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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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Going Home
We slept in a bit on Sunday and checked out of the hotel right at the check-out time of 11am. We drove down the street to Dunkin' Donuts and got breakfast sandwiches, donuts, OJ, and coffee, and had our breakfast in the parking lot. We made a brief stop at Wal-Mart(yes, even the Outer Banks has one... and a K-Mart!, but, alas, I did not see a Tar-get'!) where I stayed in the car with the dogs while Mom and Brenda picked up a few items we needed for the drive home.
Finally, we left the Outer Banks about noon.
We had noticed several fruit and vegetable stands between Norfolk and the islands on the way down, but they were closed. The girls wanted to stop and get some fruit for the road and some veggies for home. The little place we stopped had some very good peaches and berries, which were sampled before we got too far away. Across the road from the stand was one of those touristy stores and we realized we hadn't bought any souvenirs down on the islands. Well, that would just not do! So, again, I stayed with the dogs while the girls went in to get T-shirts and such. After a little while, Mom came out and I went in and found Brenda. We hadn't realized this was also a local winery. We bought a bottle of their blackberry wine to try when we got home. (About a week later, we opened the bottle. It was pretty good!)
When we came through Norfolk Friday night, it was, of course, dark, so as we came through this time, we got our last look at the ocean water for this trip. The rest of the ride home was uneventful. We got to enjoy the beauty of the mountains before it got too dark, and we arrived back home about midnight.
Summary and Final Thoughts
This was a wonderful, weekend getaway. I realize that a 600 mile drive in one day is not what you would normally do on vacation, and I would definitely break that up into two days, if possible. From our home in southeastern Ohio, though, it was the only way to do it this time. Saturday, the one day we had to relax, we got to spend a little time at the beach and see enough of the islands to know that we want to go back and spend more time there. The Outer Banks is beautiful, pet friendly and was uncrowded while we were there. Most of the beaches allow you to take your dog with you as long as it's on a leash and you pick up after it, of course. There are several hotels and motels and a lot of rental houses and cottages that seem to be priced reasonably.
The Ramada Plaza is not bad, especially if you are bringing your pet. The upper floors had baloneys and sliding glass doors. Our first floor room had a regular door and a window that did not open.
Having tried Captain George's Seafood Restaurant, I doubt if we go back. It was OK, but we just did not feel it was reasonably priced, of course that's a matter of opinion.
Stack 'em High Pancakes!, on the other hand, was a great find, and we would not hesitate to go back there for breakfast.
Overall, we had a great time and began planning an early Fall, 2 week get-a-way, for Sept. next year. We are looking into renting a house on, or near the beach.
In the meantime... well, in the meantime... I took a weeks vacation to make doctors' appointments, got those out of the way for that Mon and Tue, so we have made ressies to go back later this month for a 5 day get-a-way, so... STAY TUNED for "Tia Goes Back To The Beach!"
Thanks for sharing, the Outer Banks is a beautiful place.
I've only been there once, we enjoyed the aquarium at Roanoke Island, my DS went with the Grandparents one other time and I know they enjoyed the Wright Brothers Memorial.
So glad you get to go back!
__________________
Donning my Wellies to cut Peat in Scotland
Melissa
Okay, sorry I got behind!
Love the puppy beach pics! And love the Rodanthe drive-thru since I am a huge Nicholas Sparks fan too!
I am glad you guys had such a nice time, your pictures look so relaxing!
Love it!
I enjoyed your mini trip Kenny! Glad that you'll be going back for a longer time to enjoy it. You packed alot into a couple of days. Looking forward to your next adventure
Thanks everyone, for your support! I'm glad you all liked our "trip to the beach"!
I think I will end it here with this universal answer, since I am about to start on...
"Tia Returns To The Beach" or "A Little Princess, A Little Tequila, And A Big Ocean = A LOT OF FUN!!"
...coming soon to a Passporter thread near to your heart!
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Disney Magic - Oct 2015
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