Disney Wilderness Preserve

[dodgey memory]

Found a reference to the Disney wilderness preserve in a guide book. Even the Disney web site doesn't have any info on it. Has any one ever been there? I would like to see a bit of the real Florida and this seems a good way.
Teresa

[florida4sun]

Sadly they closed it some time after they opened AK. It was a gem, most tourists did not bother with it. On a sunday we would spend a half day there. It is a little island of the wilderness campground. They had rare and exotic animals and birds. Galapagus toirtoises, caves and allsorts. You could get up close to pretty much everything. The best part was that if you took a shrt walk you could find hammocks on beach which nodoby ever used to use, we would take a picnic and chill out there.
They also have a petting zoo at the campground which is great for young children, along with the hayrides, bonfire and outside movies they have. Take your own marshmallows for toatsing[msnsmile][msnsmile]


<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by dodgey memory
Found a reference to the Disney wilderness preserve in a guide book. Even the Disney web site doesn't have any info on it. Has any one ever been there? I would like to see a bit of the real Florida and this seems a good way.
Teresa
[/quote]

[steph_goodrum]

Martin
Is that what happened to all the animals from Discovery Island, we thouroughly enjoyed our trip there on our first visit to Disnet in '86 but when we went back the next time they had closed it and we wondered what had happened to them all.
It was a great place reached by a short boat trip and had a lot of the features you described from the Wilderness Preserve. As you explored the island there were things like checkerboard sets on barrels etc so you could sit and stop for a game and lots of hidden surprises to discover.
Actually having read yours again I think we may be talking about the same place (Discovery Island) but the Wilderness Preserve is somewhere else (keep thinking Poinciana boulevard but will check out where I had the info). The Wilderness Preserve is the one where you can go on buggy rides etc if I remember correctly, and costs only a couple of dollars to get into. We were going to check it out when we were next over so will be interesting to find out if it is still open.

[steph_goodrum]

Here's a link to the Wilderness Preserve.

http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/florida/preserves/art5523.html

[dodgey memory]

Well done Steph that's the one i was talking about will look forward to reading about your visit the buggy tour sounds good fun.

[floridadreamvilla.co.uk]

That's the one just down the road from Crescent Lakes. We've been meaning to visit for ages not as it's supposed to be really good. I'm pretty sure Blottie on here has been.

<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by steph_goodrum
Here's a link to the Wilderness Preserve.

http://nature.org/wherewework/northamerica/states/florida/preserves/art5523.html


[/quote]

[florida4sun]

Yep #,soryy I got teh two confused. The Preserve was just up the road from where we used to live!!
The reserve is very different. You really need to do the buggy tour, to appreciate uit as there is not alot else. It is exactly what it says oit is a preserve. Personally I prefer teh schools preserve which is open on the w/e. Its a boarwdalk through Reedy Creek nature reserve. Opens out to lake,lots of wildlife and very peaceful.


<blockquote id="quote" class="ffs">quote:Originally posted by steph_goodrum
Martin
Is that what happened to all the animals from Discovery Island, we thouroughly enjoyed our trip there on our first visit to Disnet in '86 but when we went back the next time they had closed it and we wondered what had happened to them all.
It was a great place reached by a short boat trip and had a lot of the features you described from the Wilderness Preserve. As you explored the island there were things like checkerboard sets on barrels etc so you could sit and stop for a game and lots of hidden surprises to discover.
Actually having read yours again I think we may be talking about the same place (Discovery Island) but the Wilderness Preserve is somewhere else (keep thinking Poinciana boulevard but will check out where I had the info). The Wilderness Preserve is the one where you can go on buggy rides etc if I remember correctly, and costs only a couple of dollars to get into. We were going to check it out when we were next over so will be interesting to find out if it is still open.
[/quote]

[blott]

Reedy Creek Nature Reserve is open to the public at weekends and is on Poinciana Boulevard (so people know where to find it!).

Yep, we've been to Disney Wilderness Preserve and did the buggy ride. We found it very interesting and the volunteer guides were very informative too. They also pointed out various birds and animals that we saw on the buggy ride and told us quite a bit about them as well as the local trees and plants. They had all the kids off the buggy tracking and identifying various footprints on identification sheets which the kids on our buggy ride just loved and had to be dragged back onto the buggy as they got so intent on it all!

If you want to have a picnic there you can do so and also wander around some of the trails for yourself, if you're feeling energetic. Remember it's not a theme park though with everything laid out and sometimes you may see lots of wildlife and sometimes not very much.