2007 ICW Cruise to Key West, Florida

Joe's dream of cruising the Inter Coastal Waterway (ICW) to Florida became real on November 11th, 2007.  We departed Castle Harbor Marina about 7:30 AM that day and began a course that would take us to the first overnight stay at Solomons Island Maryland.  That was about 100 days ago, and we have now reached Key West, Florida with many stops at ICW ports along the way.  We've enjoyed seeing towns for the first time and have relaxed in quiet anchorages to read and plan the next days journey.  We've encountered fog, shallow water, high winds and waves, and large Sea Ray like boats that seem to enjoy passing close by causing us to rock and roll.  We've been disappointed with towns we've really looked forward to visiting, and have been surprised with the charm of small towns we hand not know about.  Truly each day has been a new adventure and in hindsight we have enjoyed each and every day. 

We've used 35 cruise days to reach Key West averaging about 5 hours underway.  Initially I planned longer cruise days, about 6 hours, and then began to plan shorter days as we became accustomed to other daily chores.  We really enjoy relaxing in the afternoon to read our novels or about the next  port we will visit.  I currently plan for 4 hour cruises wherever possible. 

Key West was our ultimate destination, and we will now begin the cruises home and will probably arrive back at Castle Harbor in early May.  To date, we have not created a specific schedule since we do not cruise when we anticipate bad weather.  My friends and family have heard me say many times that "the most dangerous item on a boat is a schedule".  With no schedule we can stay in port for side visits when desired.  As many of you know we were able to travel home for the holidays, and we do have side trips planned during the cruise home. 

We intend to leave Key West soon, maybe tomorrow.  That's not really a schedule.  It's only a plan and plans change.  We are describing each days journey, provided through the links below. We hope you enjoy reading about our adventures and hope to hear from you with questions.   

Contact us - Joe & Rosa - at joesboat@comcast.net or on our cell phone - 301-503-3221.