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I'm going to trailer my X down to the Keys from upstate NY in April. Want to Snorkel with kids in Pennekamp Park or other good places.
Where should I put it? Will I be comfortable going out the 4 miles south of the Keys to the Park? Where else are good places to visit/snorkel/sun? Cheap anchorages?
Any suggestions appreciated. Any suggestions for the long tow? Can I drive 18 hours straight? 2 wheel trailer (1 per side), pulling with Tahoe.

Hi, did that trip last winter. Here is the link to the report.
http://www.macgregorsailors.com/forum/v ... =4&t=21420
South Dade marina is the best price, epecially if you leave your tow rig there. There are plenty of ramps around, it's the storage for the rig that's the problem. Lots of good sailing in th upper keys. Checkout the historical wind( direction and speeds) for your timeframe, and fit that into your plan. Nothing like sailing away from your rig on a nice broad reach for days and then having to beat back in high winds to get to your rig. Public transportation is pretty good there. You might want to consider sailing in one direction and taking the bus back to get your rig. No matter what you do, it will be an awesome experience. Enjoy and do a trip report for those of us who couldn't make it this year.

We are in Charleston sc and the keys is on our list this year as well .my kids are begging for a keys trip .we were gonna go in Dec but the water was still too chilly for the wife .

Be sure to repack your wheel bearings before you leave.
After cleaning, write down the number of the inner & outer bearings, then buy extra bearings & races of each kind. Pack with wheel bearing grease & put in double ziplock bag with extra grease. If your spare is marginal you can keep it but buy an additional spare on a wheel & take both spares. You can buy a spare and wheel much cheaper now when you can shop around, then later when you're on the road with a flat tire and a crummy spare and feeling desperate.

We'll be in the Keys the first week of April. Plan to put in at Bahia Honda State Park and sail out to Looe Key and Sombrero Key for some snorkeling. Along with some snorkeling and kayaking near the park. The park has a dock with power, water, and pumpout for $2/ft per night.There is much to do in th park so the kids won't be stuck on the boat for a week. I figure it would be a good place to run to if the weather is bad but hopefully we can anchor out more often than being docked.

This is our first trip to the keys and I want to keep it simple and conservative this first time through.

How old are the kids ? Ours are.9 and 11 ....almost 12 ?

17 and 13. It can get tight, especially if the weather is bad. That's why I plan time off the boat so that it isn't all sailing. Daughter still freaks out a bit when heeling more than 15 degrees or so but my son loves to sail.

I just hope for good weather since the kids are still aprehensive about going into ocean waters since the last time didn't work out well due to high winds.

You'll love Bahia Honda (the kids too). You are correct, there is plenty to do there besides sailing! Beaches, swimming area, walking trails, nature museum. The boat ramp there is very nice, plenty of room too. Sombrero reef is an excellent place for snorkeling. Try to time your trip so you are there at noon, so the sun is directly above and you can see better. I went once in the later afternoon and the water was alot darker (could only see maybe 10 feet instead of alot more). The snack shack also has free wifi and ice cream! Its all side tie docking, so read up on the best methods (if you're not used to side docking). I had to help out a couple of boaters with this while I was there. Don't forget to catch the sunsets on the old 7 mile bridge!

I swear Bahia honda canged our lives .about 12 years ago we went to Nashville and bought a: tour bus and travelled with it for about 7 years
Bahia Honda was the first stop after the first week there we knew we could never live a normal life .so we decided to home school and travel as much as we can we actually went from a 43 Morgan to our 26x and found we enjoy it a lot more .last week we at this great place on the gulf side that rented these nice cabins for 55 bucks a night on the water and you can keep your boat right there .great bar .great food .crystal clear water .the kids had a blast swimming with all the manatee .

Bahia Honda is a great destination. You can head out to Looe Key or up to Sombraro Key for some excellent snorkeling. Here's my trip report from our stay at Bahia Honda State Park in 2011.

http://www.macgregorsailors.com/forum/v ... ahia+honda

Bob

I hope it'll be fun and everything goes smoothly. I think the weather will be the biggest factor. I just hope I can get all the work completed on the boat before the trip.

We spent close to a week in the park back in Jan.. Had planed to sail and anchor out more than we did and stay a couple weeks, but the weather/wind got up nasty and blew several days. Jan can be real iffy in the Keys, so we were just able to do a few day sails out from the park. I have to say the park staff were more than helpful and friendly so we still salvaged a nice week out of it. (2000 miles round trip). Keep in mind, even if you don't stay in the parks marina you still pay the slip fees in order to keep your tow rig there.
We plan to return in May. On the next trip we plan to keep the truck and trailer in a storeage area somewhere further up the Keys and work in a visit to Bahia Honda SP. Another peice of information you may find interesting, it is perfectly leagle to anchor out, dingy in, and use any Fl state park facilities as much a you want at no charge, ie showers, wifi, water, pump out. (This info strait from the harbor master at Bahia Honda SP). We will plan our next trip around this fact. Toward the end of our trip the weather became real nice (as always) and we met another couple on another M26 and they informed us they had put in at Flamingo SP in the everglades and the parking was $15.00 for the duration of there trip. We may do the same.

You will want to brace the center of the mast to keep it from pumping while you travel long distances. For our CA to NY trip I used a spare tire for the truck in a trash bag atop the sliding hatch, put the mast foot upside down at the bow pulpit to lower the riding height of the mast, and then strapped it down tight at the cabin forward stanchions with a dockline looped over the mast and tightened with a trucker's hitch. This held the mast tight against the tire and kept everything tight. Worked great and allowed me to carry a spare.

If you read other trips I have made and others you would have a great plan trip.
Do search on archives as many of us are tired repeating same thing over and over again, when one only needs to search.
This is how we found out about our trips. Do the leg work.
Have a safe trip.
Dave

The-strikes wrote:I'm going to trailer my X down to the Keys from upstate NY in April. Want to Snorkel with kids in Pennekamp Park or other good places.
Where should I put it? Will I be comfortable going out the 4 miles south of the Keys to the Park? Where else are good places to visit/snorkel/sun? Cheap anchorages?
Any suggestions appreciated. Any suggestions for the long tow? Can I drive 18 hours straight? 2 wheel trailer (1 per side), pulling with Tahoe.

The-strikes wrote:I'm going to trailer my X down to the Keys from upstate NY in April. Want to Snorkel with kids in Pennekamp Park or other good places.
Where should I put it? Will I be comfortable going out the 4 miles south of the Keys to the Park? Where else are good places to visit/snorkel/sun? Cheap anchorages?
Any suggestions appreciated. Any suggestions for the long tow? Can I drive 18 hours straight? 2 wheel trailer (1 per side), pulling with Tahoe.

I missed this one. I'm in Albany btw, just 45 minutes south.

That's a long drive to do in one shot, especially with trailer. You should stop every couple of hours too, and inspect stuff for runaways. With crew, I would not do it in one shot.