Sailing from Newfound Harbor at the crack of dawn this morning hoping to make it to Islamorada. Once undersay, I felt I’m going to make it. Wind was about 10 knots early in the day, pushing the boat along at about 3 to 4 knots. The wind picked up quickly, with the boat sailing along at five to six knots. Sailing in the lee of the keys, the ocean was not too rough. Along the 7 Mile Bridge it was more choppy cuz the bridge does not block the wind and chop from Florida Bay. After the 7 Mile Bridge adjacent to Key Vaca (Marathon) the wind will dropped a little and the water a little calmer – a lot calmer actually.
Good wind from the north today. That works out well heading east for a beam reach. The wind picked up as the day wore on, so I had to reduce sail. The main sail was reefed and foresail furled gradually, and the boat was able to maintain 6 knots. Eventually the foresail was reduced to about 25%. The autohelm was in use all day, it’s essential for sailing single handed.
It sure was nice to get back to the dock at the apartment in Islamorada! Here’s a link to some pictures at Google Photos.