Boca de Ratones
LOGGING REQUIREMENTS
We encourage you (not required) to take a picture of yourself and/or caching team and post it on this cache page. To log this earthcache as a find, you must email the answers to the following questions to the cache owner:
- Estimate the width of the inlet between the two jetties.
- Record the date and time of your visit. Was it an ebb tide, flood tide or slack tide?
- Do you notice any evidence of a shoal or sandbar at the mouth of the inlet?
The History of Boca Raton Inlet: A Changing Shoreline
Boca Raton, named after its inlet to the sea, derives from the Spanish words “Boca de Ratón,” which literally means “Mouth of the Mouse.” In maritime Spanish, however, the term “Boca de Ratones” referred to a shallow inlet lined with sharp rocks that would scrape or "gnaw" at ships' cables.
The first known inlet called Boca de Ratones appeared on maps from the 1770s, located at the north end of Biscayne Bay—what is now Miami Beach. By the early 1820s, this inlet was filled with sand and closed. A new inlet formed further south, referred to as either Boca Ratones or Norris Cut. Around 1840, the name Boca Ratones migrated to its final and present location, roughly 50 miles north. By the early 20th century, the “es” was dropped, giving us the modern name Boca Raton.
Over time, the location of the Boca Raton inlet shifted due to the movement of sand, and at times, it would close entirely. A map from the 1740s even labeled the area as “Rio Seco,” meaning Dry River. By the late 1760s, the inlet was situated in the northeast corner of Lake Boca Raton, but by the 1800s, it had moved to the southeast corner of the lake. Various maps from the 19th century showed no inlet at all in Boca Raton, reflecting the shifting sands of the coastline.
In the 1920s and 30s, the inlet was dredged and stabilized with two 400-foot jetties. However, the 1947 Fort Lauderdale hurricane destroyed the northern jetty, leading to significant sand and silt buildup. For over two decades, local efforts to maintain the inlet were only partially successful. During the Thanksgiving weekend of 1966, a storm closed the inlet again.
The ARVIDA Corporation undertook multiple dredging projects in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and in 1972, they deeded the inlet and surrounding land to the City of Boca Raton, with the requirement that the inlet remain navigable. The city purchased a hydraulic dredge, which allowed for regular maintenance and the transfer of sand to beaches south of the inlet. By 1975, the jetties were extended and reinforced. Although periodic shoaling still occurs just beyond the jetties, regular maintenance has kept the inlet open ever since.
Seal of the City of Boca Raton
Shifting location of the inlet
Nautical Chart
Map
Inlet in the 1930's
