Cruising St. Pete Key West - best route?

[Airbear172]

Just joined the forum. Joe here. 1987 42' Roughwater. New to us owners. Looking to take first extended voyage from St. Pete to Key West early Fall. Beginning to plan. 300 gal fuel capacity, twin Yanmar 315s burning 4 gal/ hour at 8 knots, total not each. Recommendations on a route for a ten day round trip? Thanks for your help!

 

[Moonstruck]

If you are going straight to Key West I would work down to Marco Island, and take the inside down to Little Shark River. From Little Shark River down to Key West is about 85 miles or so. That could be done in a long day.

The interesting thing is that the distance to Marathon or Key West is almost the same. It looks like an overnight at Venice and then the area around Sanibel before getting to Marco and Little Shark.

You are probably 3 nights in before Key West. Then work your way to Marathon. 2 to 3 nights at Key West at a minimum. A couple of nights in route to and at Marathon. Then probably 3 nights home.

You can vary any part of that, but at your cruising speed it would probably look something like that.

 

[caltexflanc]

Don what would you consider the "inside" from Marco to Little Shark? Marco is typically where I'd go outside as it gets a little shoally on the way to Goodland and south of Coon Key Pass.

Joe, you don't mention draft. Also, what are you objectives? Do you like to anchor out, use the dinghy and explore places on reachable by boat? Or do you prefer visiting towns and tying to a dock each night? We are mostly the former, and beach people, so places like Cayo Costa (especially), Hurricane Pass, and wilderness anchorages like Russell Pass, Little Shark are high on our list. But we also enjoyed stopping by Venice and Naples at some point. Let us know a little more and we can come up with some ideas on an itinerary. Fun trip, though in my personal opinion the slog to/from Key West eats up a lot of time to get to a place best reached by car, IMO and shortens some beautiful places to gunkhole and explore. We used to use up all of 10 days leaving from Sarasota and getting as far as Little Shark and back when we chartered and always wished for more time, same for when we just had a week and thus only as far as Russell Pass/Everglades City.

 

[Moonstruck]

George, we have done the inland water between Naples and Marco, and Goodland to Little Shark. Only when we were gunkholing.

We actually run straight from Boca Grande Inlet to Marathon in about 6 1/2 hours. The last lime we ran back from Key West it was straight to San Carlos Bay in 4 hours. So, I was just extrapolating at his cruising speed. We draft 3' 9", so a 4 ft draft could go where we went.

10 days is really too short of a trip at his speed to cover that much ground. However, when you are limited on time you do what you have to do.

We don't have big stretches of time to burn. That is the reason we have a fast cruiser, and will leave it in an area for several months. That gives us time to slow down and really scope out a place. It has gotten to where we feel at home in many places.

 

[Moonstruck]

George, a little thread drift here, but you mentioned Cayo Costa.

Being at Morehead City you will understand this. We have had two stays at Gasparilla Marina near Boca Grande for about a year each stay. When there Cayo Costa is our Cape Lookout. I guess you could say that when we had a boat at MCYB for several years that Cape Lookout was kind of our second home.

You may be interested in this. I had posted this picture some years back about NC. This is the old MCYB in the mid 70s during the Big Rock Tournament. I am in the yellow cap about half way down the dock behind my boat. It is in her permanent slip. The 2nd photo is my current boat tied up in approximately the same spot over 30 years later.

 

[Billylll]

Roughwater 42's were on my list of potential boats when I was looking the past 3 years. I was looking at one in Southern Louisiana it was painted bright orange. I like the protected and enclosed helm. The boat was just too far away from NJ for it to work out for me.
Bill

 

[Airbear172]

Great boat...owned it now as a liveaboard for six months and love it. Very spacious!

 

[BandB]

Just joined the forum. Joe here. 1987 42' Roughwater. New to us owners. Looking to take first extended voyage from St. Pete to Key West early Fall. Beginning to plan. 300 gal fuel capacity, twin Yanmar 315s burning 4 gal/ hour at 8 knots, total not each. Recommendations on a route for a ten day round trip? Thanks for your help!

Do you prefer to anchor or dock at marinas? Do you prefer exploring the towns along the way or staying primarily to exploring the water and enjoying nature? Restaurants or eating on board?

 

[bayview]

IMO too far in 10 days. Sure you can make it but why? Slow down and enjoy some of the best cruising grounds. If you want a lot of local knowledge I live in St. Pete send an email.

 

[BandB]

IMO too far in 10 days. Sure you can make it but why? Slow down and enjoy some of the best cruising grounds. If you want a lot of local knowledge I live in St. Pete send an email.

That's why I asked the questions I did regarding their preferences. My last trip between St. Pete and Key West included Longboat Key, Venice, Sanibel, Captiva, Ft. Myers, Naples, and Marco on the way. That's overlooking Bradenton/Sarasota which I'd picked up on the way. So easily 8 to 10 nice stops along the way. Just hitting half of them each way puts one cruising every day and having little time to actually enjoy. 10 Days each way would make a nice trip, but St. Pete to Key West and back is more like a 3 week trip than a 10 day one. Now I have done it in one day but faster boat and not a sightseeing trip.

 

[psneeld]

With a round trip and short amount of time...I might consider a long offshore leg at any point in the trip.

If your long run is at the beginning...then stay as long as you want wherever and when it's time to head back...time to leave.

Or work it the other way...start creeping down and where you get is the trip...again leaving when the straight shot home has come.

If you just want to run and gun to see where you want to go next time..then just see where comfortable day run's put you after 10 days.

As far as which routes...the Sanibel to Key West run is one of the few I haven't made so hope the others explain it well enough for you.

 

[bayview]

I would not consider Little Shark river until winter when mosquitoes are gone.

St. Pete to KY is about 240 MI dock to dock certainly doable if you need to get to KY and don't mind an overnight.

Naples is about 110 to KY
Marco not much closer.


As pointed out above Marathon to Naples is about the same as KT to Naples.

 

[Capt.Bill11]

With a round trip and short amount of time...I might consider a long offshore leg at any point in the trip.

If your long run is at the beginning...then stay as long as you want wherever and when it's time to head back...time to leave.

That is what I would suggest as well. If you have the crew and experience run nonstop down then take your time coming back. 10 days is not much time for that trip.

 

[Ronald]

Don, Thanks for posting the old photo of the Big Rock at The Morehead City Yacht Basin. Brought back good memories of fishing out of there with my Dad.

 

[Moonstruck]

Don, Thanks for posting the old photo of the Big Rock at The Morehead City Yacht Basin. Brought back good memories of fishing out of there with my Dad.

Glad to do it Ronald. That place holds great memories for me and my whole family. The first full week in June was always the tournament, and I planned on it annually. Great fun.

By the way, that is a Jacksonville boy in the cockpit of my boat. Billy Mangum owned the Yellow Cab service in Jacksonville. You may have known him.

Some of the boats in the picture were the Haterascal next to my boat. The big Allison from Ocean City, MD was on the end on that side. The Bertram with the tall tower belonged to my friend and neighbor, Bill Blount. A couple of boats down from Bill's Barbara B was the Tripoli belonging to the Marine Corps, and captained by the famous Delmas Willis. The boat with the Palm Beach cover over the cockpit was the Lady B, a 46' Buddy Davis, owned by Judge Marvin Blount. My what fun we had.

 

[bayview]

The OP seems to have disappeared.

 

[IntervaleII]

Little Shark river is also a good spot to anchor for the night. Watch the fly's, they are like small planes!
This is a great trip, have gone it every year for over 12 years.
Capt. Don