place where you can buy the official TCD outdoor kitchen. This is the same thing I have, only it's being sold by another company:

Official TCD Camp Kitchen

This is the same exact item I have, right down to the carrying case. Except mine says Cabela's on it. I think this is less than I paid, plus you can get free shipping. I agree with some of the comments- it's not the most durable thing you will buy, but you get what you pay for, and for the price, this is a good deal.

TCD

[fortpartyof4 108]

I am not sure why that posted like that, it's not how I copied it. But, it is the same one.

Also, I forgot to mention something in my last post. Your comment about the headlines and the NYY - not nice!

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

I am not sure why that posted like that, it's not how I copied it. But, it is the same one.

Also, I forgot to mention something in my last post. Your comment about the headlines and the NYY - not nice!

I'll bet there's going to be a run on those tables!

Sorry about the mean NYY comment. But, if you could put away your blind Yankee love for just a moment, you have to admit that is a good headline: "Tigers Sweep, Yankees Weep."

Perfect, IMHO.

TCD

[fortpartyof4 108]

I'll bet there's going to be a run on those tables!

Sorry about the mean NYY comment. But, if you could put away your blind Yankee love for just a moment, you have to admit that is a good headline: "Tigers Sweep, Yankees Weep."

Perfect, IMHO.

TCD

Blind Yankee love? You just keep getting those jabs in, don't you?

Yes it was a clever headline.

Yesterday I saw another NYY slur on FB. It was a picture of hurricane Sandy and had A-rod's mug in the middle of the storm. I don't think making a joke out of a hurricane is appropriate at all, but it said "rename the hurricane A-rod and it won't hit anything". Again I didn't see the humor but I am sure those who don't like him or the Yankees did.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Blind Yankee love? You just keep getting those jabs in, don't you?

Yes it was a clever headline.

Yesterday I saw another NYY slur on FB. It was a picture of hurricane Sandy and had A-rod's mug in the middle of the storm. I don't think making a joke out of a hurricane is appropriate at all, but it said "rename the hurricane A-rod and it won't hit anything". Again I didn't see the humor but I am sure those who don't like him or the Yankees did.

I am ashamed to admit that I laughed at what you wrote about A-roid.

But, that's it, I promise, no more Yankee jabs from me.

I'll be nice.

TCD

[Hotmamac aka Misty 11]

My family makes fun of me for taking a regular toaster along on our camping trips but now that I see you take a toaster oven, I may have to upgrade!!

Can't wait for more.

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

My family makes fun of me for taking a regular toaster along on our camping trips but now that I see you take a toaster oven, I may have to upgrade!!

Can't wait for more.

I'm not sure I would ditch the toaster. For whatever reason, that toaster oven takes a long time to make toast. For lack of space, I don't have regular toaster in the camper- I just use the toaster oven, but if I had the room, I would have a regular toaster too.

TCD

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Time to move on.

It is still Friday morning.

But, everyone in the TCD gang is up, has eaten breakfast, and we are about to move out.

The girls hit the showers while I cleaned up around camp.

The girls reported back that they really enjoyed visiting the comfort station when there were no huge groups of women and children screaming at the tops of their lungs in Spanish and playing loud Salsa music. They especially enjoyed the lack of young, screaming, naked toddlers running amok and peeking under the shower doors, which has been their experience of late in the 1500/1600 loop comfort station.

As soon as the girls were ready to go, we headed out for some morning looping.

We always check on the 2000 loop. There is always something to see there.

We saw the momma and baby deer across from the loop entrance:

Since this was a Friday morning, the 2000 loop was pretty quiet. More than half the sites were empty. But, we knew that would soon change as the weekend warriors arrived.

We could hardly wait.

Since we really didn't see anything of note on the 2000 loop, we headed over to loop 1200 and 1300.

This guy with the cool tow vehicle was in this exact same spot last Christmas. I believe he was the winner or at least placed in the site decorating contest. He had some good Halloween decorations going, but he will need to step it up if he expects to place in the Halloween site decorating contest:

This fellow was just getting started with his decorations on the 1300 loop:

That was about it on 1200/1300, so we next hit up the 800 loop. This site was good:

There were quite a few empty sites on the 800 loop. This loop is also a favorite of the weekend warriors, so I expected that all those empty sites would be full by tonight.

We obviously stopped at Trail's End for a drink while we were looping, because this contraption was parked in the parking lot there. Looks like it would be an interesting ride:

This was the second golf cart with a trailer that we have seen in as many trips to the Fort. I am surprised that this is allowed. These things present a danger to those riding in them, but also to those having to drive near them.

This site was on the 200 loop. Mrs. TCD had a fake chicken like that once. The TCD dog, Rocky, had a very good time tearing it apart. I wish old Rocky was with us on the golf cart now- he would love these chickens:

I took this photo because these folks had a sign with pictures and names of their pets. Two of the three pet names on that banner are the names of members of the TCD gang. That was worth a photo:

I would have been happy to loop some more, but we needed to get on with our day.

We had no big plans.

The only thing not negotiable was that we would be having a Giddyap And Go chicken dinner from Trail's End tonight, so we would be at the Fort for dinner. What we did before and after that was up for grabs.

The girls suggested that we go back to MK and see if the new Fantasyland was open. Even though we got to see it Thursday afternoon and evening, we didn't spend as much time there as we would have liked. In particular, we were hoping to see the inside of the Be Our Guest restaurant, and to go through the whole Little Mermaid queue.

So we headed down the the dock.

I parked next to one of the Disney carts, and took a photo of this sticker that I noticed they now have on all the windshields:

Since I was already taking a photo, I also took a photo of the rules they have pasted to the steering wheels:

That one about using a hands-free device with cell phones is a good one. That rule is not enforced at all. In fact, I see the Rangers driving around all the time using cell phones and radios. And, then there was the ranger I saw later in the trip who was driving with both hands off the wheel.

When we arrived at the dock, we saw one of that the MK boat had just left, and was heading on its way past Discovery Island. One of the Resort boats was heading to the dock, and we sat down at the tables and chairs at the end of the dock to chill until the MK boat came back.

To our surprise, though, the Resort boat pulled up on the MK side.

We walked down the dock, and the fellow on the boat said they were taking this boat to the MK.

There were two guys on this boat. The guy driving was being trained.

We were in luck, because the guy doing the training knew everything there was to know about Walt Disney World, and he provided narration for our entire ride.

Non-stop narration.

As is to be expected, he had a lot of inaccurate and wrong information to share.

But, he did say a few things that I thought were interesting.

Whether or not they're true, I can't say.

The Wilderness Lodge geyser was going off as we went by:

And, we had to stop and go slow for a while to allow one of the MK ferries to head toward the maintenance dock:

These how to put on a life jacket signs are on all the Disney boats, but I don't think I've ever taken a photo of one:

I like this photo. It shows all the cool modes of transportation available at WDW- the Avenger Monorail and a couple of boats:

The talkative extra boat captain pointed out something about the railings on these boats. He said the railings used to be teak, but they have been replaced by rubber. He said go ahead and feel them and see. I have to say, they did feel like rubber to me:

Have you ever noticed how these boats have a large engine "room" right in the middle of the boat? It's kind of a strange design, isn't it? :

According to Captain Know-it-all, these boats used to be steam powered. That is why they have the weird looking engines and smoke stacks. They were later converted to diesel, but at one time, they ran with propane and steam. He said this style of boat is original to WDW- and that these boats are all 40 years old and still going strong. Again, I'm not sure if any of this is true, but it sounds plausible to me.

I can't remember what else Capt. KIA told me, but the man did not stop talking for the entire ride over from the Fort. I'm sure the trainee was glad to have a break from that.

The MK did not seem particularly busy this morning. That was good.

We stopped by the Fire Station for some more SOTMK cards.

On the way out, I saw my old friend Six Bits n/k/a The Councilman:

He looked like he was trapped in a long conversation, and the TCD twins wanted to get moving.

So we headed back to the New Fantasyland.

We were happy to find it open for business.

We spent a good amount of time just looking at all the new stuff they have built back here. The forest itself is amazing. Since the MK is built above the Utilidors, and there are no Utilidors back here, they actually could have a lot of different elevations, and they took good advantage of that. The trees you see here are planted down below the bridge, and I liked standing on the bridge and looking down at the trees below and up at the mountain and waterfall above:

The big waterfall and mountain with the Beast's castle perched up top look very real- I know they used the old forced perspective trick here, but I have to say it works.

Our first planned stop was to hit the Little Mermaid ride and go through the regular queue to see all the detail.

But, the girls wanted to take a pit stop in the new Gaston's Tavern ladies' room.

I think maybe they were hoping to meet Gaston again, but they didn't admit to that.

While the girls were off stalking Gaston using the facilities, I popped in the Belle's gift shop again. I did so mainly to escape the heat and enjoy the AC.

But, it also gave me a chance to look at that weird portrait again.

This photo shows that it is displayed in a pretty prominent place in the store:

Here's a good look at it in case you didn't get enough the first time around:

The day before, I didn't notice the Donald Duck statue up on the bookshelf, and I also saw today that there were some titles on some of the books, so I tried to get a close up of those things:

The book titles appear to be written in French. I think they may say something about lands of fantasy. The Donald Duck statue, I have since learned, was a gift given to all the WDW castmembers who had worked there for 40 years, of which Phil here was one.

There is a Thomas Kincade painting on display in the gift shop, so I took a photo of it. In a shop that sells art in Hollywood Studios, we once had a castmember show us some hidden images in a Thomas Kincade painting. I don't know if that is something this artist always did. I couldn't see any hidden images in this painting, and still don't. If anyone sees anything, please let me know:

There are two big display windows outside this gift shop. I thought these would be a good place for them to put a new SOTMK portal, so I looked around. I didn't see any signs of one yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if one shows up here some time. I believe this is a bust of Poseidon. Which at first I thought made sense, but what does he have to do with Belle? :

In the other window, they had some Shakespeare books on display. Which is odd. Why would a French village shop have Shakespeare books in the window? I guess since Belle is a big reader, she might read Shakespeare, but I thought she was more the fairy tale type.

Anyway, I'll bet the stuff on display in the windows is all very carefully planned and there for a reason. I just am not smart enough to tell you why.

This popcorn stand sits outside the shop:

Those towers you see in the background are from the Ariel ride next door.

This is a close up of the sign for the popcorn stand:

In case you don't know, Maurice is Belle's father, and is an eccentric inventor. We are supposed to think that he built this popcorn machine.

The girls had no luck finding Gaston, even though the weren't looking in the first place, so next stop is the Little Mermaid.

TCD

[PoorGABoy 4]

Every time I see Beast's castle, I can't help to think of the castle Camelot in The Holy Grail and the squire saying "It's only a model".

[Tri-Circle-D 2,059]

Every time I see Beast's castle, I can't help to think of the castle Camelot in The Holy Grail and the squire saying "It's only a model".

That is very funny!

And kind of true.

Since I saw the castle when it was just sitting on a big box building, I know it is very small, and that it really isn't that high up.

But, somehow, when you're there the whole thing does fool your mind into thinking it's a big full sized castle way up in the sky.

TCD

[PoorGABoy 4]

Sir Lancelot: Look, my liege!

[trumpets play a fanfare as the camera cuts briefly to the sight of a majestic castle]

King Arthur: [in awe] Camelot!

Sir Galahad: [in awe] Camelot!

Sir Lancelot: [in awe] Camelot!

Patsy: [derisively] It's only a model!

King Arthur: Shh!

King Arthur: On second thought, let's not go to Camelot. It is a silly place.