Zumo Has a Stroke

 After the traffic fiasco that plagued our run out and back to the Everglades we decided to stay closer to home and maybe score some espresso.

Fort Lauderdale has a “River Walk” along Olas street and we set a course to check it out.

Our two star Roadway Inn is situated on what used to be a main boulevard, that has been widened and turns into the on ramp for two major highways, just a few feet after leaving the parking lot.

This road system has been giving our chief navigation system Zumo Trickster GPS of the Raven Clan fits. As we set our course and pull out on to the road the map begins to look like red, yellow, and pink spaghetti. Zumo working with Peppermints phone GPS sometime agree on routes and sometimes they have slight variations, but between them we have always gotten to where we were going.

Out to Olas street to check out the river walk   was no problem. Just a few recalculating’s, several long traffic lights, one or two rude fellow motorists, and we found a convenient parking spot with a high teck credit card friendly parking meter.

Espresso was found amongst the trendy shops, and fortified us for a walk east towards the Atlantic Ocean.
In this part of Florida the tidal marshes have been replaced with canals, mansions, and yachts.

  Atlantic Tidal Marshes

 

No one seems to care that this real estate is below sea level and subject to hurricanes that the tidal marshes they replaced used to buffer.

 Life Is Grand On Olas Street

The Atlantic was too far for us to reach on foot and the parking meter was counting down so it was back to our lodging, with a Zumo route that appeared somewhat familiar.

Our next excursion and our last day in port before sailing we plotted a course out to the ocean. Zumo led us right out of the parking lot around the freeways and out towards the beach.

Almost to our destination the road was closed. Bridge Out. We couldn’t blame the gps for that and after a U turn we switched to dead reckoning navigation.

Back out on the main road we turned towards the coast paralleled a neighborhood and by accident discovered Anne Kolbe Nature center.

Actual mangrove wetlands that were to become housing have been set aside and now provide habitat and recreation. We walked the paths, sailed on the park boat and climbed to the top of the observation tower.

 Actual Mangrove Tidal Wetlands

Back at the Beatle we were getting hungry and using zumo we discovered Billy’s Stone Crab Restaurant that was only 2 miles away.

Setting our course Zumo was having trouble calculating the route and as we pulled out to the main road we discovered that traffic was back up maybe to Georgia.

Zumo was stuck; she was in a calculating coma, stuck at 75%.

Deciding to go the opposite way of all the stopped traffic we were on our own. I removed Zumo from her car mount and held her close to the refrigerated air vent. Gently I turned her off hoping that the cooling air would sooth her condition.

We rounded the park found another main road and from the draw bridge spotted Billy’s. They even had a parking lot with empty spaces that we discovered was valet and only $5.00

We left Zumo and the car with the attendant and headed off to lunch. Food always makes tragedy better…

Florida wildlife: Monarch Butterfly Ft Lauderdale