Florida Keys - Marathon - Christmas - Advice Wanted

[Peter simon]

We just got our 2019 SX190 a month ago and are going to take it with us to the Keys at Christmas. Not my first boat but first time outside of lakes or inner coastal. Have 2 daughters 20 and 13 who want to snorkle. Our plan is to hit a different reef area each morning then have lunch somewhere accessible by boat.

What extra safety equipment, charts do i need to bring? How do i hook up to the bouys? How do i know the snorkling conditions so we go where the charters go where its clear? Any must see areas?

Any advice would be helpful.

 

[Scottintexas]

definitely learn how to read a chart and marker buoys, water there can go from 10' to 1' immediately and know the tides, you've got to stay in the channels,

looe key was a great spot,

 

[Mike & Lilly]

 

[Mike & Lilly]

KEY LARGO, Florida Keys — Key Largo has been described as the Dive Capital of the World, a nature lover’s paradise and home to America’s first underwater preserve, where ocean life abounds with brilliant tropical fish as far as the eye can see. And a 4,000-pound bronze statue that stands just beneath the ocean’s surface off the island at the head of the Florida Keys remains one of the Keys’ most-photographed underwater sites.

In shallow water adjacent to John Pennekamp Coral Reef State Park, “Christ of the Abyss” rests at a depth of approximately 25 feet at a site called the Key Largo Dry Rocks in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

 

[Danielmailin]

@Peter simon

• If you are going to be snorkeling in state sanctuary reservation areas, you need to tie up to mooring buoys, see the following site with more info https://floridakeys.noaa.gov/zones/spas/welcome.html
• You should only anchor in a sandy bottom if buoys are not avaliable.
• Extra small anchor if you are going to anchor on a beach or sandbar.
• A good GPS with detailed depth map, we have lots of sand bars you need to be careful off.
• Be careful with the sudden minimum and no wake zones, coming out of John Penekamp, theres a few of them.
• Look at marine weather apps like Sailflow to see wind and wave heights on specific reefs, anything over 2' and over 15 mph winds in our boats will not be comfortable.
• As far as ramps in the keys and different places to go, see the following post https://jetboaters.net/threads/traveling-the-keys.18546/#post-318939

 

[COtoFLsurf]

Hey Peter, we live in Key Largo so know the local scene pretty well, but your post references Marathon and I have no experience down there. Few things:

1) Call a local dive shop in Marathon and ask for snorkeling info, commercial boats don't have any real "secret spots" so usually happy to get you pointed in right direction. Capt Obvious: remember a good dive spot is different than good snorkel spot, plenty of shallow reef here that is awesome for snorkeling. Quick Google search came up with this: http://www.tropicalsnorkeling.com/best-keys-snorkeling.html. The sites they mention for Islamorada are spot-on, so I would presume the Marathon sites are pretty accurate as well.

2) Boating to lunch is tradition down here, and most of the waterfront restaurants have dockage. Check out Sunset's (directly adjacent to 7-mile bridge), Tarpon Creek, and Lighthouse (though recommend this one for dinner instead of lunch).

3) Navionics on an iPhone/iPad is a great investment. Lookup the snorkel site coordinates online, preload them into your iPhone/iPad, then when you are on the water you can hit "Boat to ..." and the app will route you to the site including avoiding shallows.

Saying goes something like "brown, run aground; white, you just might; green, good and clean; blue, sail on thru." Your jet boat will keep you out of a lot of shallow-water trouble, just be cautious and follow your Navionics/charts.

Have fun !!!

 

[Peter simon]

Thank you for that good info. We stayed in Key Largo last year it was great but we didnt have a boat. I sat by the water jealous all day. We ate a lot at Hobo's. It was great. And that little ice cream place was a hit with the kids.

 

[robert cabrerea]

Stay in the channel no matter what!!!! But 190s are light enough to push out of a sand bar. Your gunna love it!

 

[Ralph MIA]

You’re going to have a great time. Stop by one of the dive shops as you pull into Key Largo and get a dive map. It will give you the coordinates to all the viable reefs from Key Largo to Key West.

We snorkeled several reefs this summer and my family loved it.

Food wise, try Mile Marker 88. It’s our favorite.

 

[COtoFLsurf]

BTW, a couple direct answers to your direct questions:

- How do you find clear conditions, good spots where charters go
-- kinda mentioned this earlier, but just call one of the local charter companies and ask for recommendations, Keys peeps are pretty easy-going (but do NOT ask them for their lobster spots !!!)
-- water clarity is awesome down here, so not really "good spots, bad spots" in that regard, but also highly dependent on winds/disturbances, so will largely be dictated by the weather

- Safety gear:
-- check the FWC site for mandatory safety gear in FL, mostly standard stuff but we were surprised that FL requires flares or "signaling device" on-board ($50 fine)
-- when you snorkel from the boat you will need a dive flag, we prefer a big flag on the boat, but you can also use the floating flags that you drag along behind you
-- two "optional" considerations, your call: hand-held VHS radio (but you will usually have cell signal inside the reef), SeaTow membership (cheaper than a tow, if needed)

- Bouy hook-ups
-- marked dive sites will have big white mooring balls with a rope that has a loop on the end
-- idle slowly up to the rope and have someone grab the rope with a boat hook
-- take one of your docking ropes, attach it to one of the front cleats, run it thru the loop on the mooring ball rope, then attach the docking rope to the other front cleat, creating a simple sling that ensures your boat drifts parallel with the current
-- if a mooring ball is not available, it is usually ok to drop an anchor but you MUST MUST MUST ensure the anchor is in sand and not on coral or seagrass !!! We usually drop the anchor on a sand patch then dive down to double-check things

Couple other thoughts:

- if you don't own snorkel gear, and if you don't have rentals already lined-up (rentals are not common in the Keys), I recommend stopping at Scuba Outlet at mile market 106 bayside, when you first cross the bridge into Key Largo
- if you plan on tow sports (wakeboard, surf, tubing, etc) then worth checking with a local dive shop or FWC on any restricted areas, or better yet just checkout the OtherSide cable park right there in Marathon