I said that I was going to finish this trip report by the end of this week, and it looks like I will. Probably tomorrow.
So, where I left off was at the golf cart return area, snooping around the back stage area.
I chatted with the castmember who asked me not to take photos of the inside the fence area about the golf cart operations at the Fort. She said they have about 300 carts. I already posted one photo of the carts stored inside the fence. There is another area, just off to the side, for storing additional carts:
As far as I can tell, the carts stay outside all the time. Most golf courses that I am familiar with in Florida, have storage buildings for their carts. I guess the Fort management doesn't see this as necessary. I guess the carts must be rented out most of the time.
I wonder how much money they make from golf cart rentals? They get 50 bucks a day. Say they average 250 carts out at a time. That's over 4.5 million bucks a year. These carts probably last a few years each. They probably break even on the cost of the cart within the first six months. Wow, that is a lot of profit! You would think they wouldn't want to mess up this gold mine by overpricing the rentals, but I guess they know what they're doing.
From the golf cart drop off area, we walked over to the Outpost bus stop for a ride back to the 900 loop. This is the part of the new golf cart rental procedures that I do not like. The Bike Barn is an easy walk from almost any campsite. The Outpost Depot is not. But nobody asked me.
So, we waited for our bus. The 900 loop is on the Orange bus line. The Orange Bus used to shoot right down Fort Wilderness Trail, and the 900 loop would have been the second stop. But now the Orange line goes through the cabin loops, which makes it take longer. So, when a Yellow bus pulled up, we hopped on it, and rode it out to the 1500 loop bus stop. That gave us one last chance to walk by the pool.
So, here is a photo of all the carts parked at the Outpost bus stop on the morning of 4/4, and a photo of all the folks at the bus stop. Easter was a week away, and things were definitely picking up around the Fort:
I noticed something new on the bus ride. There is a recorded announcement that states the name of each loop serviced by the bus stop. The voice sounds like the same guy who does the announcements on the monorail. That is pretty cool. This may have been going on for a while. We don't ride the buses so much.
Here we are heading back to the pool area from the 1500 loop:
I never noticed this sign before, and I thought for a moment that maybe some prankster had put it here next to the canal:
Why would someone on in the water need to go to the Bike Barn?
Then, I remembered, that is where the canoes and kayaks have to go. Duh!
So, the sign is supposed to be there. But, if you face this sign and look to the right, this is what sits about 30 ft. away:
So, I am not sure that sign is really necessary. I think folks can figure this out on their own. Oh well, nobody asked me.
Here is one of our last looks at the pool:
Look! The slowest painter in the world is almost done with the slide (but for some reason he moved to the other side) (maybe less wind on his cig's?)!:
These are my last pool photos.
Really:
Check out this guy. All of the other pool workers have had to wear hard hats and other safety gear throughout this project. Here this guy is with a giant saw, and no safety gear at all. Not even goggles. And, I think he had flip flops on:
Good thing I wasn't from O.S.H.A.!
Or I.N.S.!
Look, more pool gawkers!:
What is it with these people and their obsession with the pool construction. It's just a pool people. Why all the fascination with it? Some people.
Speaking of OCD, look at this!!!:
What do we have here?
Is that a full set of pool plans?
Sitting on the dashboard of an unattended truck?
With its windows open?
And nobody around to see a thing?
What would you do?
Well, I'm not you. I left them there.
I am pretty sure it would be a violation of some law to take a full set of construction plans off of a contractor's dash board. And Mrs. TCD would not have been too happy to have to bail me out of the Fort stockade. In fact, I am not confident that she would have bailed me out.
If only it had been dark.
Here we are heading out toward the bridge behind the Meadow trading post. The rigs on the 600 loop are very visible from here. I don't like it. They ruined a really nice view:
Lots of folks were fishing on this beautiful Saturday morning:
I just have a few more photos . . .
And then this report will be done!
TCD
Does Donnie drink his Diet Coke from a can? 
I thought he has one of those ancient life-time refillable mugs?
.
