The Paths

yodiwan1 · Post by **yodiwan1** » Nov Mon 26, 2007 6:17 pm

those sounds still may be frogs everyone..they are definetly not aligators making them. the only sound they make is a hissing sound or a small bark, and that is rare. You are hearing frogs and different bugs, but not aligators. Just relax and have an enjoyable walk. If there really was a big risk do you think Disney would allow people to walk there? They hate lawsuits.

mickster68 · Post by **mickster68** » Nov Mon 26, 2007 10:05 pm

those sounds still may be frogs everyone..they are definetly not aligators making them. the only sound they make is a hissing sound or a small bark, and that is rare. You are hearing frogs and different bugs, but not aligators. Just relax and have an enjoyable walk. If there really was a big risk do you think Disney would allow people to walk there? They hate lawsuits

This is true. I've certainly never heard of any alligator incidents in Disney. Can't imagine they'd be lax about something like that! I did get a kick out of that video. Oh my gosh, I can't believe that gator was so close to Splash!

Jacca5660 · Post by **Jacca5660** » Nov Mon 26, 2007 11:52 pm

those sounds still may be frogs everyone..they are definetly not aligators making them. the only sound they make is a hissing sound or a small bark, and that is rare.

What in the world are you talking about???? They are definetly not aligators making them?? The only sounds they make are what?? Where in the world did you get this horse C**P?? I've gotten in trouble with the Florida DNR for drawing in Gators by make the bullfrog sound. Yes they do make the bullfrog sound. Why in the world are you telling people they don't?? I don't get your purpose??

yodiwan1 · Post by **yodiwan1** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 3:35 am

Here is why I said what I did. I have worked in a zoo, and at Disney. I also live right outside the everglades in south florida. Aligators make hissing sounds, and kind of a small barkish sound, more of a grunt. I studied aligators ona few occasions for classes i have taken. The sound that everyoen heres happens all over property at night. Which means there are a lot of animals making that sound. Now unless there is a major aligator epidemic that we all don't know about, these soudns are no aligators. How many gators are found in the woods far from water? This is common sense. There are more insects in central florida than anyone can imagine. When I went to UCF(Central Florida) we heard those sounds as well. So unless there were aligators crawling outside our dorms....the sound did not come from a gator!

Jacca5660 · Post by **Jacca5660** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 9:14 am

yodiwan1 wrote:Here is why I said what I did. I have worked in a zoo, and at Disney. I also live right outside the everglades in south florida. Aligators make hissing sounds, and kind of a small barkish sound, more of a grunt. I studied aligators ona few occasions for classes i have taken. The sound that everyoen heres happens all over property at night. Which means there are a lot of animals making that sound. Now unless there is a major aligator epidemic that we all don't know about, these soudns are no aligators. How many gators are found in the woods far from water? This is common sense. There are more insects in central florida than anyone can imagine. When I went to UCF(Central Florida) we heard those sounds as well. So unless there were aligators crawling outside our dorms....the sound did not come from a gator!

I lived in Ft Myers for many years (over 20) and went to Tampa U. I have spent a lot of nights fishing every place from Old Tampa Bay to Florida Bay to Lake "O", and I can tell you with no uncertainty that they are Gators. You would not believe were a Gator will call home. I would speculate that there are THOUSANDS of Gators on property at WDW. They will live on top of each other and us. YES, that deep bullfrog like sound, are Gators. If you don't believe me. call the Florida DNR and ask, or ask any golfers that you may know.
I feel it is dangerous for you to write this miss-information, please check your facts. This could be a safety issue. You, in the long run, could get somebody hurt.

Post by **js3901** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 9:44 am

aligators will not live far in on land. they are like fish and NEED water to survive. 99% of their time is spent in water. You probably will not see an aligator on the nature trail at Ft. Wilderness/WL, or any other pathway on WDW property. Unless, of course, it is close to a water source (lake, creek, etc). I agree with both Yodiwan that you're in next to no danger, as well as Jacca in that if you do get too close, they will defend themselves with dangerous consequences and can make those noises.

Jacca5660 · Post by **Jacca5660** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 10:16 am

Let me clarify what I'm saying. It's very rare you hear of any type of Gator activity more then a few feet from water. At WDW most of the walk ways are by water. I've researched and have talked to a few friends who have been CM's for many years (in one case almost 18 ). There are vague memories of a Gator related incident many years ago on WDW property. So yes attacks are rare. When Disney finds a large Gator (over 5 to 8 feet long, depends on who you ask) they relocate it to a remote part of the property.
The fact is they are there. If you look at it this way; with all the Gators in Florida (and there are MILLIONS) you hear of very few attacks on humans. For the most part Gators are very docile and shy. If you are walking on property and hear something big in the underbrush, walk away very quickly. Even if it's not a Gator and it's something like a wild hog. Well let's just say the experience isn't going to be a pleasant one. These are not what Disney moments are made of. Remember, "It's better to be safe than sorry!"
PS I personally have never feared a Gator in the wild. Although if you're fishing, it's time to move to another spot. The fish don't seem to like them very much.

Captain Schnemo · Post by **Captain Schnemo** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 12:19 pm

There are definitely large alligators in Bay Lake. I've seen them. And alligators are potentially dangerous (not to be confused with the crocodiles who live in Florida, which have never attacked a human, as far as we know). They kill people from time to time. They also make some noises that sound a bit like frogs. Here are some not great examples (check Alligator mississippiensis).

That said, Florida is home to some extremely loud and plentiful toads and if you're hearing quite a lot of "croaking" near the shore (with answering calls coming from all around), it's most likely toads.

Even if they are gators, however, as long as you don't go creeping down to poke at them, you are most likely safe. There are occasional stories of people who are killed or seriously injured who have done nothing unreasonable (the most recent example I can think of was a jogger who was just on her normal route), although these attacks are rare and usually involve extremely large gators. Mostly you hear about dogs and ducks becoming lunch.

Anyway, exercise caution and there should be nothing to fear. The rollercoasters can kill you too, but there's no reason to live in fear. The traffic on the way to WDW is more of a threat.

Jacca5660 · Post by **Jacca5660** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 12:59 pm

The traffic on the way to WDW is more of a threat.

The biggest threat we all face on any given day!

Cheshire Cat · Post by **Cheshire Cat** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 3:15 pm

About the rustling in the bushes... is it true that there is some sort of Florida Panther? A CM at Fort Wilderness told us about them once a long time ago, is it possible that these animals could be hiding out on the WDW paths or did he mean "Wild Florida" outside of WDW?

(I'm from up north where we don't have much dangerous wild life except for the occasional bear, so excuse me if this question sounds kind of ignorant.

)

Captain Schnemo · Post by **Captain Schnemo** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 4:48 pm

You're much more of a danger to cougars than they are to you. There's never been a recorded incident of a Florida panther attack on a human, but there are less than 100 Florida panthers left on the planet, thanks to us.

Cheshire Cat · Post by **Cheshire Cat** » Nov Tue 27, 2007 10:09 pm

You're much more of a danger to cougars than they are to you. There's never been a recorded incident of a Florida panther attack on a human, but there are less than 100 Florida panthers left on the planet, thanks to us.

Oh wow. That's defintely an ndangered species then. I hope they're doing somehting to help the population or at least keep it stable.

I just looked it up on wikipedia and I'm relieved to see that they're pretty small. I've been imagining Bagheras roaming WDW's swamps since the CM told us.

It's kind of sad that Disney isn't doing anything to protect them. Disney is one of the main reasons why Florida became so developed in the first place.

Joe90 · Post by **Joe90** » Dec Sun 30, 2007 1:14 pm

Hey, back to Blackie's original point about walks.
If you feel up to a jog there is a list of routes on the Disney web site.
Not that I'll be jogging them

It doesn't give you the routes just tells you they are there. I may have to ask for the routes when I'm there then I'll post them.

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdwi/e ... DetailPage

Captain Schnemo · Post by **Captain Schnemo** » Jan Fri 11, 2008 4:30 am

Hmmm, they pretty much just list all the hotels. It does bring up the point that it's worth asking at the front desk of any hotel, so thanks for the link.

This is pretty informative

Captain Schnemo · Post by **Captain Schnemo** » Jan Sat 19, 2008 6:15 am

Captain Schnemo wrote:I'll be doing the Wilderness walk in a few months, so if it's particularly nice, I'll report back.

It is pretty nice.

There are really two options here. On the Lodge side, you can begin either at an asphalt path by the bus stop, or a shorter route near the boat rental.

The shorter route is basically a dirt road that runs along the lake. At a couple points, the shorter route branches off and meets up with the asphalt path, which is more tourist-friendly.

If you don't take the branches, the dirt path actually goes all the way up to River Country, but you aren't supposed to go in that area. It's more secluded (I saw some deer there) and I found it to be a little more pleasant. On the other hand, the weather was nice and there were no mosquitoes, which could be a serious problem at other times of the year.

The path ends (or begins, depending on which way you're going) by the petting zoo at Fort Wilderness. Also, apparently, no petting is actually allowed at the petting zoo any more. Now it's all horses...the pigs, chickens, and other pet-able animals are all gone.

I recommend the walk, whichever way you go. It's a nice break from the noise and crowds.

The advertised "Nature Walk" at Fort Wilderness (at the far end of the beach) is now pretty short. It used to go pretty far back into the swamp on a nice boardwalk, but the last hurricane that hit WDW took out so many trees that they closed it.

They will tell you that the boardwalk is gone, but it isn't...it's back there, rotting away in terrible condition. Unless you're really adventurous, I wouldn't suggest following it for very long. If you are adventurous, let me know how far it goes!

By the way, I was surprised to see how many trees were down from the hurricane that hit a few years ago. Fort Wilderness had some areas that were really thinned out, and downed trees were all over the property.

I haven't visited in quite some time, so it was sort of a shock to me.