Disney: The Short Version

We had reservations for the Disney World TAC rally for about a year and a half.  That means we made the reservations back when we didn't have much of a trailer to sleep in!  We arrived at Fort Wilderness in early November then stayed for two weeks.  I could work up a sweat writing about all the stuff we did at Disney!  Our family does Disney in a particular, deliberate way with a couple of goals in mind.

First goal: Don't wait in line.

Second goal:  Have fun.

Think our priorities are mixed up?  Waiting in line less means we have more fun!

Fort Wilderness:  What's the big deal?
Fort Wilderness has a reputation.  With such rave reviews, we were anxious to make our own assessment.  I must admit that I have been more than a little skeptical about how "magical" a campground could be.  We've heard that this place is  "The Best" on more than one occasion.

Our first night at Fort Wilderness was a shocker.  If you stay at a Disney resort on the Seven Seas Lagoon  (ie: The lake in front of the Magic Kingdom) then you have the opportunity every evening to see the lovely, charming, quaint, nostalgic boat parade as it floats by with its lights and blaring calliope-ish music.  Fort Wilderness is tucked away in its own quiet little cove on the Seven Seas Lagoon, therefore it is the last stop for the boat parade- at about 9:45 pm!!  This is important information to know.  If we had known it ahead of time then I might have been less apt to mumble something non G-rated about the campground being the nosiest we've ever been to.

With Fort Wilderness, Disney does so many things right.   Need ice?  You can buy it at the bathhouse that is just steps from your campsite.  Need to do laundry?  Also at the bathhouse.  Forget detergent?  They have that, too.  That annoying thing you can't stand about the bathhouse at your favorite campground?  Well, that have that right, too.  There's definitely a dry place to put your towels and clothes when you take a shower.  There are enough hooks.  There's a shelf big enough for your shower soaps.  There aren't any light bulbs that need changing.  There is enough hot water.  All of those things.  They have it right.  

 It wasn't the details that were the clincher for me though.  It was when our youngest asked "Can we ride our bikes to the Magic Kingdom?"  Completely melted my heart!

Have you heard about the poor old Airstream at Animal Kingdom?  

We had to visit.

I guess if you're an Airstream stuck in one place then Disney World is a pretty good place to be stuck!

 

You can actually eat IN this trailer:

Though, I can't recommend it: 

(see list: Things we should have skipped)

Dining: Oh!  The Places We Ate!
We've been to Disney before.  I made dining reservations ahead of time for those trips.  This time, since our kids are a little older and we weren't traveling with any extra people, we decided to try something different with dining: winging it. I did not make a single dinner reservation before our trip.  Our plan?  Be flexible- see where we could get in for table service.  With only a couple of exceptions, we were able to get in for table service almost every time we tried...

some highlights:

50s Prime Time Cafe (Hollywood Studios)-
Our waitress brought plates, silverware, and napkins.  She stacked them in a pile in the middle of the table and told us to "do chores."  We appreciated so many things about this place, including home-style cooking.

pot roast on a bed of mashed potatoes.  delicious.

This places felt like a haven in the middle of a busy park.  We sat watching black and white TV and admiring all of the 50s knick knacks.   After looking around, I was a little disappointed that our booth wasn't adorned with wallpaper.  Then, I took a closer look.

Would you believe the wall behind our booth was Zolatone?!  

  We had no trouble getting "Member of the Clean Plate Club" stickers.

Yak and Yeti (Animal Kingdom) -

Our waiter found us a table by an upstairs window.  He recommended the ginger salmon for an entree.   I would be hard pressed to pick a "favorite meal" for our entire trip but I just might pick the food here.  


Be Our Guest (Magic Kingdom)-

Our napkins were folded into roses.  

Immediately, Samuel took his apart to figure out how to make it.  At every cloth-napkin restaurant we've been to since, we've had an unspoken contest to see who can make a rose the fastest- if it looks like tulip then it doesn't count. 

Our table in the ballroom faced a large window.  Outside the window it was snowing.  The snow was so realistic to that we had to go to the window to get a better look!

 My steak was delicious but I think the girls favorite part was dessert.  

Words on the chocolate say "Be Our Guest."

Tokyo Dining (Epcot)-
All of us love Japanese food.  We've eaten at Epcot's hibachi restaurant, Teppan Edo,  in the past.  It's one of our favorites.  At the Japan pavilion, we learned that Teppan Edo was full for the evening.  The hostess encouraged us to try Tokyo Dining; where she would be able to get us a table right away.  A little disappointed, we took the table.  She pointed upstairs where we were met by a hostess who escorted us to a table by the window.  It wasn't until after we had ordered our food that I realized we would have a window seat for the evening firework show at Epcot, Illuminations. Whoah!  I'm sure people make reservations months in advance to get a table like this (and just hope for a window seat.)

Oh, bento box!  You are so pretty:

Green tea pudding!  

I've had this at Teppan Edo before (it was half of the reason we came back) so I was delighted to find it on the menu at Tokyo Dining, too. 

Illuminations fireworks, from our WINDOW!

Supercalifragilistic Breakfast
at 1900 Park Fare (Grand Floridian Resort)-
When we hear the word "buffet" we usually run.  (Run in the opposite direction, mind you.) Not here, though.   Delicious breakfast with some of our favorite characters, too.  We've been here before but had to return. 

 

Lobster Benedict, biscuits with sausage gravy, fresh fruit, and bacon.  My mouth is watering as I type this.  See why this place is so hard to resist?

The Mad Hatter is always so entertaining.  He checked Samuel's watch and announced that it was two days slow but failed to noticed that Samuel actually set his watch two days slow just for his benefit. 

Spit spot.  It's Mary Poppins!

Assorted "Magical Moments"
Checking in at Fort Wilderness:
We booked a full hookup campsite (cheapest) for our stay and requested to be next to some friends.  When we arrived at Fort Wilderness with our friends they went in ahead of us to check-in.  A few moments later she skipped over to our trailer while we were still waiting to check in "It's Magic!  Just like they said!  They upgraded us [to be closer to the other Airstreams at the TAC rally!]"

All that and a bag of Ice:
After touring Animal Kingdom all day one Tuesday the kids and I came home for dinner and some errands.  We left the world.  At dinner, Brian and I discussed that the Magic Kingdom would be open until 1:00am!  Before heading back to the trailer, we stopped to get some ice for the cooler.  One interesting thing about the campground is that you have to go through the parking gate for "The Magic Kingdom" before you can get to the campground.  Well, after we got through the "Magic Kingdom" parking plaza, our car suddenly went straight instead of turning right to go to the campground.  Did I mention we had a bag of ice?  We stashed it under the car, caughed the next monorail, and skipped into the Magic Kingdom.    We arrived at 11pm when hordes of people were heading home.  Were they anxious to get home to hear election results?

I spied the Hall Presidents and wondered aloud "Think it's still open this late?"  Someone shouted "Last show for Hall of Presidents!"  We scurried in.  What a special place to be on election night- in a room full of presidents.  A proud moment, too.  Even our youngest recognized many of the presidents, I think visiting presidential libraries and houses makes us feel like we have connect with them in a personal way.  It was hard not to get a little teary-eyed.

New Fantasyland:
I mentioned earlier that we ate at "Be Our Guest" but I failed to say how fortunate we were to be able to get in.  The restaurant is in "New Fantasyland" which wasn't scheduled to be open until after our trip.  There were rumors that there would be a "soft opening" the day after our departure. On election night, New Fantasyland was open for dress rehearsal! What a treat to see New Fantasyland!  We ordered "LeFou's brew" from Gaston's tavern and sucked it down before getting on the new Little Mermaid ride.  Then, we saw The Little Mermaid herself, in her new grotto.  We took a peek at Belle's castle and the "Be Our Guest" restaurant which was just open for a preview.  I asked the cast members in the castle if there was any possibility to get a reservation for dinner.  She wasn't able to get me a reservation but she told me how to do it.   We followed her advice.  Just like that.  Magic!  We got in for dinner before it was even supposed to be open!

At the Polynesian:
There's no bones about it.  We have a thing for Hawaii!  It's been two years since our trip there and we still talk about all the time!  While at Disney, we found ourselves visiting the Polynesian frequently.  "Can we go there for breakfast one more time?" Strolling outside by the pool and the Seven Seas Lagoon, with the Hawaiian music, for the briefest of moments I really felt like I was in Hawaii.   Thank you, Disney, for that moment!

Main Street Transportation:
There's a little old fire truck that putzes around Main Street USA at the Magic Kingdom.  On our last day at the park we started out at the Magic Kingdom.  We weren't really in a hurry to get to anything in particular.  We had ridden everything we really wanted to ride.  There was nothing left on anyone's "must do" list. More than anything, we were coming to the Magic Kingdom to pick up more Sorcerers of The Magic Kingdom cards. I mentioned that I might like to ride the fire truck.  Then (you guessed it)... we were at the right place at the right time, asked the right person, and rode the firetruck just before it was in a parade!

  

 More pictures, less words: 

Quite possibly the only picture I took of our Fort Wilderness campsite. 

Epcot

Norway troll!

Sci-fi Dine-In at Hollywood Studios

going for a primeval whirl

"It's a Bug's Life"

 

Toy Story Mania

Another magic moment for me:  We bought one of these caramel apples.  The cast member cut it into pieces for us and they weren't sticky!

Watch out for that hat, Mickey!

Osborn Family Lights at Hollywood Studios was great! 

We had to go twice!

transportation for Seven Seas Lagoon

Tea Time:

Oh no!  Are we late?

kids in one cup

Parents in the other.  

It's the only way to do a tea party here!

Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom...

Watch out!  It's addictive!

Glad to finally see this new/old parade!

New England, Part 3: Southbound

Sunday October 14
Woke up in Massachusetts.  We had breakfast in the trailer and then grabbed a geocache.  Back in the car, we started playing a little game particularly fun in New England:  Can you learn to spell that state name before we get all the way across it?

M-A-S-S-A-C-H-U-S-E-T-T-S   
Who can ever get the whole word "Massachusetts" on a postcard anyway?  Hmmm.  What's the abbreviation?  There's so many states that start with M!  There's Maine, that's ME.  There's Mississippi, that's MS.  There's Missouri, that's MO.  There's Montana, that's MT.  Minnesota is MN.  Michigan, MI.  Maryland, MD. Good grief!  That leaves MA for Massachusetts.

C-O-N-N-E-C-T-I-C-U-T
Is this spelling game too easy?  (Not for me.  I'm a terrible speller.)
What's the capitol then?  How about the state nickname?

N-E-W Y-O-R-K
Finally, an easy one.  Except for the capital.  The capital of New York is not New York.

P-E-N-N-S-Y-L-V-A-N-I-A
Almost stopped in Hershey for the night but decided to keep driving.

M-A-R-Y-L-A-N-D
Spelling is easy... but the capital is not Baltimore.

W-E-S-T V-I-R-G-I-N-A
It's the mountain state. 

V-I-R-G-I-N-I-A
Finally, a place (for lovers) to rest our heads.

At the end of the day we had found geocaches in seven states! (Another game only possible in New England.)


Monday October 15

Dinosaur Land 

There are some things you just have to do. 

Even in the rain.

There are no words for this place, only pictures:

 

This photo says the most:

Rain in the valley means fog on the mountain at the visitor's center in Shenandoah National Park:

Twenty minutes later the view was clear.  We ate lunch at a turnout down the road.  I opened my kitchen curtains to a beautiful view as I made sandwiches; regrettably I didn't take a picture.

In the afternoon we hiked the Stony Man Summit Trail.  By that time, it was hard to tell that the day started out so rainy.

We barely made it to the Byrd Visitor's Center across before they closed for the day.  Not long after our arrival it started pouring outside.  Suddenly, the rain was louder.  We saw hail out the window! Oh well!  Getting a "souvenir" in Shenandoah is better than getting one while sitting in the driveway at home!  Brian was in the trailer working.  The kids and I watched a CCC video and browsed the exhibits while we waited for the rain to stop.

Exhibits at the Byrd Center not only gave us a greater appreciation for the CCC, FDR, and the work in Shenandoah but also brought our attentions to injustices to local people in the procuring of these lands.  While eminent domain is always controversial, it is even more painful when facts are contrived to secure land.  The displacement of Shenandoah's mountain settlers was not unlike that of the American Indians.  Not to the same degree, but many of the time-tested techniques were used to convince others that the mountain settlers weren't civilized enough.  A study was performed.  The conclusions?  The locals were simple, uneducated people cut off from "civilization."  They were relocated with little compensation for their homes or the livelihoods they left behind.  Until visiting the Byrd Center, I had no idea the cost of obtaining Shenandoah as a National Park.

As for hail damage, there wasn't any.  Brian said he didn't even think it hailed.  It's pretty weird to think it might have hailed on the building but not in the parking lot.  Who knows.  I'm sure glad we didn't have any hail damage.

Loft Mountain Campground was our home for the evening, the southernmost campground in Shenandoah.  Just a few feet off of the Appalachian Trail on a mountain ridge, it was cold and windier than any place we've stayed in the trailer.  The sunset there was amazing.

Tuesday October 16th
Early in the day we finished Shenandoah's 105 miles Skyline drive and headed straight (that doesn't seem like the appropriate word) curvy onto the Blue Ridge Parkway.

 

At the James River visitor Center we met a man with an ant car.

We landed at Roanoke Mountain Campground for the night.  Our site was small and required us to unhitch.  We used the "trailer free" opportunity to go into Roanoke for some dinner.  We love sushi but always feel wary about eating it when we're out of town. Wasabi's was worth the gamble.  I highly recommend the "lover roll" (spicy tuna inside; avacado outside.)

Roanoke has an enormous star on the mountainside that lights up at night.  We watched it as we drove around town, memorized.

Wednesday October 17th
Roanoke Mountain Campground was close enough to town that we had cell-phone internet.  This left us lingering in the morning.  Brian put in some work hours, the girls made a chipmunk house in the woods, Samuel and I went to town for errands. By the time Samuel and I got back from town we had decided we wanted to come back to Roanoke.  No one else disagreed.  Maybe we could convince some visitor's bureaus that campground wi-fi is good for tourism.

Before heading down the road we followed the star...

...to get a picture. There are kids in that picture. 

The next visitor's center on the parkway was the Mabry Mill area.  It was lovely but a bit crowded so our stay was short.  We left feeling spoiled by our recent visit to the Jarrell Plantation in Georgia.

Driving on the parkway during the early evening hours, we made little progress.  The sunset was so amazing that I couldn't resist stopping at the turnouts to take pictures.  I was driving so everyone else just had to put up with it.  The view was amazing.

 

 

At dark, the deer were getting thick and it was clearly time to pull off the parkway.  Needing both laundry and showers, we drove to Boon, NC to one of those brand-named privately owned kampgrounds.  We've never stayed at one before but I can tell you that we were feeling pretty desperate to even consider staying at one.  This particular location was on a steep hill right off of "Harmony" Road.  (Seriously.)  Let's just say I wasn't feeling so harmonious when we got there.  I took a quick look around and decided to take my shiny hiney back down the hill.  Fortunately, we found some really great dinner in downtown Boon (Hob Knob Farms) to lift our spirits.

Later, we found a quiet place for the night... and slept great. 


Thursday October 18th
The parkway greeted us with a thick pea soup and another reminder that the weekend was close.  (Gettin' kinda crowded.)

What splendid pottery and hand-crafted arts were for sale in the Moses H. Cone House!  If they had an online store then I would be in trouble. 

Our last stop on the parkway was to visit the Linn Cove Viaduct.

 
As we left the Parkway, we noticed more and more rhododendrons. Maybe we'll come back and finish the Parkway in the spring, I'm sure it will be lovely.

We turned off of the parkway and headed toward Pisgah National Forest where our friends were camping.  Maybe we spent too many days on the Parkway: it took a minute to get adjusted to normal traffic speeds and patterns; our previous 425 miles were spent at the break-neck speed of 35 to 45 miles per hour.

In the late afternoon we pulled into the Davidson River Campground, parked, and walked towards check-in.  Someone said "Are you the Sanders?"  Me:  "Um, yes?  I guess our reputation precedes us."
Maybe Twobikes know us even better than we know ourselves!  They left word with the front desk that we might be arriving.  We planned to make it to Davidson River on Friday but showed up on Thursday instead. The campground was almost full but the site across from Twobikes was available, perfect!

Friday October 19th
Brian spent his day telecommuting while the kids and I headed off for a day of fun put together by our campground concierge, Twobikes.

 A trip back up to the Blue Ridge Parkway to hit a few Pisgah area highlights:
 
Anyone need a ginger pill?

Curves ahead and curves behind.  It seemed like a piece of cake without the trailer though.  The hard part was remembering that we didn't have a toilet or kitchen sink with us. 

Looking Glass Falls

Sliding Rock

 

"Can we come back during the summer?"

While visiting the Cradle of Forestry Discovery Center, we learned about an evening play/Halloween event.  Poor Twobikes weren't feeling any better by the evening, so we headed back up the mountain for the "Legend of Tommy Hodges."  The event was well attended by locals who seemed to know all the details about how the play was different from last year's script.  When it was over our kids only had one thing to say about it.

  

"Can we come back every year?"

Saturday October 20th
Time to head home.  We lingered in the morning (at germ-safe distances) with our friends, longer than we intended (but still not long enough!) Twobikes asked about our route home.  Route home?  We'll naively follow our GPS, of course. 

 

I'm sure you can guess that following the GPS wasn't the best route.  We DON'T want to go back to Pisgah on that road again.  It's US 178, by the way.  I better remember it, too!  Especially if the kids want to come back for Sliding Rock in the summer and The Legend of Tommy Hodges in the fall.

Our second "naively following the GPS" incident on the way home nearly cost us some time in football game traffic.  We drove through Clemson just as the game was letting out.  Whew!  Barely beat the traffic!

Home again.  

It's a little late to do it now, but I am feeling the urge to go back and re-title these posts as "New England Scouting Trip."  Our list of places to visit continues to grow the more we travel.  We can hardly wait until we have the opportunity to visit New England again.