I am leaving Marathon to run up the west coast of Florida. I have boated in Panama city-Destin. I am familar with the Ditch in that area. The ICW that runs on the inside of the Keys has a route that takes off west just about Hawks Cay. It runs around to about Ten Thousand Islands and kind of fissles out. Is it just run around the whole thing to Marco. Or is there something to picking my way through the islands? Local info? Thanks All

There is no protected ICW between the Keys and Marco Island. It is a coastal or offshore run for the 85 miles from Marathon north. Will be a nasty ride if winds are more than 12 knots out of the NW. East winds are best. Just south of Marco watch for the Cape Romano shoals. You have to get well offshore to clear them. You can get in behind the shoals by navigating to Coon Key just south of Marco and then get into the Marco River but watch your charts carefully.

In re reading your post you mention the marked channel that runs NW from close to Hawks Cay. That is a good route to cross Florida Bay to the lower mainland and is shorter than going to Marathon and then turning north. Something to watch for is about 5 miles north of the Keys is a set of markers called " Yacht Channel " on the charts. Approach it carefully as you have to zig zag thru there as the angle the markers are on it is easy to catch the shoals on either end of the red or green especially at low tide. There are red markers all the way up the coast and you have lots of water if you stay outside of them until you get to the Cape Romano shoals I mentioned above.

Bob

Looks like 3-4' in most of the channels? Reds are on the right running uphill it looks like. Does it stay that way above Naples? In Palmico sound they changed by Cape Hatteras..