As others have said, if you're running inside it is tricky at times and like Brandon said, there's a LOT of crab pots through out (why the state allows the crabbers to put the pots in "the road" is beyond me!)

Hurricane Wilma took out many (read "most") of the visual markers so your GPS is of the utmost importance. Use the screen that shows the channel like a road and stay inside the lines!!

Stop at Gilberts in Key Largo and at the Tiki Bar in Islamorada. Two spots to get a refreshment and use the head. Gilberts is about 60 miles south of Miami (and they have fuel) and Islamorada is about 100 miles South. 150miles one way. It's an awesome run that everyone should do once in their life but to be honest...150 miles starts to feel a bit mundane like you're riding in a car about 100 miles into it. :drink:

Have fun man.

Go with a group like Florida Powerboat Club... on one of their Poker Runs...

Crab pots are annoying but keep in mind they are also good depth indicators, usually in 10 ft of water +/-.

NORTH OF GILBERTS- Biscayne bay/Card Sound there is one spot in the middle of nowhere that is a very tight channel (like less than 50 ft wide). Think of a bottle neck, it is wide open then super narrow then wide open again.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALw-SALL4to
A KW Poker Run video could help too!


One of FL powerboat's videos shows a few boats running outside the channel at a high rate of speed in an area with a ton of skeg/prop marks on the bottom....you cringe watching it but they all make it through

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rqhw..._order&list=UL

5:45 mark is what you DON'T WANT! :eek:
Note the color change in the water

a holes tearing up the flats, although i guess if they are going fast enough they only need 12" of water.

Very easy to blow past that....

I bet you are speaking about "feather Bed Shoales" and yes it is in the middle of no where and the opening is verry narrow.

Thanks, we appreciate all the advice!

Chuckie & Samantha

See everyone in Key West next week!

how shallow is the water there? do u think they are hitting the bottom? you can see them shooting a large rooster..

The water on both sides of the channel at the featherbeds can be as low as 1 foot. The first year we did it we were right behind the pace boat in that channel and there were boats 100 feet on either side of it. The chart plotter read 1-3 feet of water all around us. If you watch in the video you can see prop marks in the sand, likely from others on earlier days of that poker run. :lolhit: (Stu loses his mind over that area during the captain's meeting and people still don't listen).