Sail the Southwest Florida Coast to the Keys 8 Hours at a Time

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Dayhop the Southwest Florida Coast to the Keys

Sailing to the Florida Keys 8 hours at a time, or dayhopping, is easy along Florida’s Southwest Coast …

Winterlude Anchored at Ft Jefferson, the Dry Tortugas, Florida Keys
Winterlude Anchored at Ft Jefferson, the Dry Tortugas, Florida Keys

Over the years, we’ve spent a lot of time exploring Florida’s West Coast … from the Dry Tortugas in the Keys to Tampa Bay.  Here are some of our favorite anchorages.

As usual on these posts, this link will work much better than the embedded map, I still haven’t figured out why.

Dayhop the Southwest Florida Coast to the Keys!

On the link you’ll find our recommended stops, a photo and a link to a CommuterCRUISER.com post on that anchorage if I’ve written one.

I hope someone finds this information useful and we’ll add to it as we explore north of the Charlotte Harbor Florida Coast (i.e. north of Punta Gorda which is just north of Ft Myers).

Happy day sailing!  If you have comments or would like me to add more information, please leave a comment and share!  Cheers!   Jan

14 COMMENTS

    • Wish we were headed to Cape Sable… we’ve never gotten to anchor there… yet. The wind’s always been in the wrong direction. We’re hopeful this year. 🙂

  1. That is exactly what Sue and I plan to do this year – leaving from our current location in Long Beach, Ms. all the way down. I hit a lot of those places on the way up last year and really enjoyed it. Take care.

  2. Thanks Jan as always very interesting adventures!
    Looking forward to seeing you out there……winter 2016
    Stormy Duchess

    • Hi Cathy! Hopefully by winter 2016 we’ll be back out exploring for the full six months we’re on the boat! Looking forward to sharing an anchorage with Stormy Dutchess! Cheers! Jan

  3. Hi again. So glad you share your ventures. Curious…going from Everglades to Marathon is there a channel? We have 6.3′ and am looking for a shorter way than going cleat around keys from east coast to west coast though. Thanks for a response in advance.

    • Hi Cheryl – Moser Channel goes through and under 7 Mile Bridge at Marathon. Other than that, no channel really, but it should be doable. We’ve never had any trouble, but we draw 5.5′. Check your charts to be sure. Cheers! Jan

  4. Hello Jan, just wondering if you are still monitoring this blog? My wife Susan and I are planning a nearly identical trip this winter. We are from Michigan and brought our Seaward 32RK down to Largo at the Island Packet facility for some upgrades and repairs last September. Planning on a month long trip to the Keys with many visitation stops along the way in Feb and Mar. Have a few questions regarding the Intercoastal as far as depths and mast height restrictions along the way. Hoping you are still around and thank you.

    • Hi David! We just bought a trawler & are planning to start The Great Loop soon from Bradenton, so we’ll be headed down Florida’s West Coast. We’re still trying to get the boat ready to go (new anchor chain/rode, updated charts, etc) so not sure exactly when, but soon! Ask away – hopefully I’ll be able to answer your questions. Cheers! Jan

  5. Hello Jan and thank you for your response! Didn’t think you were still monitoring this blog (I was looking for an email). Have been putting together some route planning possibilities and returned to this blog to compare. Low and behold your anchorages between Marco/Sanibel area and the Keys are the two I found possible. What was the draft of Winterlude and how far in towards the mainland were you able to get? Or, is it even worth it?
    I do not want to do a 90 mile trip arriving in the Keys (Marathon or Key West) near or at dark, so anchoring is necessary. What was the bug situation and did you feel safe and secure in both areas? Although we have done a number of Caribbean charters and sailed extensively on the Great Lakes we are new to this area. Concerning the inside route when used, are the mile markers an accurate way for time planning? Thank you again for responding, my wife Susan may join in with some questions as well.

    • Hi Jan, David, and Susan – others
      We too will be sailing Florida’s West Coast. Our journey will take us south down the coast to the Keys. Then from the Keys north back to MD. This will be our first trip taking this route. We have just completed our very first navigation south down the ICW from MD and across the Okeechobee. Our concerns: best weather for sailing the Gulf (wind from east vs west), anchoring – what is available/safe after Irma (our draft is 5’8”, but we say 6’), how far off shore should we sail, what route to take – would like to take Moser Channel/7 Mile Bridge to Marathon (deep enough?), these are some of our questions/concerns. We would greatly appreciate any assistance/in-put (Jan, David, Susan or other readers). Please feel free to contact us anytime.

      Thank you, Happy Sailing, and Safe Travels to All
      DH

      • Hi DH! Can’t answer all your questions, but we had a 5.5′ draft & you saw our dayhop route in the post. We did sail down Moser Channel – shallow but we made it several times. Weather? We watch for waves/swell – particularly the period — i.e. the time BETWEEN the waves. Our rule of thumb was that if the period matched the wave height, we were going to get slammed & didn’t go. The period between waves should be much longer than the wave height. And remember, the wave height in the forecast is only for the average, the biggest waves you’ll see will be another half as big. So if the forecast calls for 3-5, remember you’ll likely see some that are 4.5 – 7.5. Watch the period between waves. Anytime the wind goes west, there’s usually a norther behind it, so we generally prefer fair weather with easterly breezes, but not always. Good luck, be safe & enjoy! Cheers! Jan

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