We made a mad dash at 6 knots to Key Biscayne only stopping for two nights along the way. We would prefer a slower pace, but a window to cross the Gulf Stream to the land of gin clear water and sand spun us into a panic. We spent a night in West Palm Beach and decided against pounding into a 25-knot headwind outside and opted for the dreaded run from West Palm Beach to Ft Lauderdale on the ICW. Other boaters we have met say it is worth doing once but not again. We were anchor up 6:30am preparing ourselves for along day. The day was long but trying to time all of the bridge openings gave us some math to do and some fun pushing Good Trade to 8 knots. The day went by quickly and by 7pm we were tucked into Lake Silvia, swinging on the hook with 14 other boats and discussing how much we liked that section of the ICW. I believe if my math is correct today, we went through 21 bridges a new Good Trade record. We were up early again and after saying hello to some friends on Remi De, a 57-foot catamaran we met down island last year, we were off. We had to go outside because there is a fixed bridge less than 60 feet tall on the ICW that we can't get under so we pounded into the wind for four hours before turning into Miami Harbor. We took on some fuel and gave Good Trade a fresh water wash down to remove all the salt.
The picture is looking from Key Biscayne over Miami after dark. We leave tomorrow midnight to cross to Bimini in the Bahamas. See you on the other side.

Good Trade