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 The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk.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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We are thinking about going from LA to San Fran at least part of the way on highway 1. I am a bit concerned about Big Sur. is it safe? Is it stressful and nerve wracking with all the turns and drop offs? I know it will be beyond beautiful but would we be better off bypassing that stretch and then going down into it at the northern section once in Monterey? That way we're not committed to the whole stretch of it? I am a nervous driver/rider and am afraid I won't enjoy it. Am I overreacting? What would be the best route to stay on 1 most of the time but bypassing big sur? We plan on staying in Monterey.
Thanks!!!!!
A native Californian, we have done this route many times. But our friends from Texas were so stressed out by driving it (we were in separate cars), we cut the drive short. After living in Florida, or maybe it's being older now, it bothers me more. Still, it really shouldn't be missed if you're up for it.
We did this in 2005 and absolutely loved Big Sur! I am a Nervous Nelly as a passenger but this wasn't all that bad, IMO. Then again, we've done road trips through the Alps and THAT was scary at times
I would definitely give it a shot. The views were just breathtaking, so worth it
I am a nervous driver (I had to have my then 17 year old son drive the rental when we did the Utah national parks) but I do not recall that area as particularly scary. I do recall it being pretty slow, I believe Rte 5 runs north/south but inland. We took parts of Rte 5 to make the journey faster. I don't know how long our trip from LA to Monterey took, but it was much longer than we anticipated. It was a really nice vacation, though.
We drove from SF to San diego mostly along route 1 in an RV a massive rented RV at that and driving on the wrong side of the road and we managed. In fact we found it beautiful but not particularly scary.
My husband and I did the same drive from LA to SF in a convertible a few years ago. I can not begin to describe how beautiful it is! You MUST do it!
Going north, you will be on the inside of the road, away from the edge-- so there's no reason to be scared. Do not bypass even one mile, it's that gorgeous! You have to do it at least once in your lifetime. We went in October and the weather was perfect.
Don't miss vistas like this . . .
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poohmaine
Last edited by poohmaine; 04-21-2015 at 05:15 PM..
Reason: adding photo
I'm going to look up this road! We have plans to tour California in a little over a year from now..... And it sounds like this drive is not to be missed!
I did the trip from Monterrey to Big Sur and back as a passenger and did not find it disturbing. I was, however, very beautiful and as passenger I got lots of great pics.