Brent... Just Brent

Day 1 - Friday September 23 Not much to say about this day. The plan was to leave home around 10am. As is always the case, 10am = noon in reality. I wasn't in a huge rush, though, since I was checking into the Fort on Saturday. I had a room reserved at the Comfort Suites near DTD. The drive down started out uneventful. It was cloudy and overcast. There is part of the drive that I absolutely love near Beaufort. I know there are some fiends that know the stretch of Hwy 17 I'm talking about - where it opens up from wooded area and you're driving right through the middle of the marsh. The road

Great trip report Dave! That looks like a fantastic CG. Funny, I grew up about 3 or so hours from Gatlinburg. My parents used to insist we force us to go there for summer vacation and I HATED it. I always wanted to go to Myrtle Beach or somewhere like that. Seeing your photos makes me wish I were there enjoying the great weather and scenery. Guess our tastes change as we get older.

I learned I had to take extra precautions half way through that trip to stay warm. I went out and bought a cot. Getting up off the ground made a huge difference since heat rises, but the minute you wake up and get out of the sleeping bag... that's a different story. Talking to my dad (who just retired after 35 or so years in the Army) last night, he agreed it was time for me to upgrade. More on that in the trip report wrap up.

Thanks, Stefa!

First, the background. No, not about me, but about this trip. I have written trip reports before, but never in a timely manner. I usually don't think what I do is interesting enough to warrant a trip report. My first trip to the Fort was November 2010. It was awesome. Then I was there in February of this year. Again, awesome. Well, life happens and the AP expires and you don't go back for a while, until you get roped into spending the summer at WDW. Sound fun? Continue to read and see... In June about 15 of my "closest" friends decided we should all go to WDW at the same time. Knowing it was J

OK, sorry I haven't replied sooner, but I've been busy with that whole "real world" thing that punishes you for being on vacation for a week. As far as not saying hello... I saw you Sunday morning and realized it was you. Mrs TCD and one twin had thrown me off the day before. I thought, "Well, I thought that was a TCD twin, but now she's with her mom and there's just one, so I must be wrong. And then I thought I would look for your TV on my way out, but missed you because you were right next to me and I was trying not to run over children. When I did see you Sunday morning, I was about to go s

I thought I saw a TCD twin on Saturday at the Fort! Then I was Sure I saw you loop by. Turns out we were neighbors. I was/am right next door in 1505 and never realized it. It's a small fiend world!

That's a great idea. I've been pretty bad about actually putting something down on the floor, but I always think "I really should buy a rug for the tent." I'll have to shop around for these. They'd probably also be somewhat good insulation against the cold coming up under the air mattress.

You know, the one where you realize you aren't that far from your next Fort trip? Where you're out and about and think "It wouldn't hurt to stop by Wal-Mart just to see what they have in the camping section that I might need." And so you do, of course. Yep, that happened tonight. It's just one of those things that makes going to the Fort even more special. What other trips do you look forward to like that and justify spending money on things like you do for Disney? Sorry, just felt like I had to share somewhere and I knew you guys would appreciate it. BTW - at what point do you have everythin

Great tent! That's essentially what I was looking for, just a little smaller. I definitely have buyers remorse. It's much better than the one I finally chose.

When we checked in on 6/19 there was also a sign directing people who did online check in to one of the left lanes. We didn't have an RV, so we didn't use that. When we got inside, the far right station was online check in and it had its own queue.

I just had a similar situation. I was told by the CM at the Epcot ticket booth that I could upgrade anytime within 14 days to No Expiration. I figured that's what I'd do since I'd be back in 15 days, it'd save some $$, etc. In the meantime I decided to upgrade to an AP. Well, guess what, you can only do that in person at Guest Services - NOT on the phone or online. I just assumed they'd take my $$ and I wouldn't have to work to give it to them. Well, I called WDW Ticketing and played dumb, asked all the questions, gave her the ticket #, explained that I'd be there in 15 days, not 14 and voila

Glad you enjoyed our little city here on the coast. It looks like you guys took the city on WDW style and didn't miss a thing. It really is a beautiful place to live!

I can't agree more about the fan. Even when it's 50 out, the inside of the tent can feel damp. I have a Rubbermaid chest type cooler. It keeps real ice, not the junk in the ice machine, for at least 24 hours in the cooler months. I'll let you know how well it does in the 94 degree heat after my trip next week. I used to have a Coleman cooler that I paid more for than I care to remember. It was definitely a 12 hour cooler. And forget that styrofoam junk. It won't make it 12 hours.

I'll jump in! Seriously, a heater if you think it's going to be cold. 55 at night in a tent, on the ground is cold. And an extra blanket. Also a fan. Even when it's cold, a fan to move the air around and circulate the heat makes a huge difference. Another must have is a timer. I picked one up from Amazon or somewhere like that for next to nothing. It's digital, for outdoors and has been a life saver when coming back late at night. And finally, a good cooler. If you can, spend a little extra and get a decent one. You'll save enough on ice to pay the difference in one extended trip.

Great trip report. Looks like you guys really enjoyed this trip!

Great trip report! Jealous I'm not there.

HMMMM. There was definitely a net up, but I guess I chose the pic of just the posts. I still say, when is there EVER a need for no fewer than 5 concurrent volleyball games going on? Is it that popular at the Fort in the summer?

OK, I think this is the final installment. Nothing to see here... move along. The 600 Loop: The bridge from the Trading Post to the Pool: The canal: More 600 Loop: Pool activities: Picnic Shelter: Tennis Courts: More Volleyball (I believe there were 5 sets of posts on the beach, plus this one): Looking towards the 1500 Loop: Not sure which loop this is (as seen from Meadows Pool Area: I decided to walk back to the 2000 loop the long way... with more tonic water. My favorite intersection at the Fort: Starting a tiny fire with leftover charcoal to grill up a few dogs. The 2100 loop in

And looking across the Lake. Wow. It was a gorgeous late afternoon out: More Lake: Looking back from the pump at the canal: Looking down the canal. I believe the 300 loop is off to the right: No idea what the purpose of this solar panel and antenna are, but they have moss growing on them: The gate leading down the other side of the canal was wide open. Is it normally? Had TCD left it open since he was out and about? Fishing: Back on pavement: Fun Valentines Day setup: After an annoying ride to the Meadows (due to passengers on the bus), I got this photo before shopping:

Some more generic shots - Playground area: The OTHER "dining" area: Trees on the beach: Looking back at the Marina: Looking across the lake. Have you ever wondered what's over there? Another Volleyball setup. If I were going to make a fool of myself playing, I think I'd want to do it over this way with fewer people to laugh at me: Looking back towards the Marina again: Trees: More Trees: The cabin: End of the lake... I think:

And continuing on: Hmm... This was February. I think it was about time to update the signage at this bus stop: Cold Pony: Hello There!: One of my favorite, overlooked areas: And another of this green space: The obligatory shot of the Backyard BBQ Pavilion/River Country Ticket Booths: Looking towards the beach: Volleyball Net on the Beach: It was very quiet and peaceful this afternoon: A boat coming in:

So, let me just say that the week was mostly uneventful except for two things: 1) It was COLD. I know it was a cold winter in FL and I was prepared with a giant heater for my tent, but that honestly didn't help a lot. The final night there I had on a wool hat and gloves to watch fireworks. Wow. Even with the 1500w Convection type heater in the tent, sleeping on the ground, well, sucks. That's the last time that's going to happen. I think a small fan in the top of the tent to push the heat back down would have helped a lot, but it was still a lot of miserable sleeping. That's ok, though, I was

Thanks Rita! I honestly don't remember all of the details, but we're about to get to the good photos. And by good, I mean not so good, but good to me.

OK, I've been a slacker. I should have posted this months ago... but I didn't. Life, work, excuse excuse. I didn't even take notes on this trip, so I'll do my best to remember the details. It's really about the photos, though, so enjoy and thanks for reading along. The trip was planned for late February. Well, work insisted I needed to take fifteen 21yo military college boys to Raleigh that weekend... so the trip was rescheduled. I just checked the dates and it was Feb 9 - 14. Now wait a minute! Can you believe I was there the exact same times as TCD?!? And, AND I was about 7 sites away from h