I am boarded by Customs and Border Patrol. They crash into me and damage the boat. After checking my documents and rifling through my things, they leave. Good riddance! Soon after I'm contending with a nasty squall. I finally make it into Biscayne Bay late in the afternoon. It was quite a day. SUPPORT...

...

---

Three hundred episodes of HtSO! I am northbound from the Florida Keys, but the wind is playing cat and mouse with me. After poring over weather files for weeks and one false start, I finally find fair wind to Biscayne, but only make it to Rodriguez Key. Which means another pre-dawn start if I am...

...

---

Summer is coming, but winter ain't done. I depart Key West with a warm, gentle, southerly breeze to blow me northeastward toward the Chesapeake Bay. But then I have to hole up in Newfound Harbor for two weeks while cold fronts howl and headwinds persist. SUPPORT HOW TO SAIL OCEANS ON PATREON: https://patreon.com/user?u=12372934 HOW...

...

---

Returning from the mystical atoll that is the Dry Tortugas, which is an overnight sail for me, I am foiled by contrary wind and current barely three miles from the Mule Key anchorage. After several futile tacks, I opt to anchor in the lee of the shoal and wait for a fair tide. The following day I...

...

---

Never as good as the first time? Second visit to the Dry Tortugas was even better than the first, at least for me it was. Now, admittedly, I had to drag myself out of my bunk to get underway from Key West, all grumpy and growling I was. The Dry Tortugas is a tricky one for a small sailboat, as...

...

---

Party! Key West is a fun town, lots to do and see. It's a "big port". There are several large marinas if you are visiting by yacht, but they might not suit your budget, or if you are engineless like me, they are nearly impossible to get to. Which leaves anchoring. Key West abounds in anchoring...

...

---

I make my way to "winter base camp", which is Newfound Harbor, in the Florida Keys. There I find a decently protected anchorage and access to supplies, so I can rest for a while. Rest? Of course not. I just won't be sailing so that I can catch up on boat projects. First and foremost is to tackle...

...

---

The long trek south from Cape Breton to Florida is done! But I still haven't reached "winter base camp" at Newfound Harbor and Key West. So after a re-stock in Key Biscayne, I'm off again down the Hawk Channel, in blustery, winter conditions. SUPPORT HOW TO SAIL OCEANS ON PATREON: https://patreon.com/user?u=12372934 HOW...

...

---

I arrive in the Berry Islands following an overnight trip from the Abacos. There I get a night of rest before setting off again across the Bahama Bank, wanting to catch the forecasted, favorable southerly winds to blow me across the Strait of Florida. SUPPORT HOW TO SAIL OCEANS ON PATREON: https://patreon.com/user?u=12372934 HOW...

...

---

I drop anchor in the bight by Treasure Island Cay to ride out a frontal passage. Brisk northwesterlies soon moderate the following day and I carry on with my journey. I don't head directly back out to sea, however, opting to take the scenic route through the inland Sea of Abaco. SUPPORT HOW TO SAIL...

...

---

The gale roars like a lion and then steals away on cat's feet. The following day I'm struggling to make progress in light winds, trying to close with the Abacos ahead of an approaching, strong cold front. SUPPORT HOW TO SAIL OCEANS ON PATREON: https://patreon.com/user?u=12372934 HOW TO SAIL OCEANS...

...

---

... as it had rolled five thousand years ago. I'm making great progress south toward the Abacos, but I have a day of rough weather to contend with. Though only 12 hours of actual gale conditions are in the forecast, that's enough to put me through several rounds of sail reductions until I have her...

...

---