About 40 minutes north of downtown Miami sits the Venice of America, Fort Lauderdale.
With its extensive network of canals and waterways totaling almost 165 miles, nearly 7 miles of beaches, with over 40,000 yachts in over 100 marinas, it attracts nearly 12 million visitors each year.
Like Miami we only planned a short visit but for similar reasons stayed almost a full month in various apartments and airbnb’s. Starting and ending a stone’s throw from the main strip of Las Olas Boulevard our stay here was a lot more relaxed than the frenetic pace of Miami.

Walking Hamish, we regularly followed the red brick road of Riverwalk, often stopping off at the Cheesecake Factory on Las Olas to indulge our sweet tooth addiction. Other times we rode the free water trolley where Hamish employed his sea legs much to the delight of some of the other passengers.
During the middle of our stay we moved slightly north of the river just off Sunrise Boulevard regularly enjoying brunch at the Warsaw Coffee shop ($3 for craft beers) or Tunie’s Organic (and dog friendly) supermarket juice bar.

Hamish and Osa at Wilton Manors

We walked to Wilton Manors to view a different neighbourhood and also visited the The Hugh Taylor State Park, a great place for walking free from traffic and city pollutants. The nearby dog beach was given a miss as signs stated Friday to Sunday but dogs must remain on a leash.
Though dogs were technically not permitted, Hamish enjoyed a daily walk through the close-by Holiday Park.

Unfortunately during our stay we had to return to Scotland for a family funeral. And with Hamish unable to travel due to such a tight timeline our Airbnb host kindly offered to look after him during our absence. An offer we reciprocated upon our return, looking after her dog “Osa” whilst she went away for a few days over American Independence Day. Hamish loved the “new addition” to the pack and the long walks, especially to the dog area situated inside Colohatchee Park, cooling off in the paddling pool.

Our last couple of days were spent relaxing in a small apartment on the river, Hamish observing, and chasing, the iguanas whilst we watched the boats and yachts sail by.
From here we continued to move north, still in Florida, making our way to the cities of Lake Worth and West Palm Beach.