Leaving for Fort Myers and then the Keys

[Drifter2drifter]

Greetings all. My wife and I have a Seaward 25 and want to explore what the gulf side has to offer. We are not a huge fan of crowds and would like any tips on places to go and get away from it all. The boat draws 2 ft. We are leaving Minneapolis next week and starting off from the fort myers area. Then down to the keys. Any thoughts would be great.

Ps. We will have our two golden retrievers and a rat terrier with us.

[GordMay]

See the Southwest Florida Anchorage Inventory
➥ Florida Sea Grant - Boating & Waterways - Anchorage Inventory

[tamicatana]

ActiveCaptain.com

[Sid at SailAway]

For what it's worth, we did the trip last January and here is where we stopped along the way. Each stop was a day sail from each other and there was no drama except for the crab pot we picked up. So, what out for crab pots and you'll be ok.

1. Pelican Bay....great spot, lots of room. The channel into the bay is only about 50 feet from the beach, trust the channel.

2. Moss Marina...we only stopped here to get some quick work done.

3. San Marco Island...crowded, but beautiful. Found a spot in the back.

4. Indian Key. another great spot

5. Little Shark River...If you want solitude then this is the place. No cell service. Really pretty, but can get buggy.

6. Marathon...Boot Key Harbor...We enjoyed Boot Key, some folks don't due to large amount of people there. From Marathon we made our way up the Keys to Miami and the ICW.

Hope this helps a little....Sid

[Drifter2drifter]

Thank you all so much for the response. It will be very helpful. I am used to sailing on Lake Superior and Michigan. When I look at the charts for south west florida and the keys I can't believe how shallow it is. The numbers on the chart are for low tide ...right? What is a popular anchor to use down there? I normally carry 1 danforth and 1 plow. Thanks again for the help!

[Sid at SailAway]

Yep, the numbers on the chart are mean low tide. The navigation is pretty straight forward, just watch for the fronts that come through. The bottom changes from mud to sand on the way down, so the Danford should be good in the mud. Should be fine for the sand also. What type of plow?

[marlinmike]

2 adults and 3 dogs on a 25'? Forget the solitude and start searching for a bigger boat! ;-) All the best on your journey.

[denverd0n]

Originally Posted by Drifter2drifter

When I look at the charts for south west florida and the keys I can't believe how shallow it is.

Yes, it is very shallow in a lot areas around the west coast of Florida. Surprises a lot of people. I remember taking a friend from the Seattle area sailing for his first time on Tampa Bay, and he had a real hard time accepting that the chart was marked in feet and not fathoms.

The link Gord posted is a great one for this area. As is activecaptain. I would also suggest this one...
Cruiser's Net » WEST FL – All Cruising News

Good luck to you.

[Drifter2drifter]

Thanks again for the info on anchors, websites and the fronts. I have been looking at the map tech chart kit and comparing it to google earth. There are lots of ...shall we say discrepancies? I guess it's another case of...when in doubt, go slow. As to getting a bigger boat. We love getting in close to shore and exploring, it's fairly easy to trailer, the dogs are experienced sailors and snugglers, the boat is kept very organized, and...oh, I almost forgot, it was in our price range. See attached picture. Cheers.

[tamicatana]

I don't think anyone has mentioned the insane numbers of randomly placed crab traps, and the fishermen don't care if they put 'em in navigational channels, either

[shekoos]

We did the opposite way 8 months ago and it was great! So in the next ten days we will be back on our boat heading from Fort Myers to Dry Tortugas.

Anyways this is what we did:
Key West - Tarpoon Belly Keys - Marathon - Shark river - Everglades City - Naples - Fort Myers Beach - Fort Myers

Tarpoon belly keys is beautiful place,Marathon is worth staying for a week or so and Rod and Gun Club if I remember correctly in Everglades City has a nice dock(stay in channel it is shallow). You may stay for free in the city marina in Naples on one of their mooring balls...Be careful if anchor around Key West and leaving your boat there has been several boat theft incident reported last season!