TCD's Thanksgiving 2010 Trip Report

[Tri-circle-D]

If you thought you had seen all of the photos I have of the Fort’s Christmas decorations which I took on Thanksgiving morning, you are sorely mistaken.

I took a lot.

There was a lot to see.

I don’t know of any other theme park that does so much decorating.

It is truly a sight to behold.

And, this year, they turned it up a notch.

The lighted wreaths are new.

And nice.

Also, the garland is new.

Everything seems to have been upgraded to LED lights.

Nice.

Here we are inside of Trail’s End, way over by the bar in Crockett’s Tavern, looking across the seating area. The tree you see in the background is the one we saw earlier. That’s the take out area and drink machine in the far back of the photo.

The elves were still at work outside of Trail’s End:

I know you can see the ladder. The elf is hiding in the bushes on the left of the photo. You can see her reflective vest reflecting through the branches. I spent a few minutes speaking to this elf. She was tired. She had been working all night. But she was used to it. She had been busy decorating all over Disney World for the past month. She had worked on the Magic Kingdom, the other parks, and other resorts. Apparently, this group of elves was part of a team whose job it is to hang decorations. I asked her where in all of WDW were her favorite decorations. She said the Magic Kingdom. I guess I agree, but it is hard to choose.

One of the things I really enjoy about WDW decorations is that they decorate things that you wouldn’t expect. Like this light pole. They didn’t need to decorate it, but they did:

Hang on for a second.

Was that a cop there in the first shot?

Yes, it was!

What is he doing here?

On Thanksgiving morning?

The best I can guess is that word got out that Yuri was in the campground.

And, the cop was there to make sure that no snooping would take place.

He was your typical Disney cop. Very attentive. Here he is being attentive with one of the maintenance workers:

It’s a good thing Yuri had already left.

Or we might be looking at a new batch of River Country photos right about now.

As previously stated, these photos were all taken on Thanksgiving morning.

So, of course, you would expect a fishing guide to come strolling by (and you can see our friendly Disney cop earning his pay by chatting with the maintenance worker- two employees getting paid to chew the fat- and probably time and a half for the holiday):

I guess someone was going to go fishing on Thanksgiving morning.

Why not?

The sun continued to rise, but the moon took its sweet time setting:

I am not sure exactly what is going to happen, but rumor has it that a new resort is going to be built right where we just looked in the two photos immediately above.

The Fort Wilderness Pavilion sign that we just looked at yesterday morning was visited by the elves overnight:

As has the old River Country Ticket window:

I guess the fact that no one has cleaned off the roof of this ticket window in years is consistent with the rumor that a new resort building will one day soon be sitting right on top of this spot.

Even in November, there are beautiful flowers blooming at the Fort:

These were on a flowering bush right at the old River Country entrance.

Here we are looking from the River Country entrance, back toward the Settlement area:

In this shot, we are standing in about the same area as the last shot, but this time looking toward the beach. You can see a Magic Kingdom launch bathed in sunlight in the background on the photo:

Here are just a couple of shots looking down the path which terminates at the Settlement Trading Post:

What you see in the foreground of the above photo is included in the rumored site plan of the new resort. Look at all the nice trees. I am afraid that a lot of those trees are goners.

Here we are looking at the back of Pioneer Hall:

It looks like a couple of more lifts were brought in overnight. These were all sitting behind Pioneer Hall on Thanksgiving morning:

Here are some shots showing a resort launch heading toward Wilderness Lodge:

We have now moved up to the Settlement area. This shot is taken with the Trail’s End porch to our backs, looking toward the marina. You can see the marina building just left of center. This shot would be perfect, except for the fact that the old River Country tank wagon is missing from the oval fenced in area on the left:

That’s all for this post.

Coming up, more Thanksgiving morning photos.

And we have to visit the horse barn.

Because it may not be here next year at this time.

And then we move on.

TCD

 

[takeme2epcot]

Ha! I was just trolling for trolls, and look what I caught!

J/K- Norm, you're not really a troll. I know that. I don't care what you or others say, you're not a troll.

Are you?

TCD

Ha ha! No, Andrew, I'm not a troll...not for real. Just a pretend troll, despite some of the theories of some of the folks around here!

But I took the bait anyway -- hook, line, and sinker!

 

[Tri-circle-D]

The last photo in my previous installment was taken at the light post across from the Trail’s End porch.

This one was taken from the same spot, but this time turned toward the Settlement Trading Post:

And this one is taken from the same spot, but turned more toward the Christmas tree:

Where the heck is everybody?

Sleeping?

Why would you want to sleep if you are at Walt Disney World?

Some people are crazy.

Sleeping on vacation?

Crazy!

I always enjoy the decorations on the porch of Pioneer Hall. Here’s how the look walking up from Trail’s End:

And here’s another look at Pioneer Hall. You can see an elf has left his ladder leaning up against one of the poles:

Here’s a look at the porch from the other direction. I think it looks great!:

Here’s the Horse-Drawn Excursion sign that we looked at earlier in this report. You can see some of the decorations from the DVC kiosk on the right:

Here’s a shot of the Pioneer Hall ticket window. The moon is still hanging around up there in the sky:

And here’s another shot from the same spot, turned to the right:

These shots really accentuate that big stone chimney that you see to the right of the ticket window. What is that doing there? As best I can tell, there is a companion restroom under that chimney. And, there is no fireplace in there. So what is that chimney doing there? It isn’t in that prominent a place, so I don’t think it was put there for aesthetics. And, there were no such things as companion restrooms when Pioneer Hall was built. So did there used to be a fireplace here? Does anyone know?

Here’s another photo of the Horse-Drawn Excursion sign. This time, you can see an elf working there on his ladder:

This is an old horse trough that is used for the horses pulling the wagons for the wagon rides. It didn’t get any decorations, but it still looks good:

Here’s a light post near the Settlement Bus Stop. You can see the bus stop off to the right:

Here we are, a bit closer to the bus stop; you can see another elf’s ladder there:

Over to the left, looking toward the 700 loop, you can see another elf’s van:

Here’s an elf working on the decorations at the Settlement Stop:

From here, we are going to head over to the Tri-Circle-D Farm for what may be the very last time to see the Christmas decorations there. In case you haven’t heard, the farm area here and barn are going to be torn down to make way for a new DVC resort.

Here we are at the entrance to the Pony ride area:

Speaking of ponies, here’s one:

And here are a couple more. Make sure to notice the wreaths on the pony ride barn in the background:

The Blacksmith shop also is decorated. Maybe for the last time:

Here’s the pony ride barn and its wreaths again:

Here are a couple of ponies enjoying their breakfast:

Here’s the barn:

And, for good measure, here’s the barn again:

This might be the last Christmas that we see it!

Here’s a look inside the barn:

Here’s a shot of the Pavilion sign, with a truck driving into the shot:

And, here’s a shot of the Pavilion sign without a truck. There’s all the lifts we looked at before. Also, make sure that you notice the beautiful blue water of Bay Lake in the far background of the photo:

That has to be all the Thanksgiving morning photos, right?

Wrong.

But, we will finish up with these early morning shots in the next post.

And, for those of you dedicated enough to still be reading along, at the end of this report I am going to let you in on a pretty neat not very well known fact that I discovered which you may find useful on a future visit.

TCD

 

[caveat lector]

...
And, for those of you dedicated enough to still be reading along, at the end of this report I am going to let you in on a pretty neat not very well known fact that I discovered which you may find useful on a future visit.

TCD

With 9144 views, I bet it's safe to say that there are more than a couple of folks reading along.

 

[anolefan]

Yes, Countryside Mall is right down the street.

But, where are the dungeon bathrooms?

I try to stay out of the mall.

I don't know why, but I don't like it.

But, I am now interested in visiting the dungeon bathrooms.

TCD

The "dungeons" are the interior corridors that run throughout the mall. As kids we used to run through them on our visits to the mall when we were bored or had nothing better to do. We called them dungeons because they seemed a little scary when we were little. Now they just look like hallways with bathrooms in them (not as interesting as dungeons right?).

I took the children there because they wanted to ride the train. We spent more time going to the bathrooms than we did riding the train.

 

[FWRR3]

TCD, thanks for all you do and for the sleep you miss, much to our enjoyment. I hope you get to take vacations after your Fort visits!

 

[blm2003]

TCD, Just wanted to extend a personal "Thanks" for your trip reports. My whole family enjoys following along with you. The kids get a kick out of "planning their trip around the Fort" based on your explorations! And I have to say, your attention to detail is uncanny and very much appreciated. So from us to you and yours, Thanks and Happy Holidays! Now, on with the TR, we're waiting for the surprise promised at the end!

 

[Tri-circle-D]

With 9144 views, I bet it's safe to say that there are more than a couple of folks reading along.

Maybe. Or maybe it is just a couple of folks who keep reading it over and over again. No matter. Thanks for reading along.

The "dungeons" are the interior corridors that run throughout the mall. As kids we used to run through them on our visits to the mall when we were bored or had nothing better to do. We called them dungeons because they seemed a little scary when we were little. Now they just look like hallways with bathrooms in them (not as interesting as dungeons right?).

I took the children there because they wanted to ride the train. We spent more time going to the bathrooms than we did riding the train.

Funny you should mention the interior corridors.

When I first moved to Florida, and was going to college, I worked at an establishment in Countryside Mall. I used to travel those corridors all the time. I could get anywhere in the mall using them. Things used to happen in those corridors. I know them well.

More recently, I became acquainted with the General Manager of Countryside Mall. I found out that most of those corridors are now off limits, except in case of emergency.

I didn't know that there were restrooms in the corridors. I guess we always just use the restroom at the Food Court.

As I said, though. I make it one of my life's missions to avoid the mall.

TCD, thanks for all you do and for the sleep you miss, much to our enjoyment. I hope you get to take vacations after your Fort visits!

Don't worry about me. I get plenty of sleep. I always manage to catch a power nap in the hammock. If I slept all night, I wouldn't be tired enough to take a nap. So, it's all good.

TCD, Just wanted to extend a personal "Thanks" for your trip reports. My whole family enjoys following along with you. The kids get a kick out of "planning their trip around the Fort" based on your explorations! And I have to say, your attention to detail is uncanny and very much appreciated. So from us to you and yours, Thanks and Happy Holidays! Now, on with the TR, we're waiting for the surprise promised at the end!

You are most welcome. I'm glad that your whole family can enjoy the reports. Just make sure the kids stay on the right side of the fences. And castmembers = employees. So if a sign says castmembers only, that means stay out. I forget that sometimes.

And, please don't get too excited about the surprise. It's just a little planning tip. That's all.

Now, let's get moving.

This report is getting long.

It's time to start wrapping things up.

TCD

 

[Tri-circle-D]

It is still Thanksgiving morning!

And we have a few more photos to look at.

In the last installment, we were walking around the TCD Farm.

We have now completed the circle, and we are heading back to Pioneer Hall.

This sign points the way:

We saw one side of the Pony Ride barn a few posts ago. Now you get to see the other side:

We have now gone full circle and arrived back at the DVC kiosk. The elf has completed his work here, and moved on:

The elf’s cart was still here, so he can’t have gone far:

Here’s a couple of looks at the Pioneer Hall decorations. You may not know it, but these are new and different from last year. They are. I’ll show you what the old ones looked like in my next post. But, for now, here is Pioneer Hall on Thanksgiving morning, 2010:

The Trail’s End decorations are also new and improved. Here’s a couple of shots of the Trail’s End take out entrance:

Here’s a view from the top of the stairs on the take out entrance porch:

And, here we are, standing near the check in area for Trail’s End, looking out:

Here we are in the same area, but now looking toward the playground. You can see that someone forgot to put away the horseshoes last night, and you will also note that this photo is marred by the absence of the old River Country tanker wagon, which remains MIA:

Here’s a look back at Pioneer Hall and Trail’s End:

Believe it or not, people were not beating down the doors at Trail’s End to gorge on the breakfast buffet on Thanksgiving morning. Here we see the staff hanging out waiting on some customers:

You will be happy to know that we have now left the Settlement area.

Here we are out front of the Meadow Trading Post. If you look very carefully, you can see that the trading post has been decorated:

I don’t remember that cart parking sign. Do you?

Not the big one.

The small hanging one.

What do they mean that parking for the Meadow Pool is “across from the 1400 loop.”? Really? Where? I think that sign could be better worded. If I was told to park across from the 1400 loop, I would interpret that to mean to park across from the entrance to the loop. But, that is not where you park for the Meadow Pool. Actually, the entrance to the parking area for golf carts is diagonally across from the 1500 loop. I’m guessing here, but I’ll bet there is a new sign guy at Fort Wilderness. And that he used to work for the Florida D.O.T.

If you happen to be a newbie reading along, do not park for the pool across from the1400 loop. If you like, park here. Then you just have to walk over the bridge behind the trading post, and you are there. Or, drive around, and drive in toward the pool on the road adjacent to the tennis courts. There is a golf cart parking area over by the campfire area.

A couple more shots of the trading post:

When I went back to the Settlement just a bit later for a coffee refill, I was finally able to get an elf-free shot of the Christmas tree:

I have seen better photos of the tree already posted by others, but I think this is the first elf-free 2010 Fort Wilderness Christmas Tree photo!

Next up, we will compare this year’s decorations to last year’s.

And, then we will be on our way.

TCD

 

[anolefan]

Funny you should mention the interior corridors.

When I first moved to Florida, and was going to college, I worked at an establishment in Countryside Mall. I used to travel those corridors all the time. I could get anywhere in the mall using them. Things used to happen in those corridors. I know them well.

More recently, I became acquainted with the General Manager of Countryside Mall. I found out that most of those corridors are now off limits, except in case of emergency.

I didn't know that there were restrooms in the corridors. I guess we always just use the restroom at the Food Court.

As I said, though. I make it one of my life's missions to avoid the mall.

TCD

Hilarious, TCD has seen and done it all.

I admit I live somewhat of a sheltered life, but man you sure don't. I will find something interesting that you haven't experienced first hand.



Still enjoying every moment of your report!

 

[stacktester]

I'm trying to find the first ever post on the camping forum. Just need to see if TCD posted first.

 

[Tri-circle-D]

Hilarious, TCD has seen and done it all.

I admit I live somewhat of a sheltered life, but man you sure don't. I will find something interesting that you haven't experienced first hand.



Still enjoying every moment of your report!

Well, truth be told, as long as the experience is within a close radius of Dunedin, Florida or Fort Wilderness, I have probably seen and done it. Otherwise, not so much.

TCD

 

[Tri-circle-D]

Alright, I said that we would look at some decoration comparisons over the years.

I find this mildly interesting.

And, maybe one or two of you will, too.

I am just going to cover the past three years, because I have those available.

So, here we go.

First, we will look at the Settlement Trading Post in 2008:

And here it is in 2010:

That change is pretty drastic. Mainly because the sign was changed in 2010.

A more subtle change can be seen at the old River Country entrance. Here it is in 2008:

And here it is in 2010:

Here is the old River Country Ticket window in 2008:

And here it is in 2010:

Here's the TCD barn in 2008:

And here's the TCD barn in 2010:

I can give you a three year comparison here.

Here's the Pioneer Hall Ticket Window in 2008:

And in 2009:

And in 2010:

Here's Pioneer Hall in 2008:

Here's Pioneer Hall in 2009:

And, here's Pioneer Hall in 2010:

Here's Trail's End in 2008:

Here's Trail's End in 2009:

And, here's Trail's End in 2010:

The Christmas Tree hasn't changed very much.

2008:

2009:

2010:

The last comparison I have is of the 1500 loop bus stop . . .

2008:

2010:

What it looks like to me is that the decorations have been upgraded.

The garland is a lot thicker.

The lights are LED, and a lot brighter.

The wreaths have decorations in them, not just bows.

I like it.

Good job, elves!

TCD

 

[BradyBz12]

Love the comparison photos!!

Until this year we hadn't seen Christmas decorations at the Fort since 2008 - I'd say the new ones are a definite improvement.

Makes me wonder if management finally caught on to all the buzz and traffic to the Fort created by the campers' amazing displays and finally decided to up their game?

...or the old stuff was just on target to be replaced anyway.

In any case I think the new decorations look terrific.

 

[Tri-circle-D]

Love the comparison photos!!

Until this year we hadn't seen Christmas decorations at the Fort since 2008 - I'd say the new ones are a definite improvement.

Makes me wonder if management finally caught on to all the buzz and traffic to the Fort created by the campers' amazing displays and finally decided to up their game?

...or the old stuff was just on target to be replaced anyway.

In any case I think the new decorations look terrific.

See, I was right!

One person found the comparison photos interesting!

And, so did I, so that makes two!

Just like I said.

I agree with you, Monique, the new decorations are a notch better than the old, and it bodes well for the future of Fort Wilderness that the money was spent to improve the decorations. Granted, it's not much, but it does show that management is at least in some way interested in improving the Fort Wilderness experience.

TCD

 

[Tri-circle-D]

We left off in the last installment with the last of the photos I took on Thanksgiving morning.

Earlier in this report, I shared this photo of the Thanksgiving Day Activity schedule:

I wish that I could provide a full and detailed report about these activities, but I can’t.

We left the Fort to meet with family for our Thanksgiving celebration.

So, we missed all of the fun.

We got back right as the sun was setting.

We were gone all day.

So, there is a gap in this report.

Right about here.

Sorry.

The Thankful Board mentioned on the activity sheet is something that has been offered on previous Thanksgivings. Only, it used to be set up at the pool. I had no idea what it looked like. I always envisioned something big, like a billboard, with all kinds of great stuff written on it. I have always been curious about it.

This year, the Thankful Board location was moved to the Bike Barn. Maybe it would still be there?

We decided to take a look.

And to my surprise, we found it!

I was underwhelmed.

Here it is:

As you can see, the Thankful Board is just a big piece of paper stuck underneath the Bike Barn price list.

I don’t know why, but I expected something more.

Silly me.

Even so, I was still interested in what people wrote on it.

The only thing is that not many people wrote on it:

I will, however, share my favorite entry:

I love it.

Give Thanks.

And then stick it to the man!

I wish I knew who wrote this.

All we know is that he or she is a passionate dodgeball fan.

And that fact alone tells me that I would like to meet this person.

Here’s a photo of a wreath at the Bike Barn:

After I took the wreath photo, I noticed something new on the Thankful Board.

And, I saw one of my DD’s with a pen in her hand.

So, I had to look:

Happy Thanksgiving!

And stick it to the man!

Here’s a couple of bad photos of the new garland at the Bike Barn:

Here’s one of the Christmas trees at the campfire area:

Here’s a decorated pole in the campfire area:

Here’s a grainy shot of the crowd gathered to watch the show and to see Toy Story 3:

Here’s a group of folks gathered around the campfire on Thanksgiving night to toast marshmallows. Note that not one of them is smiling:

Not one!

Also note everyone’s attire. It was cool, but not cold. It was that way all week. According to my camper’s on-board weather station, the low temperature all week was 59 degrees. And that was at night. We had some really nice weather all week.

I don’t know why nobody was smiling. They are in the best spot in all of the happiest place on earth. But they’re all frowning. Maybe they are all mad about the dodgeball and the Giddyap and Go fries? I feel their pain. But, you should still have fun when you are roasting a marshmallow at Fort Wilderness. Always. If you are there next year, please count your blessings and smile when I take the photo.

We headed away from the campfire area, just as Toy Story 3 began:

We used to always watch the movie. Now, not so much. We had more important things to do.

We were going to visit the over-achievers!

They were given this name for good reason by Shan-man.

It’s a great name for them.

And, I heard that they read the Disboards.

So, hello overachievers!!!

And thanks for your great display!

For the past few years, the same campers have set up camp on the 1600 loop just before Thanksgiving.

And, then they begin to decorate for Christmas.

They end up with an amazing display.

In fact, it’s my favorite.

In the entire campground.

And, here are some photos of it . . .

This is a shot of the back of the site. They back up to the main road, so they decorate both in back and in front:

They set up a big Christmas tree made of lights:

There are paths set up for guests to walk along:

In the center of all of the decorations is a respectful display recognizing the reason for the season:

Here’s a beautiful lighted horse and carriage:

This is a shot of the side of the site, taken from the front:

The front of the 5th wheel has a cool light display with a tribute to the big Cheese:

Here’s another look at the big light tree:

And of the paths:

And here’s a last look at the back of the site:

I think we can all agree that these people are, indeed, overachievers.

So, it’s Thanksgiving night.

We haven’t been to a theme park today.

The Magic Kingdom is open until 1 am.

What would you do?

What do you think we did?

You’ll find out in the next post.

TCD

 

[LONE-STAR]

I passed you on the dock that night so I think I know what you did. You sailed away on the cruiser. You took the boat we had just gotten off of.

 

[Tri-circle-D]

I passed you on the dock that night so I think I know what you did. You sailed away on the cruiser. You took the boat we had just gotten off of.

Good guess.

Here's what happened . . .

It’s still Thanksgiving night.

And we are going to head over to the Magic Kingdom.

We know that it will be busy.

But, we will still have fun.

First, a few photos of the TCD campsite.

It is our last night on this trip.

Here we are looking at the back of the site:

Here’s the hammock area, and you can see the screenroom in the background:

Here’s the front of our site. Here’s two turkeys:

And a Gator:

Before heading to the Magic Kingdom, we stopped by Trail’s End for some hot cocoa.

I took a couple of extreme close-ups of some of the decorations included in the wreaths hanging outside.

I think this is a pine cone moose:

And here is a cowgirl and a s’more:

The MK fireworks were going off as we boarded the boat:

Here’s a toy soldier at the MK:

For some reason, I don’t have any other photos from inside the MK.

I can’t remember what we did.

But I do know that we went to the Monster’s Inc. Laugh Floor.

And, I got to be That Guy again.

What’s up with that?

They always choose and old clueless guy.

But, they chose me twice?

Weird.

We did a few more things while in the MK, and then decided we didn’t want to hang out until 1.

So, we headed back to the Fort.

The clock up there on the train station shows that we were heading back on the boat at just a little after 12:

What a bunch of wimps we were!

Here’s my last two shots of the Fort Wilderness Christmas tree:

And, here are two of my favorite decorated sites.

This is a site on 400 where the camper has decorated the back of his site, which backs up to Fort Wilderness Trail, right across from the exit from the 700 loop:

There are paths here that you can walk down, and a light show is set up where the lights “dance” to the music, just like the Osborne Lights over at Hollywood Studios. This camper will be here through Christmas, so if you visit between now and then, be sure to stop by one night.

This is a photo of the last inside site on the 700 loop. These decorations also border Fort Wilderness Trail:

You might remember these decorations from last year. And the year before that. And even the year before that. And so on. If you ever saw the Travel Channel Special where Samantha Brown visits Fort Wilderness, this is the first site she visits. On the special, Samantha meets the campers from this site, Hilda and Charlie, and then they take her on a tour in their golf cart. Well, Hilda and Charlie are back (well, they’re not really back because they haven’t left). You will be able to see these decorations through Christmas, too. If you stop by, look for Hilda. You won’t find a nicer person in the campground. And, if you see her, tell her TCD sends his regards.

With that, we returned to our site, and I did a little packing.

Sadly, we would be leaving the Fort in the morning.

Coming up . . .

A few photos from our last morning at the Fort.

And, I will give you that free tip I mentioned earlier.

Remember, don't get too excited.

In case you haven’t picked up on this fact, I will tell you that this report is about over.

TCD

 

[Shan-man]

I just don't get people... frowning at WDW!? Much less frowning at FW. Heck, I've got a silly grin on my face when I'm stuck in stall one listening to the commotion coming from stall two!

I'm glad to see that the over-achievers are still achieving.

And I liked the comparison photos as well, I just haven't had a lot of time to post of late... tis the busy season, ya know.

Hate to see the end's in sight, but it's been a great ride. Thanks as always for so slavishly laboring to bring us along for the ride.

 

[Tri-circle-D]

I just don't get people... frowning at WDW!? Much less frowning at FW. Heck, I've got a silly grin on my face when I'm stuck in stall one listening to the commotion coming from stall two!

I'm glad to see that the over-achievers are still achieving.

And I liked the comparison photos as well, I just haven't had a lot of time to post of late... tis the busy season, ya know.

Hate to see the end's in sight, but it's been a great ride. Thanks as always for so slavishly laboring to bring us along for the ride.

Commotion?

In stall 2?

Isn't that Al's stall?

What kind of commotion is going on in there?

Never mind.

I don't want to know.

Yes, the overachievers have once again overachieved. There are a lot of great decorations already, but I still like the overachievers best.

Good to hear that you are busy with the new gig. I hope that is going well for you.

I am not looking forward to the end of this report either. But, they all have to come to an end eventually.

And it won't be long until my next.

TCD