Mizell-Johnson SP ... Dania Beach

The forecast called for full sunshine. That’s not what we got. Clouds moved in and the sun played hide-and-seek ... mostly seeking. But we had comfy temps with a high ranging up to 70F. A nice winter day by our standards.

With no set plans for today, we took it easy this morning, leaving the house around 11:00a. First up — a drive on Florida State Road A1A ... aka Fort Lauderdale Beach Blvd. At that hour the beach was mostly empty ... a situation that would be changing by the time we made our way back three hours later. Plenty of sun-seekers ... no one swimming as the purple flag was out indicating stingers in the water. We headed south as far as we could before cutting inland to Route 1.

Our meandering drive eventually took us to the Dr Von D Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park [MJSP in the photo captions]. It’s situated on a barrier island with the Strahan River on one side and the Atlantic Ocean on the other. We went all the way to the tip of the island, hoping to see the ship channel through which our ship will depart tomorrow. Alas, the area is restricted use, so our hopes were dashed.

On the way back, we detoured into one of the many lots, parked the car, and went for a walk. The trail led us to a casual eatery overlooking Whiskey Creek. Perfect ... al fresco dining with a view. And good food, too.

After we sated our tummies, we headed off on another trail to an overlook from which we checked for manatees in the creek. None to be found ... not surprising as it was rather cool, so I imagine they were in warmer waters. Continuing on, we found a spot that was being frequented by a bunch of pelicans. Turns out there was a fish-cleaning station nearby and the pelicans were hoping for a handout. They were out of luck. No anglers ... and the birds were not interested in the lobster remains a couple of divers were throwing in the water.

We wrapped up our visit to the state park with a short stroll along the beach. Then, back to the car. Retracing our route, we headed to Las Olas Boulevard in FLL to get ourselves some ice cream from Hoffman’s Chocolates ... highly recommended on TripAdvisor. Parking the car, we walked to the shop ... only to find it closed. The good news — the place had moved just a couple of blocks away and the sign on the door told us where to find it.

After enjoying our sweet treats, we called it quits on our sightseeing and headed home. A load of laundry ... some chill time in front of the TV for mom and Mui ... some photo processing and writing for me ... a light dinner.

Thus our time in Ft Lauderdale is coming to a close. One more sleep and then we’re off to embark Allure of the Seas.Read more