Key West: June 5

 The diet isn’t going well. We get up pre-dawn and, instead of jogging, we cast off the lines and head south. We drive. Sometimes standing, sometimes sitting.  I entertained thoughts of running up and down the stairs while underway but figured I’d do that after breakfast. Then lunch. Mid-afternoon snack. Three beers. Dinner. Then bed. Hopefully I will get a grip when we get to Key West. Even I can’t keep a straight face typing that!

Small craft warnings offshore made us stick to the river. As we left Ft. Lauderdale shortly after 6 am, we passed the port. One of the freighters was being loaded with yachts for transport.

Most of the trip from Ft. Lauderdale to Miami was no wake zone so it took three hours. Luckily, because we were so early, there weren’t many boats slowing us down. 

 

The concrete sea walls in the narrows of the ICW bounce the wakes back and forth creating a washing machine effect. Glad we were early!

Miami was beginning to come alive as we made our way through the cruise ships and high rises to Biscayne Bay. 

The Bay was 10 feet deep but it looked VERY shallow. We were joined by a pod of dolphin that played in our wake in the crystal clear water. Ballyhoo skipped along on their tails ahead of us. 

A mere 10 hours after we left, we pulled into Plantation Yacht Harbor in the Florida Keys. We took on 232 gallons of fuel and enjoyed leisurely showers in the bath house and beers in the flybridge. With any luck, tomorrow we will land in Key West!