Florida Keys

Florida, USAactivities

The Florida Keys string south-west from Miami like a broken necklace, connected by the Overseas Highway but best understood from the water. Sailing down the island chain you work with a reliable east to south-east trade wind through winter and spring, typically 10–18 knots, which gives comfortable beam-to-broad reaches down the Atlantic side and flatter water if you duck behind the islands into Florida Bay. The Gulf Stream runs hard just offshore, so keep that in mind if you're moving north — fight it and the day gets long quickly. Most charter operations base out of Key Largo or Marathon, with bareboats readily available from several well-stocked yards. Provisioning at Marathon is straightforward; Key West is dearer and busier but worth it for the arrival. Anchor off Boot Key Harbour for a night or two and absorb the live-aboard community before pushing south-west to Key West's mooring field — the city marina gets expensive and crowded, so the mooring balls off Garrison Bight are a saner option. For reef snorkelling and quieter nights, the anchorage off Bahia Honda State Park is hard to beat. Day sailing suits this passage well. The stretches are manageable — 25 to 40 nautical miles between major stops — and the shallow-water coral heads make night passages inadvisable unless you know the channels intimately. Depths run thin in places, so a draft under 1.8 metres is genuinely useful, not just a nice-to-have. Ashore, Key West does what Key West does: Duval Street, Hemingway's house, sunset at Mallory Square, and excellent stone crab when it's in season. It's louder than most sailors prefer, but one evening there earns its place in any cruise. November through April is the window; summer brings heat, humidity, and the serious possibility of a named storm tracking your way.

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