National parks, natural beauty and a bit of Disney wonder! COMPLETED - Page 53 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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The pools don't look very spectacular, but the surrounding rocks do. I understand about the shuttle taking away your freedom a bit. At this point, you're pretty used to going everywhere under on your own.
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Yeah, I have to agree that after that big hike, the pools weren't the ending I would have wanted to see. Oh well, at least you got to explore a bit on foot.
All that hiking for such little result. I guess that's the risk one takes when travelling in September - tiny little waterfalls! Although, I've taken the risk of travelling in higher elevations in June to see waterfalls in full force, but also had to deal with snow and slippery roads!!
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All that hiking for such little result. I guess that's the risk one takes when travelling in September - tiny little waterfalls! Although, I've taken the risk of travelling in higher elevations in June to see waterfalls in full force, but also had to deal with snow and slippery roads!!
Great pics! Emerald pool/waterfall is something I've been looking forward to seeing as well based on what I've read.... But we are going in late May/early June so as you said, perhaps it will be better then....
You mentioned guide books, which ones did you use/read??
Great pics! Emerald pool/waterfall is something I've been looking forward to seeing as well based on what I've read.... But we are going in late May/early June so as you said, perhaps it will be better then....
You mentioned guide books, which ones did you use/read??
I swear by my Dorling Kindersley books, but I only had a USA one for this part of the trip, so I also used my Frommer's guide to the National Parks of the American West and my Insight Guide to US National Parks West. Both were so useful in planning and when we were there. If I had to pick one, it would be the Frommer's.
I think the place looks great, but the pools are not so grand. But after all you have seen, I can see how some places are more disappointing to you.
I think that's the thing. If you're coming to some of the photos cold, they look amazing, but after everything we'd already seen, you do end up comparing and some places are better than others.
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Tuesday 13 September – part seven: lots of cute posing animals... and one not-so-cute one!
Just about everyone got off here, although the crowd dispersed very quickly, as everyone took off at their own pace. Most people would, no doubt, be walking the couple of miles down to the Narrows. As the name perhaps suggests, this is where the canyon narrows considerably and is apparently one of the standouts of the park. I’m sorry, but after our “easy” hike earlier to another of the park’s standouts, perhaps rightly or wrongly, we weren’t about to attempt this. Maybe if this was a one-off stop, but not with a couple of hours drive still to do when we left the park.. :
Instead, we walked a little way down the trail, to get some photos...
On the way, we saw this guy, who seemed to be sending off a constant alarm call. He didn’t shut up the whole time that we were there and, to be honest, it got a bit annoying after a while...
I stopped to take photos of one of the signs and then I saw something move in the grass. I took a closer look and realised, in complete horror, that it was a snake slithering away from me! I gave a little scream and Mark took a look and then proceeded to watch its progress for about the next five minutes. Me? I was elsewhere, taking photos...
Mark also found this cute guy sitting on a log...
Not to be outdone – I found another one!
We headed down to the river to get some photos down there and it was here that you got a real idea of the height of the canyon. It was impossible to get it all into one shot, it was so high. Yet, oddly, the water was strangely soothing, with the rocks roaring up all around you. I suddenly felt very glad that we weren’t walking down to the Narrows, as I wasn’t sure I liked the idea of the rocks looming up so close near to you. :
Next: I’m glad we did the switchbacks before that hit!
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
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Although, I've taken the risk of travelling in higher elevations in June to see waterfalls in full force, but also had to deal with snow and slippery roads!!
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