After attaining hurricane status, Alma continued moving slowly to the north-northeast, although its intensification rate slowed. While over the western Caribbean, Alma was a large hurricane with gale-force winds covering about . The hurricane accelerated on June 8, quickly moving across Isla de la Juventud and later mainland Cuba with winds of around 100 mph (160 km/h). Alma did not weaken over land and entered the Gulf of Mexico, where it turned northwestward and passed between Key West and the Dry Tortugas. Late on June 8, a station in the Dry Tortugas reported winds of ; this would be Alma's peak intensity. The hurricane began weakening as it paralleled the west coast of Florida, at which point a developing upper-level low over the northern Gulf of Mexico began to influence its motion. While the hurricane moved northward through the Gulf of Mexico, it had a large, ragged eye that reached in diameter. Initially, forecasters anticipated Alma would cross central Florida, although the hurricane turned to the north-northwest. Cool water temperatures contributed to weakening, and Alma made landfall near Apalachee Bay with winds of on June 9. This marked the earliest United States hurricane landfall since a hurricane in May and June of 1825.