St Pete’s to Key West

We were invited to assist our friend deliver their sailing vessel from St. Pete’s to Key West Florida for a few months prior to the start of Hurricane season 2024.

It all started as most things in our life as friends having a few glasses / bottles of wine and talking about trips and adventures……..

Our friends own a 2007 Island Packet 445 sailing boat, what a beautiful vessel. Just the perfect method of transport to take four friends for a good old fashion booze cruise down to Key West to enjoy the good sun.

The first day we met up at the airport and went to the liquor store to provision, then off to the boat and sailed out to Egmont for the first night at anchorage.

The second night we tried a bit of sailing (of course it was right off the bow in the direction we wanted to sail, so that only lasted a bit) then we went back to motoring and a bit of Char Char and ended up at Venice FL at the Crow’s Nest Marine for some stone crab and drinks and dinner and a bit more Char Char.

The following day again the wind was against us so we went off motoring down the coast to Cabbage Key Marina, Inn and Restaurant for another night of Char Char, drinks, Char Char, Stone Crab, and more drinks.

The following day was our overnight sail from Cabbage Key to Key West, it was ~ 24 hours from buoy to buoy so a long motoring in flat calm seas, but once we hit the maker buoy #1 at Key West it was time for a “bump” aka a Screw Driver, and we kept the party going another few days while docked at the Oceans Edge Resort & Marina Key West.

Hurricane Harry’s breakfast is not to be missed nor is the sunset and cocktails other than that don’t be in an rush, at the end its about the friends with you, the setting, and the people around you than the lack of frills when it comes to Key West. Enjoy and get your Char Char on, or when you get over dosed go find a good old fashioned Daiquiri (as a hint it does not come with an umbrella nor is it made in a blender.