Sailing in the keys

[david knowles]

I like Scout's plan, go to the Marquesas. approach form the south and anchor in side. Its shallow and the holding is poor but talk about sheltered you got it and you will be ALONE. Go to the Dry Tortugas but take EVERYTHING you might want. you can't buy a bottle of water there. When you head west the stream is 20 mile south of you stay north of it, "close to shore". You might find treasure . Mell Fisher did

[capt-couillon]

Here in Marathon dock rates drop during the "off season" (May-Oct) so if you plan on being plugged in, a good time to do it. City Marina and Sombrero both offer discounts during the summer for dockside.

Weather is hot but not terrible. A couple of good 12V fans help and are much more practical than AC on a small boat. 5' draft or less will let you explore most areas on the gulf side of the keys with lots of excellent and scenic anchorages. Bugs can be an issue so anchor a ways off the mangroves if possible.

In general much lower key in the summer (with the exception of Key West) and a chance to explore without getting over run.

Good Luck

[WSMFP]

Also consider the price of tow vehicle/trailer parking. It's gotten pricey and some places don't allow over night parking.

[Scout 30]

I agree, 12 volt fans & spare batteries are the way to go. A wind scoop works well too. About the only way to put airconditioning on a boat that size is to find a Cruiseair hatch unit but they are bulky, heavy & can't be left on underway. Plus you're tied to a dock to keep it running. We don't have airconditioning on our boat & anchor out up till about August.

[Sidney777]

Put home window AC in entrance to boat. 5000 BTU will do it. But. It will be so cool you won't want to leave. (Of course when plugged in at marina)

[Scout 30]

Originally Posted by Sidney777

Put home window AC in entrance to boat. 5000 BTU will do it. But. It will be so cool you won't want to leave. (Of course when plugged in at marina)

Makes it kind of tough to get in & out of the cabin but it'll work. Doesn't really make sense for a 1 week cruise though.

[a64pilot]

I'd argue that a window unit in the companionway is a great temporary solution, but not a good permanent one.
I know that the times I have been down there, I couldn't sleep without AC, but I am not acclimatized to it either, I assume coming from up North, they won't be either

[Sidney777]

That's why I suggested it, cause it doesn't make any sense.

[Rocinante33]

My girlfriend and I did exactly that trip the summer before last in a swing keel Catalina 22 and it was great! We put in at Snake Creek down to Key West and back. I did not have enough experience and I had a bunch of people telling me all of the million things that could go wrong, but went ahead and did it anyway.

My $0.02, for what it is worth.

Drop in at Snake Creek. There are a ton of interesting things on the water from there on down. There are plenty of anchorages, and plenty of marinas if that is what you want. We alternated, one night at anchor, next in a marina. The marina charges ran from $0.00 to $45.00 per night.

There is FDoT land by the bridge that people park on for weeks on end, or the Smuggler will let you park there cheap. We found the marina there to be a great jumping off and ending point.

Certainly an AC and refrigerator would have been nice, but we got by fine on a two cooler system. We went ashore every two days and restocked food, beer and ice. My gf also insisted on no more than three days between showers! ;+)

It is hot. Africa hot, as the post above said and it is pretty key to have sun protection in the middle of the day. We had a bimini and tarp for shade and I think we would have had to abandon the trip with out them. We found a couple of very secluded and beautiful anchorages and settled in to watch the sunsets, only to be devoured by bugs that the locals call 'no-see-ums" for obvious reasons. Lesson learned, we started anchoring a couple hundred yards off of mangroves-problem solved.

Still crazy hot, so a cool drink on ice at sunset was a life and death thing almost.

Highlights were anchoring on the reefs and snorkeling. These places are busy mid day with dive boats and sand bar partiers, but you can find places that you are alone. They are deserted at evening time. We had one very nice night anchored at Alligator Reef light.

I had the "Cruising Guide to the Keys" and dropped it in a puddle in the bilge on day one, so had to mostly go from memory. If I did it again (which I will at Christmas) I would want that book again.

I would consider additional necessities to be, in addition to sun protection, and that book, some decent charts and electronic navigation. I used a Lowrance Elite, which was fine, but there is a lot of shallow water and you want to be able to navigate it come what may.

Another essential is snorkeling or scuba equipment.

I too am a teacher and my sailing had mostly been on inland lakes. We had a great time, the people we met were awesome. Do it! but take at least a week each way. Thinking of it as a waterborne RV camping trip allowed us to have an awesome trip!

PM me for more details if you are interested,

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Rocinante33

My girlfriend and I did exactly that trip the summer before last in a swing keel Catalina 22 and it was great! We put in at Snake Creek down to Key West and back. I did not have enough experience and I had a bunch of people telling me all of the million things that could go wrong, but went ahead and did it anyway.

My $0.02, for what it is worth.

Drop in at Snake Creek. There are a ton of interesting things on the water from there on down. There are plenty of anchorages, and plenty of marinas if that is what you want. We alternated, one night at anchor, next in a marina. The marina charges ran from $0.00 to $45.00 per night.

There is FDoT land by the bridge that people park on for weeks on end, or the Smuggler will let you park there cheap. We found the marina there to be a great jumping off and ending point.

Certainly an AC and refrigerator would have been nice, but we got by fine on a two cooler system. We went ashore every two days and restocked food, beer and ice. My gf also insisted on no more than three days between showers! ;+)

It is hot. Africa hot, as the post above said and it is pretty key to have sun protection in the middle of the day. We had a bimini and tarp for shade and I think we would have had to abandon the trip with out them. We found a couple of very secluded and beautiful anchorages and settled in to watch the sunsets, only to be devoured by bugs that the locals call 'no-see-ums" for obvious reasons. Lesson learned, we started anchoring a couple hundred yards off of mangroves-problem solved.

Still crazy hot, so a cool drink on ice at sunset was a life and death thing almost.

Highlights were anchoring on the reefs and snorkeling. These places are busy mid day with dive boats and sand bar partiers, but you can find places that you are alone. They are deserted at evening time. We had one very nice night anchored at Alligator Reef light.

I had the "Cruising Guide to the Keys" and dropped it in a puddle in the bilge on day one, so had to mostly go from memory. If I did it again (which I will at Christmas) I would want that book again.

I would consider additional necessities to be, in addition to sun protection, and that book, some decent charts and electronic navigation. I used a Lowrance Elite, which was fine, but there is a lot of shallow water and you want to be able to navigate it come what may.

Another essential is snorkeling or scuba equipment.

I too am a teacher and my sailing had mostly been on inland lakes. We had a great time, the people we met were awesome. Do it! but take at least a week each way. Thinking of it as a waterborne RV camping trip allowed us to have an awesome trip!

PM me for more details if you are interested,

A great written up for the OP. Realistic compared to some.

[Scout 30]

Originally Posted by Sidney777

That's why I suggested it, cause it doesn't make any sense.

It certainly makes sense if you're going to be staying at marinas instead of anchoring out. Not much breeze in marinas. I'd go for a used Cruisair instead but either will work if you've just got to have airconditioning. For me cruising in a 24' boat is like camping & roughing it is part of the charm.

[tomfl]

A week is really too short a time to do a lot of things mentioned. You will spend one day launching the boat, parking the tow vehicle and trailer, provisioning and another day cleaning up, getting the tow vehicle and trailer to the ramp, getting the boat out of the water, and securing it for the trip back. Left with five days even leaving from Key West it is a day to Boca Grande/Marqueses and another day to DT then two days getting back to Key West with a single day off your five days are used up. And all this assumes you will have good weather for sailing. Realistically you could have a base in Key Largo and spend time sailing/swimming/diving at Pennekamp and not be rushed trying to sail 40nm a day. Marathon is another possible base with plenty of good diving and day sailing. Both Key Largo and Marathon will have lower prices in marinas in the summer. Also look into getting a condo with docking and easy access to open water. It may not be much more than marina fees and offer AC for sleeping and fresh water showers.

Bottom line is even with a 5kn average speed you will only be sailing 40 miles a day and the Keys are about 100 miles from MM 0 to MM100 so a week is not enough time to do anything but set up a base and day sail unless all you want to do is sail and nothing else. Even a 5kn speed is hard to count on with the light winds in the summer. But swimming and diving is best in those light winds. I would spend the $US40 or what ever to pay for secure parking instead of parking by the side of the road.

[a64pilot]

The draw to a 5K window unit AC is they are dirt cheap at a home improvement store.
$129 at Lowes https://www.lowes.com/pd/Frigidaire-...ioner/50342322

Used Cruiseair would likely be better, but try finding one in the middle of Summer in South Fl.

[Scout 30]

Might want to start looking now.
https://miami.craigslist.org/brw/bpo/5877244681.html
https://tampa.craigslist.org/hil/bpo/5900817252.html
https://tampa.craigslist.org/pnl/bpo/5870335226.html
https://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/bpo/5899254938.html
https://miami.craigslist.org/mdc/bpo/5866352791.html
https://fortmyers.craigslist.org/col...840860847.html
https://sarasota.craigslist.org/bpo/5892716292.html
https://fortmyers.craigslist.org/lee...878885777.html