Tri Circle D Ranch

[BorderTenny]

Martin on WDWMagic says to expect a new pioneer hall. So read into that what you will. Here is another image of the plans.

View attachment 399309

Ooh, is that a lazy river I spy? I'd consider staying there just for that.

 

[carlbarry]

Here is where the new stables are going.

View attachment 399310

That is on the other side of West Wilderness Road?

 

[rteetz]

That is on the other side of West Wilderness Road?

Yes

 

[cmwade77]

Is this the beginning of the end of Hoop Dee Doo, and replaced with yoga classes?

I doubt it, Hoop Dee Doo has been so popular that it has lasted 44 years longer than originally intended. Seriously, it was supposed to have a one year/season run while they worked on a permanent show and it proved so popular they ended up just keeping it and it is still sells out for many performances, so no, I don't see Disney giving up such a huge money maker. Perhaps building a new venue for it, but I doubt they would make it much larger as the show wouldn't work well with too much larger of a venue. Still they could make the upstairs wheelchair accessible if the did build a new venue.

 

[Diz Bee]

What gives me hope is the expansion of the beach towards the other side of the boat dock. It seems like an effort to replace the beach for Fort use.

The plans posted here and in the camping thread don’t seem to show the replacement Pioneer Hall nor any other work in the Fort Wilderness side of the limits of construction. I imagine it is a seperate permit. Have those plans been posted anywhere? Are their submitted plans only available through a public records request?

Not only do I have the plans for every square inch of this thing. I have the temp plans for a proposed new town center which will be built across from where Pioneer Hall stands. It’s where you check in and get your photo for Hoop Dee Doo, and the golf cart parking area behind that. My guess is they’ll probably expand their quick service there.

 

[Planogirl]

I can't see the ambience of Fort Wilderness surviving this. I see a huge tower surrounded by parking lots and new buildings. I think that the rustic atmosphere will soon disappear.

 

[Diz Bee]

Obviously, I was joking about the yoga classes. Lol... but how do you fit rip roaring pioneer fun time into a modern contemporary mold? I think I found a job for “Guano Joe”! Ha!

 

[cmwade77]

I can't see the ambience of Fort Wilderness surviving this. I see a huge tower surrounded by parking lots and new buildings. I think that the rustic atmosphere will soon disappear.

I can see how it could work, but they have to be careful.

 

[Planogirl]

I can see how it could work, but they have to be careful.

I can't see it but I'm glad that you can. Here's hoping because Fort Wilderness is truly unique and charming and I'd hate to see that disappear.

 

[danikoski]

I can't see the ambience of Fort Wilderness surviving this. I see a huge tower surrounded by parking lots and new buildings. I think that the rustic atmosphere will soon disappear.

It's not a tower resort. Based on the pics Disney has released, it's 6-7 floors. WL is basically the same, floor wise, and I wouldn't call that a tower. WL is also right next door to the CR, but Disney has done a pretty good job at keeping the feel of WL. They can do the same with Fort Wilderness. Let's see what Disney does before crucifying Disney for something that hasn't been fully realized.

Also, I for one, am excited to see what they do with the horse barn. I'm guessing it'll still be open to the public, and I'm hoping they take a page from the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. They built a big, beautiful barn that houses some of their carriage collection, some of the horses, and their harnesses. You can watch them bathe, groom, harness, and hitch the horses. It's fabulous to go through. I've been to the draft horse barn at WDW, and it was nice, but they could do something really amazing. Here's hoping.

 

[Brocktoon]

I can't see it but I'm glad that you can. Here's hoping because Fort Wilderness is truly unique and charming and I'd hate to see that disappear.

The Fort as a world class campground will hopefully continue on, but I fear a lot of the fun unique activities and traditions won't be around much longer. A lot of the fun stuff was sort of 'sponsored by campers' like the great Halloween activities including the golf-cart parade and trick-or-treating.

Some of my favorite all-time Disney memories are from bringing down lbs and lbs of candy and handing it out to the families on Halloween. Sure a ton of the ToT'er were from off-site or other resort guests, but it didn't matter to most of us campers who just want the kids and families to have a great time and see what the Fort is all about

I do worry with a huge parking lot going up next door that the Fort just will not be able to handle the possible additional surge to unique Fort sponsored events

 

[Farro]

Obviously, I was joking about the yoga classes. Lol... but how do you fit rip roaring pioneer fun time into a modern contemporary mold? I think I found a job for “Guano Joe”! Ha!

Maybe not as many people today want a rip roaring pioneer fun time. Who knows.

 

[jknezek]

Maybe not as many people today want a rip roaring pioneer fun time. Who knows.

Judging by the difficulty getting campground reservations, I don't think that was a problem...

 

[Farro]

Judging by the difficulty getting campground reservations, I don't think that was a problem...

I thought that was due to throw-away rooms, and from what I've read now, to get early entry to SWGE.

 

[Planogirl]

It's not a tower resort. Based on the pics Disney has released, it's 6-7 floors. WL is basically the same, floor wise, and I wouldn't call that a tower. WL is also right next door to the CR, but Disney has done a pretty good job at keeping the feel of WL. They can do the same with Fort Wilderness. Let's see what Disney does before crucifying Disney for something that hasn't been fully realized.

Also, I for one, am excited to see what they do with the horse barn. I'm guessing it'll still be open to the public, and I'm hoping they take a page from the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island. They built a big, beautiful barn that houses some of their carriage collection, some of the horses, and their harnesses. You can watch them bathe, groom, harness, and hitch the horses. It's fabulous to go through. I've been to the draft horse barn at WDW, and it was nice, but they could do something really amazing. Here's hoping.

It might not be a huge tower but it is one when compared to typical Fort Wilderness buildings. But I do agree that time will tell.

 

[jknezek]

I thought that was due to throw-away rooms, and from what I've read now, to get early entry to SWGE.

No. The campground is generally packed. There is an issue with throwaway sites, but I highly doubt it is more than a handful at a time. The campground is generally packed, especially during snowbird season, summer vacation, and any holiday weekend. Some weekdays occupancy drops outside of the snowbird season, but even then, it is still very, very high. Booking 499 days out is almost the rule if you have specific dates you want.

Edited to add this information is primarily about campsites. The cabins have significantly lower occupancy levels. That's why Disney removed one cabin loop for campsites in the last few years.

 

[disneynutz]

Often we pass judgement without knowing all of the details.
I just found out from a bus driver that Reflections will be limited to the 55 and over crowd. Hoop-Dee-Doo will be replaced with a mini performance of Phantom of the Opera.

Now the name makes sense.

Bill

 

[carlbarry]

Often we pass judgement without knowing all of the details.
I just found out from a bus driver that Reflections will be limited to the 55 and over crowd. Hoop-Dee-Doo will be replaced with a mini performance of Phantom of the Opera.

Now the name makes sense.

Bill

The bus driver said Disney is buying the Lloyd-Webber catalog? Is he an investor? And does he know the plots of the three new Star Wars movies?

 

[yesdnil]

Any rumor on the timeline for these changes? Planning a trip to HDD and wanting to do a carriage ride while there this November

 

[rteetz]

Any rumor on the timeline for these changes? Planning a trip to HDD and wanting to do a carriage ride while there this November

Well Reflections opens on 2022. Demolition on River Country is already under way. I would expect work on the new stable and such to begin soon.