February 2016 Pre-trip and Trip Reports

[jbrostek]

What a wonderful birthday weekend! Seriously it was the whole weekend of fun. Friday, Caren let me sleep in and took care of the dogs. Then we had a great breakfast together and she gave me my "birthday plate" It was a plate with a birthday card and small gifts. A few new antenna toppers, mickey socks and then my real gift which has more value then it cost to me.

This was so awesome to get from her and I know she put a lot of work into it to pick the best pictures of us over the past year.

After that it was off to Magic Kingdom for some good food, good rides, and fun with friends. We had a few fast passes setup that all 6 enjoyed and then Space Mountain for the few of us. Once that was done it was back to the campers to clean up, get a drink in us and head to the Contemporary. I had made the reservation to have dinner during Wishes the day we could make ADRs.



Caren had a wonderful surprise waiting for me at the table. She knocked it out of the park for me!



She put a lot of work into that to make sure it was tehre on time for us. I thought it was just awesome.

We had just finished our appetizers when Wishes started so we went out onto the deck to watch it. I will say if you choose one deck over the other, pick the one closer the water bridge, it is less crowded and I think a better view then closer to the park.

We had a wonderful dinner and it definitely left Disney on the mind.



After we finished dinner there was talk of hitting another bar, but it was late and instead we retired to the campsites where I enjoyed a good cigar and a glass or two of port before we called it a night.


Saturday we where off to Hollywood Studios for some fast passes to see the Lights, Camera, Action! Stunt show, Indiana Jones, and Ride Rockin Roller Coaster.

Of course being the type of group where are we did find some tasty beverages between shows and rides!!!




After a round our two we worked out way over to Indiana Jones, which of course we interact very well with the cast members and always get photo ops.



Of course on this route we saw a little girl with a bubble wand and the ladies where now in search of one. Turns out the store was completely sold out!! So we tabled that for now.

After Indiana Jones those not going to Rockin Roller Coaster settled in at the tune in lounge where Julie the best bartender (really awesome person and server) had us all settled down for a few classics.



I did mention we interact rather well with cast members so we always have a great time with them.

Soon our evening fast passes for Rocking Roller Coaster where ready and the 3 of us (Caren, Lisa and I) set off to have a blast. I will warn you, the ride is not that bad tipsy but I was happy I chose to wait on my next beverage till after the ride.

Well as we walked over to the roller coaster we managed to find the bubble wands which I picked up for the ladies. I made them wait till after the ride which we had a blast on to have them. Then once assembled it was like to 7 year olds rather then 29 year olds.



After the fun on the ride we made it back to our group just in time to catch the Star Wars fireworks. I have not sorted through all those pictures yet to post some, but it was a great show and addition to the park! After that we spent a little more time in Tune in Lounge having a good time before it was time to head back to the pups and get some sleep.




I am out of time today to talk about Sunday and we had a great time as well. Caren had a nice spa appointment this morning, hopefully catch up with PAHunter today and spend the evening time in Magic Kingdom for a few evening fast passes and catch Wishes.

 

[tiggerdad]

Sounds like a great BD Jbrostek. Pictures and drinks look good as well.

 

[PaHunter]

Well we have finally landed in our site. Home here in 103 for the next week. Spent the day in AK and after dinner we will see, may hop to MK or just relax on the beach.

 

[Teamubr]

Well we have finally landed in our site. Home here in 103 for the next week.

Site 103?!?!?!

You mean this one?

I love the 100 loop.

j

 

[tiggerdad]

Glad you made it in safe. Looking forward to hearing about it.

 

[PaHunter]

Site 103?!?!?!

You mean this one?

I love the 100 loop.

j

Well it is not quiet that green right now, but that be the one. I am surrounded by two big bus MH's.

 

[jbrostek]

Got a TXT from Caren at 3, her Spa day was done and she was off to MK. I shot over with nighttime fast passes ready for us. We had a good time, got to hit Big Thunder and Peter Pan, Once that was done it was time for wishes. Seeing Wishes from behind the Castle is a different perspective but I prefer from Casey's area of Main Street.

After the fireworks I got to Meet up with PAHunter and his lovely wife. We may try to catch up with him in the AM before I take Caren to the air port. And we will definitely invite them to join us as we make our Journeys about, I think they would have fun with our crew. It is sad that Caren has to go home, but from the moment we planned this trip I knew she could not take the full stay. I know she had a great time and is ready to head home to see her babies which she misses something terrible. But going back in August with them I think its less sad she has to go then before.

More pictures as we find time, and more trip report. Right now I am going to help her get organized and enjoy the last of our evening together.

 

[tltay2005]

For those of you there now, make sure you have your ponchos, looks like we are expecting some rain and thunder storms later tonight and tomorrow.

 

[PaHunter]

Got a TXT from Caren at 3, her Spa day was done and she was off to MK. I shot over with nighttime fast passes ready for us. We had a good time, got to hit Big Thunder and Peter Pan, Once that was done it was time for wishes. Seeing Wishes from behind the Castle is a different perspective but I prefer from Casey's area of Main Street.

After the fireworks I got to Meet up with PAHunter and his lovely wife. We may try to catch up with him in the AM before I take Caren to the air port. And we will definitely invite them to join us as we make our Journeys about, I think they would have fun with our crew. It is sad that Caren has to go home, but from the moment we planned this trip I knew she could not take the full stay. I know she had a great time and is ready to head home to see her babies which she misses something terrible. But going back in August with them I think its less sad she has to go then before.

More pictures as we find time, and more trip report. Right now I am going to help her get organized and enjoy the last of our evening together.

Was nice meeting up and meeting you both. Sorry we missed you this morning was up and finally headed to DHS for the day about 820 or so. We plan on hitting MK the next two days and then Epcot on friday. Maybe we can catch up with you again before we both head out on Sat.

 

[jbrostek]

Chris - I saw your post and we where just getting up to catch breakfast. I think our plan is Epcot today and Jellyrolls tonight. If you have never been, you are more then welcome to join us. Just eat before you go, the only thing they serve is popcorn.

Time to continue the trip report. Sunday we went to Epcot for the day, we had planned to take the boat to MK and take the monorail there, but Caren and I just could not get moving in the AM, so we went with the rest of the group on the bus. Epcot is one of her favorite places and after already spending a day there in World Showcase, Sunday was more about the rides. We got there around noon and went to the land and road living with the Land. After that was some lunch at the food court there, out of all future world area of Epcot I like the food there. From there it was off to the Seas to ride Nemo and see Crush. I know I may have just celebrated my 20th anniversary of my 21st Birthday but I had a blast at that show.

After that was all said and done it was time for some Mickey Bars. After that we worked our way up to the Pixar Short film festival, I really enjoyed that. By that point it was getting late and we had reservations at Ragland Rhodes. However, being near the end of Caren's trip she and I went off to ride test track before we left. The test track queue moved faster then we anticipated and decided with such late dinner reservations we would go to Norway Pavilion to share a treat and an ice coffee.

We where greeted by a wonderful sunset as we finished our treat and headed back to the buses.



After our treat and coffee we worked our way back to the exit and made a few stops along the way for pictures. I have not downloaded all the photopass pictures yet, but after a few stops for that and a bathroom break, we also got a few cool shots of Mission Space on the way to the buses.



With that we where done at Epcot, got back to the camper to walk and feed the pups then off to Disney Springs and Raglans for dinner. By luck we made it there with plenty of time to spare and stopped in at the Hangar Bar. I can say that the pictures make you think the bar is a LOT bigger then it really is. But it was a fun time till our table was ready. We all love Raglans but where happy to get a table away from the stage where we could all talk. Dinner was a good time and we where all pretty wore out at that point, so it was back to the campground.

Monday was Caren's last day and she and Lisa had a spa appointment. Caren enjoyed that and said next time that is a start of the trip agenda item rather then waiting till the end. She even mentioned a couples massage which I would be up for myself. Once her appointment was done she went off to MK and sent me a message as I stuck around the camper to take care of some MouseKeeping and spend time with the puppies.

She caught the parade just as she got there and walked the shops while I was on my way over.



We had some evening fast passes for Big Thunder, Splash Mountain (we all decided to skip it as it was getting a little chilly) and Peter Pan. Since I got there before the rest of the group and at the time it was a nice warm day in the 80's Caren and I decided it was time for an ice cream sandwich from the ice cream parlor.



We then did some walking about and enjoying the blooms that came out since we got here.





By the time we where enjoying the Moveit Shakeit parade the rest of the crew arrived and we where close to our fast passes. Then it was off to Big Thunder and Peter Pan, what we had not known at the time was with Peter Pan fastpass so close to the time for Wishes we had no time to get to the front of the Castle to catch it from there. The perspective from behind the Castle and right there near Philharmagic was very cool and different, but I prefer from the Main street area of the castle instead. But we enjoyed the show just as much.



After that it was time to say goodnight to MK and head back. While at the Launch we happen to catch the electrical water parade, which I think did a great job capping off Caren's last day at the parks.



After that it was back to the camper for the night, Caren needed to make sure she had everything packed she needed to take home with her. The goal was to avoid checking luggage since she had to hit the ground running once she landed in VA.

 

[bama_ed]

jbrostek and PaHunter, please don't forget to get a picture in the rocking chairs on the Trails End porch of the feet propped up and put it in the "Kickin' It" thread. Pretty please?

Bama Ed

PS - jbrostek, that ice cream sammich looks awesome!

 

[jbrostek]

Tuesday came and it was a sad day as Caren had to go home. We got up, showered and all that. I made us a tasty bunch of egg sandwiches with ham, tomato and gruyere cheese. It was a good start to the day. After that Caren and I went to see the rest of the campground. Though this is her second time here, given the time of the year and time in the parks she never looked around at the amenities at the campground. So we visited the stores, showed her the main stables for the carriage rides, visited the pool area, and drove a few loops as we decide which premium loop we are going to request next plus showed her the preferred and full hookup loops. She now understands why I chose to pay the higher rates for the August trip. Caren has helped me back into a few sites but our system is not perfect and I would not want to put undue pressure on her to help get me into a tight spot. I think in the end we will end up with the 400 or 500 loop for that trip.

At 1pm it was time to leave for the airport so Caren could head home, on the way back I had to make a few stops. John had a blow out on his inside dual on the way south and after finding a reasonable price on a replacement tire he asked while I was out if I would get it mounted for him. It was no problem the tire shop was on the way back, after that a quick stop for some bottled water and bread and then back into the Disney Bubble.

I got back around 3 and met up with the remaining crew at Disney Springs for a dinner bite and mull about. We ended up at the stage for the Simon says and lip sync challenge.

We managed to rope John into the challenge and had a good time with that. After we had our fill of the DJ, it was back to the margarita lounge and cap off the night.



After all that it was getting late and we where getting tired so it was back to the camper and get some sleep.

Wednesday I woke to the sound of rain on the top of the bedroom slide. It really does kill your motivation to hear that. But I got the pups out to take care of business (which for my minpin was all of 90 seconds then wanted in) and got them fed. I had the intention of starting coffee but somehow after sitting on the couch fell asleep till 10am. At that point the rain was still on and off so I cooked up some brunch for anyone interested and we kind of all just hung out till the rain finally left.

By then our motivation for a park was gone and we decided go check out a resort. We chose to go see Port Orleans, I had never been there before and I enjoyed the theme and had no clue how big that place really is. We started out at French Quarter and a stop at the Scat Cat club for adult refreshment and an appetizer. Definitely try the Mardi Gras fritters, they where awesome. The spinach and artichoke dip was pretty good too.



After scat cat we walked from the French Quarter to Riverside for dinner at Boatwrights. It was then that the group realized how big the resort really was, HUGE. But the walk was nice and got us ready for dinner.



I had the french onion soup and Jambalaya. Also tried the craw-fish mac and cheese. All of the food was really good and portions where rather large in my opinion. I normally don't take food back, but this time I had to. After dinner I strolled around and found the water wheel which ties into the food court inside, it was exactly what I would expect from the imagineers.



After that and with some need to digest we went to check out the last 40 minutes of Bob Jackson's piano bar. It was an entertaining show and he is one heck of a character, it may not be everyone's type of show. But it was entertaining and I would give it a 4.5 out of 5.



By then it was 10pm and time to work our way home, we chose to take the riverboat ride back to Disney Springs, I think during the daytime that would be a really enjoyable trip just to get to see the resort plus see the side of the tree houses noone ever sees from the road. Once back at the Springs we b-lined it to the bus home. Once home I did not last long and once again fell asleep on my couch in the RV. Around 12:45 woke up and put myself to bed.

So now you are all caught up on the adventure, it is time for me to shower, take the pups to the park and I think we are off to Epcot this afternoon for a few fast passes with the goal of Jellyrolls after dinner.

 

[tiggerdad]

I always considered Boatrights in my top 5 places to eat at Disney. POR is probably the only other resort I would want to stay at. We stayed there in 2009 and said if we couldn't camp we would be back there for sure.

Like Ed requested, if you can, get those feet on the rails and post em up.

Keep it coming guys, you're doing great.

 

[jbrostek]

Yesterday started out a little slow. Not sure what it was but my stomach had gone for a loop. It started to feel better in the afternoon and the group decided it was a good time to hit epcot. We managed to get a FP for test track, but also hit University of Energy. I was going to go onto Mission Space but decided not the best given my stomach. Even with it getting a little colder out, it was still time for a Mickey Bar.





After that we went to stroll world showcase. I had to stop at the Japan pavilion after pup got into some candy Caren bought from there. Thankfully the pup was ok, but I wanted to replace the candy and maybe find something extra for her.

We chose to make a few stops along the way and munch some food on the way around rather then one big meal. Some egg rolls in china, a sweet snack in Morocco. Along the way it started to get a little cooler then we prepared for, john picked up and donned a frozen blanket.



And then a stop for an orange slush or two in France. By the time we where done enjoying it was time for Illuminations. Having seen it last year, it was interesting to see the minor changes they made over the past year. Not a huge change but it was a surprise to us.

After that we finished our stroll back and caught a few cool topiary for the flower and garden festival.



After that we stopped for a few pictures along the way since I have photopass. Then it was a quick stop in mouse gear to pick up someone Caren had left me to figure out along the way. After that it was back to the camper for the evening. I watched a little TV with the pups and then hit the sack.

This morning started with some packing up to pull out tomorrow, but soon off to AK since John has not been yet. We will catch a few of the shows and then get back early enough to work on more packup to pull out tomorrow. It is a bittersweet day, bitter that its the last full day, but sweet for me as I get to see Caren again soon.

I will try to find time to kick it up at the fort, and that could happen later. For now its time to shower and get my tail in gear.

 

[PaHunter]

Well we are winding down our week here and it is time for some mousekeeping before I hit the shower and bed. We will vacate our site and then off to DHS for the morning before departing FL.
Hope to get some pics up on the way home while at the campgrounds.

 

[4077]

Well we are winding down our week here and it is time for some mousekeeping before I hit the shower and bed. We will vacate our site and then off to DHS for the morning before departing FL.
Hope to get some pics up on the way home while at the campgrounds.

Boy that goes by fast. Feels like we were reading about your prep for so long and then BOOM....your getting ready to leave....

 

[tiggerdad]

Did seem to fly by didn't it?

Chris, man we all appreciate you taking the time to keep us along with you. Hate you're headed back to the frozen tundra soon, but hopefully things are a little warmer there than when you left it. You guys have done a great job with the February run so far.

 

[jbrostek]

Even 2 weeks flies by fast. Today its time to head back north to reality. So the morning is full of cleaning up, putting away and preparing for the drive home. See you soon and hope to post more memories. For now its time to sign off and return the cable modem.

 

[PaHunter]

Yes it goes by in the blink of an eye. Spend time prepping, planning and in a whirlwind it is over. Now it is time to sort thru the thousands of pictures and show you all the fun that was being had during the week.
We got up, pulled out of our campsite today and parked it in the overflow lot. We then headed to DHS for the morning for a Toy Story Mania and TOT fix. Around noon headed back to begin the journey home and ran into jbrostek again and his gang prepping to leave. We left and headed for our next stop, stopped for fuel around Jacksonville and there he and his merry band were again. We topped off and hit the highway, ha, topped off, I was on fumes. Made it to St Mary's KOA for the evening, very nice staff and very packed campground. Let's see what I can get done with some pictures while the DW is making dinner.

 

[jbrostek]

Not much on the road posting for me. Saturday morning started the pack up like any other trip. The only issue was that I had gotten a horrible nights sleep and felt I was coming down with something. But on Saturday I pushed along and got myself all packed up, then around 10am I was 95% ready to go and it was time for our breakfast reservations. Trails end was great but I was having a hard time enjoying it since I felt like hell. We got back to the sites, I hitched up and pulled the slides to find one of my tires flat. So part of our departure delay was running the little air pump to air it up and see what caused it to go down. After I aired it up there was a little leak from the valve in the valve stem, a quick tightening and thought we where good to go.

Once out of the sites it was time to hook up the trailer to our friends C, load the carts and hit the road. We ran into PAHunter as they where preparing for their final departure as well. Once all the carts where loaded we hit the road, as soon as we got on I4 it was thick traffic into stop and go traffic and finally we where free to do the speed limit somewhere past Orlando. That is when the call came in that the crew with the C could not make it to GA on fuel, so we stopped at a Flying J that had RV islands and have used before. I was still good on fuel so I just went over to RV parking and walked the dogs. It was just about the time I sat back in the truck where I hear a horn and catch the roof of PAHunters truck and trailer going by. I hit the horn, but there was a bit of a delay in the processing. So I shot him a txt and at that point it was back on the road.

From that point forward it was just ticking off the miles and trying to deal with feeling under the weather. With the late departure and me feeling bad out goal was Point South KOA, but a quick call up there resulted in no pull through sites. So it was a little further north to New Green Acres, really a nothing campground but good for a quick overnight stop for us.

Sunday I was up and feeling a LOT better, some cold meds and a good nights sleep did me well. I got up, took care of pups and my own breakfast, showered and got moving on winterizing the RV. It's still early enough in the year for us to see a hard freeze in VA, so better safe then sorry. When I started that I noticed the darn tire was low again, checked pressure, yeap down to 40psi. So pumped it back up and would keep and eye on it, the day before I checked it at both bathroom breaks and it was still at 70-75.

With that work we where slightly delayed in departure again, but hit the road by 10 instead of the 9 we wanted. At that point we hit the road and everyone needed fuel, so it was a stop at the Flying J at exit 77. I took on another 65 gallons, john filled up due to the great price and the Marshalls C was thirsty as well. Once that was done it was time to tick off some miles, and we made it a good way before we hit a quick and nearly dead stop in the Florance, SC area. Turns out there was a Car-B-Que on the side of I95 and one lane gone. Once we passed that it was back to running for quite a while till the next lane closure.

All in all the trip was going well, come 2pm it was time for the bathroom break for dogs and humans, not to mention a quick bite of food to keep us going. We stopped in a rest stop, we all had food to take care of the quick bite. But after walking the pups and myself I did my usually check around the truck and camper. And there that darn tire was low again! Being only 4 hours since the last fill, I figured it was time to change it rather then risk a blow out. So I jack up that side of the camper with the leveling jacks, grab my cordless impact and get to work. Tire comes off no problem, drop the spare and get ready to throw it on the hub. After about 4 tries something did not seem right, I took a pause and looked at the spare. It was a 6 lug spare for my 8 lug trailer. Now I know everyone says check EVERYTHING on a new camper, but seriously how many of us ever think to check the spare when doing the walk through??? By the sheer grace of luck johns trailer is also and 8 lug. So he let me borrow his spare for the trip home. That little ordeal cost us about an hour and it was back on the road.

From then on it was trouble free cruising and ticking off the miles with a few short potty breaks, that was until Fredricksburg, VA. Then went from 65-70mph to 0-10mph for the next 8 miles. Man that was rough so late in the trip, by then it was 6pm, I wanted to just be home!!!! Once I got past that traffic it was up to 234 exit and I was free from the madness that is I95 near DC. Of course, Murphy decided that he was not done with me yet. Which proceeded to throw about 95% of the traffic lights red just as I approached. And as you all know, heavy trailer with lots of stop lights is just plain annoyinging!!!!

Eventually I got through all that and finally made it home around 8:30pm. My original goal was 7pm plus or minus 30, but just too many things kept that from reality. I got the pups unloaded and to the house and then backed the trailer in. Now I setup a pretty decent pad to get into, and its not too hard to do even in the night. But when its dark, you are really tired and worn out it can still be a challenge. However, I got the trailer into its spot with only a few minor adjustments and drop the jacks. It was then I grabbed a few essentials from the trailer, of course by then it was after 10pm and I crashed hard.

I had the intention of going into the office today, but then I overslept my alarm. This is the first year I have ever tried to head back to work the day after I got home, and I suspect from now on I am going to prepare and down day after these long tows even when I don't have a holiday to use for it.

I have a ton of pictures plus photopass to sort through and get online soon enough.