The final leg of my trip from Jacksonville to Key West is the Marathon to Key West Harbor leg. The plan was for this to be a simple daysail trip down the keys with current and wind going for me.
As with all things I do there is a “let’s make things go the hard way” tax due. I decided I would take care of this tax before leaving the anchorage at Knights Key and starting towards Key West. Both the wind and current were going for me and a wide-open tack to Hawk’s Channel so none of those would be the issue. I know, let’s sink the anchor in a rocky hole, which makes for great holding but impossible for the windlass to drag the anchor out.
Fighting With My Anchor
After failing to lift the anchor with the windlass, I dove in to find out what the issue was. Nothing will wake you up quicker than a dunk in the water, trying to deadlift a 45lb anchor (caught on a rock) while 10 feet underwater at 6:30 am. A bit of struggle, some time with a second line on the winch, and a large screwdriver I was finally able to get the anchor back on board and still me my 7 am departure time.
Luckily that was the roughest part of my trip to Key West. The rest of the day I kept my heading at 240 to 270 degrees and floated down Hawk’s Channel at around 5+ knots in 8 – 10 mph of wind. As I only draw 4′ 2″ I didn’t much worry about shoals as long as I stayed about a mile or two from land. If you draw more you need to keep an eye out on the reefs at the outside edge of Hawks Channel.
At around 3 pm (an 8-hour trip) I arrived at the entrance to Key West Harbor.
Key West Harbor
I had decided to anchor out near Dredger’s Key because there was a free place to land a dinghy next to major shopping areas, that was also close to the anchorage. I don’t have a motor for the dinghy yet so have to take into consideration my need to row in and out to get to land. This required me to sail through Key West Harbor, around Fleming Key, and into the Garrison Bight area. Key West Harbor is busy and not very big, so you have to pay attention to all the anchor-outs, moorings and boat traffic as you sail your way through. Luckily I was able to do this while it was still daylight.
To get to Dredgers Key requires you to sail around the narrow channel around the top of Flemings Key. This is a narrow channel (40’ish wide), and it immediately gets shallow outside of this channel. The anchorage is just north of Dredgers Key, and I set up in about 8 feet of water.
I took two weeks to make the trip from Jacksonville to Key West. But this allowed me to take rest stops and Rodriquez Key and Marathon to enjoy the clear waters of the Florida Keys (as compared to the waters of Jacksonville). I’ve added another vacation local to my list of places I’ve lived. Now it’s time to find a job, refill the cruising kitty and get some of these projects done.
