Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Review

Sunday April 10, 2014                                                                           Most Recent Posts:
Fort Wilderness Campground                                                                 Retry on Commuting to Disney
Disney World                                                                                        From Wekiwa to Louisa
Orlando, Florida

 

My previous post on our test of commuting to Lake Louisa never showed up on the Blog Rolls.  I tried reposting it under a different title and  a pictureless post pointing to it.  If you care to read about our experiment and our conclusions about commuting as a method of making a Disneyworld stay less expensive, you can find it with the first link above. 

 

Today we drive the 20  miles from Lake Louisa to Fort Wilderness for our previously booked reservation.  When we arrive about noon, our site is ready.  This time I took what is known as a full hook up rather than a “preferred site”.  We have always enjoyed being in the 300 loop and have paid the extra cost per night to be there. We have had the same site 3 times in a row and really love it since it is an easy walk from the boat dock to our site. 

 

 

But since it is now April and costs have gone up, remember it is Spring Break month, the cost for a preferred site would end up being $100 in total over our 6 night stay.  So this time we signed up for the cheap seats which are hardly cheap.  We ended up in loop 1800, quite a distance from the boat dock at the settlement but closer to the buses at the Outpost which take you to all but the Magic Kingdom.   Our usual site and more expensive site loop is marked with the blue arrow, our current site in 1800 is marked with the red arrow and Pioneer Hall is marked with a yellow arrow on the campground map below.

 

 

 

Not sure why but in looking through all my pictures I don’t seem to have one of our site.  I have some pictures of other rigs in other sites but not of ours.  Who knows why?

These rig pictures are of Charlie, our neighbor down the street, with his 1998 Brave.  At least you can see what the sites are like here in the Full Hook Up Section of Loop 1800.  They are pretty much exactly the same as in Loop 300.  Nice size, nice patio, Full hook ups.  The only difference is their location on the map.

 

We get set up and I decide at what is now the last minute to see about splurging for seats at the Hoop-Dee-Do Review which is here at Pioneer Hall in the campground. 

Our annual passes are only week-day passes which is fine by us.  We don’t want to be in the park on week-ends and the passs is less expensive.  So when we come on Sundays, we can’t go into the parks but there is plenty to do and see.  On previous Sundays we have taken the boat over to the Magic Kingdom and then taken the monorail to the hotels and all around.

This time I am able to get a spot at the 4:00 Review.  This is an expensive dinner for two with what is known as a rousing show.  It’s our ‘do it once’ splurge for this trip at $72 a person for the dinner and show.  Life is short!  If you can do it, then do, don’t wait,  has become our motto.

With that all set, we hop on our bikes to pedal around the campground.

 

 

 

We go around all the campground loops and down to the waterfront.  There we stop at Clementine’s (of ‘Oh My Darlin’)Beach.  Boats are in the water, one is pulling a parasail.  You can rent boats and equipment.  Heavens, you can rent anything you want here.  Any toy you need to play is easily available.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We find a map for the 2.5 mile running trail, marked in red dots, that goes around the campgound and  over to the Fort Wilderness Lodge.  Looks like it would make a nice 5 mile run over and back.  Wish it went right along the water.

 

 

 

At the Tri-Circle D Ranch,   we find pony rides and the big Percherons that pull the carts and wagons, including the trolly we saw on Main Street on Friday.  The horses are  are getting baths before they go off to work for the afternoon.

Love the logo but I think they should have made it out of all D’s.  Head and ears.

 

 

 

 

 

She did this over and over as he kept putting his head into the hose.

 

As you might guess, the stables at the ranch are top notch. 

 

 

Locked in a glassed room we see Cinderella’s coach which 6 of these horses will pull for you if you want to hire it for your wedding at Disney World. 

 

 

At this point it’s time to head over to Pioneer Hall for the Review. 

 

Everyone’s name is on a list and you are assigned a table.  We aren’t down in front but that doesn’t matter since the singers and dancers do a lot in the audience and most of it was right around our table.

 

 

The food is brought to your table throughout the show.  Check out the menu.  “Nearly” everything is included up to the “Added Enjoyment”.  Too funny!!

 

 

 

 

The actors come storming through the back door and down to the stage where they present a song and dance and joke show suitable for all ages.  There are 3 couples in the actors and they appear to have particular talents.  One pair has the strongest voices, one couple is the best dancers and the final duo are the jokesters.  One of the jokesters has on the plaid coat and the big drum.

 

 

 

 

 

They definitely put on a high energy fun show for over an hour.

 

 

Here are the ‘singer couple’ performing in the audience right in front of our table.  The tall cowboy looks like he should play the character Woody from Toy Story.  Perhaps he does, who knows.

 

 

 

They get everyone in the audience Whoop dee doing with their napkins and then they bring out the dessert.

 

 

 

 

After all that encouragement, the waiters and waitresses appear on stage with dessert and come down to deliver Strawberry Short Cake.  YUM!

 

 

Looks like I have to share it with him.  That’s a dangerous process I have learned.  Better get my fork read quickly.

 

 

 

The rousing finale has everyone playing washboards.

 

Well fed, and well entertained, we leave the review in time for them to turn around and do it all over again at 6:00.  And they do this 7 days a week.  Whew………..  Good thing they have varying groups of performers and waiters.

 

Outside we run into one of the horses we’ve seen having his bath this morning.  He’s now on duty for hire if you’d like to take a carriage ride around the Fort Wilderness area.   

 

 

After all that food we think sitting isn’t the thing to do and decide we’ll walk over to Fort Wilderness Lodge and back to walk off all those calories.   The trail is wide and the surface perfect for walking, running or biking.  No motor vehicles allowed.

 

 

The lodge too is a big complex also right on Bay Lake.  It is built in the style of the great Lodges of the western national parks. 

 

Huge doors add to the effect.

 

 

As you can see inside is fabulous woodwork and totem poles including a not so authentic looking one.

 

 

 

Outside there is Silver Creek Falls and a swimming pool with a great water play area for the kids

 

 

 

 

All the hanging buckets fill and then pour out repeatedly.

 

 

I have to say I’d love to play in here.  Wish the slides were bigger.  Why don’t they have this sort of thing for big kids?

 

 

 

The lodge has some feathered visitors too, a boat tailed grackle and a mockingbird pose as we walk by.

 

 

 

On our walk back it is nearly dusk and we pass this little doe who is quite interested in our watching her.

 

 

Disney fans have been making some art with the pine cones all along the side of the trail.

 

 

 

As we pedal back to our campsite, we pass by a serious Disney fan. I wonder how many times a year they stay in Fort Wilderness?  

 

 

 

And I thought I was a big Disneyworld  fan.
The inscription at the top says
“We’re Living a Mouse Life
Where All Your Dreams Come True”

If that’s true they are sure lucky.
I wonder if I join up with them if my dreams will come true too?

 

I’ve sure never seen a camper like this tooling down the highway. Keep your eyes pealed, it may come to a campground near you or maybe this is the only campground it ever goes to.