Travel time

[jalmberg]

You have the most data and interest, so my advice is to do some homework, make your best estimate, and then triple it. That will get you pretty close. This is not a snarky answer but a real one based on about 50 years of boating and the astonishing variety of things that can go wrong on even a short run like you propose. Good luck!

[eemahoney]

We took our Endeavour 42 from KW to SL in 2015. We took the hawk channel north to Ft. Lauderdale and went AICW from there. Took 6 days, but we went very slow. Stopped each night.

Play the tides and watch the depthsounder, you should be fine inside. Good sailing in the afternoon onshore. You will sail at AICW speed limit.

[pbmaise]

Interesting handle Windswept65. My vessel was launched as Windswept and was 65ft.

[boatingisbetter]

I've moved various of my boats between Marathon FL and Stuart as well as Indian Indiantown and Moorehaven. Probably more than a dozen trips both ways. I lived in Marathon and stored my boats in Stuart, Indiantown and/or Moorehaven for hurricane season for over ten years.

An overnight leaving Marathon or Key West anchored in the Everglades (or Ten Thousand Islands) is never forgotten in a good way. Sneek behind Goodland and avoid the shoals. Lots of places to anchor back there.

I never did Ft Meyers to Indiantown in one day. But then I try to stay happy and relaxed. There are numerous places and ways to spend the night and make it a two day trip from Ft Meyers to Indaintown.

Indiantown to Stuart is possible and not all that bad in one day.

As an aside... planning on four days for this delivery is a plan to fail. The calendar is not in charge of your journey... the weather is. Oh, and things break.

Indian Town is a delightful community of great folks. I would go there just to hang out. Not to mention all the expertise lurking in their cockpits ready to help out. (They are one of the few boat yards that allow/encourage working on your own boat. I think they are limited to 16 foot beam on their lift.


As for going up the Atlantic side. Hawks Channel to Key Biscayne. There are various places to spend the night. It gets much more difficult and crowded between Miami and St Lucie. I have done i many times. I never did like it. But it is slightly faster. BTW, the bridge intervals on the ICW are set up for 9 knots cruising between them. I don't know if motoring at 9 knots suits your boat? I did it in a PDQ 34 power cat and it was great. I did it in a Gemini 33 sailing cat and hated it. Basically, if you can't do 9 knots consistently. You miss every other bridge opening. And there are lots of bridges.

If you have the time my preference would be Hawks Channel to Marathon. Marathon is a great place for repairs if needed. Then onto Goodland or Ft Meyers after an overnight in the Everglades. Then onto Ft Meyers and then Okeechobee. Then onto Indiantown. (I would have prepositioned a car in Indiantown.)

I would never have considered four days to be my goal even from Marathon (60 miles less required distance than Key West. But then I never set any goals beyond enjoying the journey.

[sailcub]

It will take you as long as it takes....worst thing to do is put a number of days on an itinerary.....I cruised for 11 years from Marina del Rey to Pacific coast of Mexico and Sea of Cortez....folks that had specific number of days in their travel plans always had horrible passages

[Windswept65]

Thank you all for the input & so far you have a called it quick accurately. Spent a week at the dock waiting for a window but Mother Nature wouldn’t let up. Gusts in the mid 30s on a boat that I’ve never set foot on was way to risky. Hope to try again in a couple weeks.