Fort Lauderdale to Marathon - January 2026

Recently, I got a break from my gig running a dive boat, it’s in the yard getting a bottom job and other work. So I took the opportunity to take our sailboat from Fort Lauderdale to our slip at Bonefish Marina in Marathon, in the Florida Keys.

Sunday January 25, 2026 - High Hopes on Sunday

On Sunday, I was at Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale about 8pm with the intent of heading south and getting to Key Biscayne where I could anchor for the night. Knowing that a cold front was on its way, I wanted to get as far south as possible. The hope was to get to Black Point marina the following night before the front hit. I didn’t like the idea of taking the Intracoastal Waterway to Miami but I was ready to do so.

The ocean was not flat, seas 2 feet or so, with some 3s in the mix. The wind was from the south and I decided to go down in the ocean to avoid all the bridges in the ICW. With the wind directly on my nose I decided to just motor down from Port Everglades to either Port of Miami or Biscayne Channel. I set up the autopilot to steer south.

While underway, during a routine check of the engine about halfway to Port Miami, I found that the circulating water pump on the engine was not spinning freely. It was like stop motion - it would spin, stop, start, slow down and spin again. Even though the engine was running about 140 degrees as normal, I decided to turn around and head back. Having the wind at my back heading north would be an easy sail. It was after dark, so I just unfurled the jib from the cockpit to be safe. I am not going on deck to hoist the mainsail in the dark unless I absolutely have to.

As I sailed with the wind at my back I actually had to tack back and forth (technically jibe) since it’s nearly impossible to sail directly downwind, especially single handed at night.

Disappointed, on to Port Everglades and towards my dock that I rent at a condo just off the ICW at Oakland Park Boulevard, near home. Because I don't like to get to the condo late at night, I decided to anchor overnight at Sunrise Bay near Birch State Park.

—---------------------

Monday, January 26 - Love that Kubota Engine

After discovering the engine issue the night before, first thing Monday morning I got up and before I started the engine I double-checked the circulating water pump and it was able to spin in one direction but not the other. I thought, “well that pump is screwed” but I'm sure I can make it back to the dock, because the engine doesn't need that much cooling. As a matter of fact the engine never did overheat, not even close. It was running at 140° like it always does during normal operation when I was in the ocean and checked the water pump. In any case, Monday morning I started the engine and lo and behold the circulating water pump was spinning just fine - no wobble, no leaks, no indication of trouble. Those small Kubota diesel engines are used in Bobcats and other construction equipment and are said to be bulletproof. It seemed to be okay so I decided to go for it and head south.

The forecast was wind SW at 10-15 so the ocean would not be rough. If it’s closer to a south wind it would be slow going. The hope was that it would be more westerly so I would be on a beam reach. I don’t like the IntraCoastal Waterway in the sailboat. Having to wait for the bridges adds a lot of time, and the currents can slow the boat big time. I ended up going down in the ocean.

If I took the ICW, Black Point Marina would have taken too long. Even in the ocean, I had to hurry to make Black Point Marina by sunset. I motor-sailed down as far as Stiltsville and then sailed on the inside, in Biscayne Bay.

The cold front was heading my way, actually gale warnings were issued for Palm Beach county. The weather service forecast was 30 knots plus overnight. I made for Black point Marina where I had a reservation.

The weather forecast was southwest 10-15 knots so I knew I was able to go ahead and sail through Biscayne Bay.

Typically I anchor out to save time. Dropping the hook somewhere along one’s intended route without getting too far off the path saves time. But with a cold front on the way…

To get to Black Point Marina, I had to hang hard right after passing through Featherbed Bank, a shallow area that traverses lower Biscayne Bay. Then It’s a few miles to the channel over shallow water. With the cold front looming, I dreaded the thought of being stuck. I followed the notes and detail in the Navionics navigation software on my tablet (and phone) and made it to the marked channel that leads into Black Point Marina.

Pulling into Black Point Marina right about sunset, I was surprised to find that the slip assigned to me was probably less than 20 ft. My 27’ boat with a bow rail and swim platform would be do-able but it would be a chore tying up.

The slip next to my assigned slip on the floating dock was an end slip so it had a few extra feet. I went ahead and tied up there, and was able to nose in, allowing for more privacy.

With a restaurant nearby, the wind was already starting to blow cold so I got the boat squared away and went in and had a hot bowl of soup with a salad - it hit the spot.

Back to the boat I went, and got more organized. A bit later back I went to have a few beers and some spinach dip. I enjoyed the evening, it was nice tying up at a marina. It was especially nice with the restaurant literally steps from the boat

That night was an adventure listening to the wind howling through the hardware on my boat, and other boats as well. With 30 knots plus, things were rattling. No complaints though, I was snug in my quarterberth docked at the marina.

—-------------------

Tuesday, January 27 - Making for Islamorada

After blowing like crazy Monday night into Tuesday morning, the wind was not so bad. It subsided to 15 to 20, less in the marina. The forecast was for the wind to slow down as the morning wore on so I slept in a bit.

After fueling up I made my way back out to lower Biscayne Bay. Card Sound was a short distance away. The wind switched from the N to N-NE. To get to the ocean, it’s out through Angelfish Creek and into Hawk Channel, heading southeast with the wind at my back. Running with the wind was nice, the boat was level and doing around five knots. It was so nice I live streamed on Facebook.

I was in the shade for most of the day. Being in the shade was really nice. It just so happens that the angle of the sun was such that I was in the shade of the sails nearly all day. I actually had to stay bundled up, it was a little chilly but with a couple of layers I was pretty comfortable.

As I made my way south I contemplated anchor spots. Near the end of the day, Rodriguez Key near Key Largo was an option, but there was still plenty of daylight. Taverier Key was an option just before sunset. Wanting to get closer to Marathon, the decision was made to motor south and go to either Windley Harbor or Indian Key. The sails were dropped before sunset to be safe. Indian Key I felt would give me a little more protection from the north winds, which were blowing about 15kts.

I was able to tie up to a mooring ball at Indian Key.. Grabbing the line attached to the mooring ball was a challenge in the 15 knot wind. The boat was getting blown around as I approached the ball and line. I was able to grab the tiger tail line that's attached to the mooring ball. Fortunately I had a nice snap shackle on hand that I was able to use to clip in to the loop. The nice thing about the snap shackle was that it was easy to release it in the morning.

I had the line set up, attached to a bow cleat. I used my boat hook to grab the tiger tail loop, after motoring up to the mooring ball. That evening was a rocky one but pleasant. It was a little chilly but I slept all right, glad I had my little pocket heater that plugs into the cigarette lighter outlet. It's is the size of a small paperback book. It was nice to take under the covers to heat up the bedding before going to sleep. Fortunately the boat has 2 nice 105 amp-hour deep cycle gel house batteries.

Sleeping was nice that evening, in the quarter-berth. The boat was rocking and rolling in the 15 knot wind, part of the adventure.

—----------------------

Wednesday January 28 - Arrival and Bus Ride Home

Wednesday morning early I was able to sail off the mooring which is fun to do. After hoisting the main sail, I released the snap shackle attached to the mooring ball and drifted away. Off I went. While attached to the mooring ball, the main can be raised with ease since the boat is pointed into the wind. Once underway it was just a short run, around 20 mi from Indian Key to Marathon where the slip is at Bonefish Marina.

I got in before noon and was able to tie up in my slip and get organized. After a good wash of the boat, it was time to get ready for the bus ride home.

I bought a ticket the day prior for the 6:05pm Flix / Greyhound (whatever you want to call it) bus. Flix bus has been around in Europe for some time, and they bought Greyhound.

By mid- afternoon the adrenaline was gone. I was exhausted but didn’t really know it until I was able to relax a bit.

Uber got me to the pick up spot for the bus, which is at the Marathon airport. Not knowing what to expect, I booked a scheduled Uber pickup 30 minutes ahead of time. It was cold in the breezeway waiting area. The bus was a little late so I ended up sitting around for 45 minutes.

When the bus finally arrived I boarded the bus and fortunately the front seat was open. I like sitting in the front… it was a relaxing ride.

The bus went from Marathon to Miami at the Miami airport intermodal transportation hub. The Flix bus ticket second leg was to Sheridan Street in Hollywood. It would have been a 10 mile Uber ride home from there, so I checked the train schedule and found that I could get a Tri-Rail train that was leaving 20 minutes earlier. It got me closer to home, to the Broward Boulevard station where it would be a shorter Uber ride home. I saved time and money taking the train! After a short Uber ride, I was home and planning my next trip :-)