What a great forum. Thanks everyone for there
advice. A
captain on the first day is something I had not thought of. I will definitely look into that. I have requested a list of the equiptment/electronics on board so that I can download
manuals now and start understanding them.... the last thing I want to be doing is to be
learning how to operate the
GPS (or whatever) during a storm or at night

. Since my houseboat has very little
draft (less than 12") and high sides, it doesnt react well to winds over 8-10knts.... Over the years I have learned to appreciate the art of setting anchors in different
wind situations. I am truely a
newbie at sailing but feel I have a solid understand of
boating basics (house boats with a 12 ft beam dont park themselves in a 15 ft wide silp in a crosswind in a crowded marina

). That being said, I can understand the frustration of seasoned boaters with renters. The area that I
boat in has a heavy rental
boat population and they can be sometimes less considerate than one would like. No worries about the critical comments. I am a big boy and can take it. It may be your boat that I drift into though. Just kidding.
Great tips on not trying to cover too much ground! At first I was hopeful to make it down to Elliott Key, but there is no need to worry about how far down to make it. I am trying to make it fun for the
kids too and am breakinig the trip up with some land activities. Here is what I have so far:
Sunday - provision and
motor south on the
ICW to pelican harbor or north side of the Venetian Causeway as George mentioned.
Monday - make our way to crandon park marina. We will walk to the
miami seaquarium as my kid are huge into
marine biology and
learning about sea life and will spend some of the day there.
Tuesday - sail some and then make our way over to either
hurricane hole or no name harbor and take in the park/beach
Wednesday - day of sailing, snorkleing,
fishing in the bay. Not sure where to do the snorkleing yet though. Spend a couple of hours heading north back towards south beach area.
Thursday -
Head north back up
ICW and stay somewhere within a 3 hour
motor of the
charter marina
Friday - return
charter by noon.