2026 April: Time in Pompano Beach FL

 3-4 April 2026
No boat travel

With no set agenda and no travel plans for today, we slept in late. Mid-morning, Steve (our host) came down to the boat to see if I wanted to go grocery shopping with him. Steve is planning to travel to the Bahamas in the near future and is provisioning his boat for the trip. He plans to have a first mate along with him who provided him with a shopping list for food. 

He decided that we would go to Target for the shopping. The Target here in Pompano Beach is a two-story affair with an escalator to carry people and their shopping carts between floors. The only other time I saw this was when we shopped at a food store in Chicago. We did not ride the escalator, however, as the food market was on the lower level. 

Since Steve did not create the list and as some items on the list were foreign to both of us, our shopping trip turned into a sort of scavenger hunt. Neither of us knew where to look or precisely what we were looking for. Some items he specifically left off the list, such as fresh fruits, as he did not want to purchase them at Target. I got  my steps in at the store going back-and-forth from aisle to aisle in search of food stuffs I had never heard of before. We had a lot of fun shopping together. (we always do)

In the afternoon, after lunch, I sat down with my laptop and my Mah Jongg card to play Mahjong 4 Friends. The new cards came out for 2026, but today I continued to play with the 2025 card. 

Mah Jongg Card 2025

While I was playing on my laptop, Clark was busy adding a new item to our boat.  I found him standing on the cap rail doing something with the top of the boat.

It seems like every time we come by Steve's place, he gives us something for our boat. Mostly in the past it has been boat parts that he kept when he upgraded from a boat similar to ours to a Fleming. Since he no longer needed the parts, he gave them to us as a good "new" home. 

When we spoke yesterday, Clark and I told Steve how our dinghy cover had turned into "Swiss Cheese" after leaving Marathon. I repaired it as best I could with the materials I had on hand at the beginning of our stay at Marlin Bay. I checked it periodically while there, up until the day we leaved, and all looked well from afar. The winds of the trip must have been way too much for it because it became shredded as we traveled. 

We asked Steve if there was a place in town to buy a piece of canvas to make a repair, and he said, "I have a better idea!" He had a brand new dinghy cover that he bought and then did not need because, unexpectedly, one came with the purchase of his boat. He said we could have it. 

It's a little big in the stern as his dinghy is larger, but oh so much better than what we had or could even produce with a fabric repair. Clark was "installing" the cover onto our dinghy.

So that's what he is doing up there!

Clark rummaged around and found some pieces of line to attach the dinghy cover to the dinghy so it doesn't sail off underway. 

Wow! Looks so good!

Clark is / was thinking this is a temporary solution, and I am left wondering why it has to be temporary. We will have to see how we make out on the trip home with this new addition. I cut the straps and connectors off the old canvas cover and plan to sew them onto the cover to be used instead of the bits of line that Clark put in place. 

Steve is a great host and a lot of fun. After the dinghy cover activity concluded, he showed up on the dock sitting on a motorized scooter. He invited me to go for a ride with him around the neighborhood. He decided the one he planned to ride needed air, so we had a little work to do before we got underway.

Steve putting air in the tire

Ev ready to ride!

We took off down the driveway

and headed down the street.

Steve said we should just start riding and see where it took us. We scoped out some of the houses in the neighborhood, and then Steve showed me a huge Banyan Tree.

Banyan Tree in Steve's neighborhood

Steve said he had no destination in mind, but I think he had a plan. We wove through the streets and came out at a boat-building business where they build boats that cost, per what Steve told me, $15 million a piece. They are fishing boats with huge towers.

$15 Million

Steve is known here and no one questioned us riding through the area on the scooters. In fact several men talked to him as we wandered around. 

The place is called Merritt's. Steve told me he brings his boat here for work or under a hurricane warnings. That is why they all seemed to know him.

Merritt's boat lift

We poked our heads into one of the bays and Steve told me the boat was Jimmy Buffett's boat. 

Jimmy Buffett's boat

What I gathered from listening in on Steve's talk with folks at the boat yard was that the boat was to be Jimmy Buffett's but then he passed away. The boat will now go to some other lucky boater with a big bankroll. 

We wandered all over the boatyard.

Upper helm of a boat under construction

Men working way up in the top of the center boat's tower

The boats are big and appear even bigger out of the water. I felt insignificant walking beside them.

Steve walking between 2 of the boats

Pictures do not do it justice to get the feel for the height of these boats.

As it approached 5:00, Steve said we better get out before they locked the gates and locked us in, so we sped off on our scooters to return back to the house. 

When we got back to Steve's house, he wasn't quite done with his scooter. He put a battery on the floor and drove it to his backyard to his boat for installation. Clark took over from there to get the battery in place in Steve's dinghy.

Clark installing the battery for Steve

When we went shopping earlier in the day, we came home with steaks, baked potatoes, and vegetables for dinner tonight. Steve is an expert at cooking steaks. Perhaps that is because he is from Omaha! Anyway they were tender and tasty! By 9:00, we were all ready to say goodnight!

4 April 2026

No boat travel.

Clark seemed surprised when I said I wanted to get caught up on laundry while I had an available washer and dryer. Before I could get to that part of today's agenda, however, Steve came to our boat and asked if I wanted to go shopping again. This time to Publix. Of course I said, "Yes!" 

He brought the same shopping list as yesterday trying to cross off more items from our scavenger hunt. After almost 90 minutes of wandering the store, we gave up on some items like Ruby Red Monster Energy drink. They had many flavors but no "ruby red".

We left the house at 10:00 and left the store at 11:30. By the time we got home and the groceries stowed it was time for lunch. I decided to start the laundry going beforehand so that could be working while we were eating. Unfortunately, after loading the washer, I discovered that I did not know how to turn it on. It had no "On" button. It had a "Start" button that did nothing. 

I had Clark come to look into the situation, and he came up blank. When I found Steve, he checked the breakers and then just started punching buttons on the washer. Voila! It lit up! I got the wash going and returned to our boat for lunch. 

Around 3:00, Steve came down to our boat and asked if I wanted to go food shopping again - this time to "Aldi's". So, off we went for a third time in two days to a food store. As we pulled out of the driveway, he said he needed to buy a belt, so we stopped at J C Penney's first. I haven't been in one of those stores in years. 

Before we went out shopping this afternoon, we discussed dinner plans and agreed that tonight we would get take out from an Italian restaurant that Steve recommended. So, with all the shopping, I came away with a bag of bagels, a loaf of bread, and a couple of dark chocolate candy bars (cheap at Aldi's). The remainder of the purchases were for Steve stocking the house and provisioning his boat.

As we relaxed this afternoon in Steve's house, we ended up watching the movie The Goonies made in 1985. I remembered parts of the movie from year's back. Given the year it was made, I was impressed with the special effects and action scenes. It's a kids' version of Indiana Jones.

Clark and Steve went to the restaurant "Zuccarelli East" to pick up the food just before The Goonies ended. By the time they returned, Steve's wife, Judy, and I were watching The Wizard of Oz. Clark seemed very surprised that I knew some words to almost every song and could recite upcoming lines for characters before they were said. I guess I've seen this movie more than a few times. 

I "ran" back to the boat between movies, and as I did so I noticed the sky. I figured I'd be busy at sunset, so I grabbed the current picture for the blog.

View from the stern of our boat at Steve's place Next destination is Vero Beach!

2026 April: Pompano Beach FL

 

2 April 2026 - Thursday
Depart: Bocca Chita anchorage, Biscayne Bay, FL 8:50
Arrive: Private Dock in Pompano Beach, FL 5:30
Distance: 48 NM
Conditions: Ocean 4' to 6' waves with winds out of the East Northeast; thunderstorms

Ev was ready to pull up anchor at 8:00, but Clark delayed for a variety of reasons then had the nerve to say, "I was waiting for you!"

As we traveled from Boca Chita towards Miami, the view was quite literally "for the birds"! I guess there was no more room on Marker 3 for the one bird who positioned himself on 2A nearby.

The weather today made it difficult to see Miami this morning as it was enshrouded in fog.

As we got closer, the view became clearer.

Miami, FL

Normally we travel on the ocean and by pass Miami bridges; however, with the weather today we stayed inside. Thus, we missed our normal view of Stiltsville!

Houses of Stiltsville in the distance

As we came into Miami, the scenery became more interesting. 

Another bird convention

As the tall buildings came into view ...

Clark pointed out one with the colors of the rainbow.

I enjoyed looking at the architecture of the buildings. 

I have seen floating billboards before, but today was a first for one with electronic displays showing a variety of ads.

The clouds rolled in and Clark said rain was coming our way. As we passed by Tequesta Point, I noticed a statue with a woman sitting below it. I looked at the rain then her sitting there, I wondered how long it would take before she got chased away. As I watched she stood up and scurried off to a dryer location.

Woman at almost water level under statue

Next, Clark spotted another building that stood out. 

Short building amongst all those skyscrapers

The clouds rolled in ...

To one side we had heavy skies and to the other we had relatively clear ones. 

Fountains in Park

Hard Rock Cafe

And then the bridges started ...

and the sites became more interesting as we passed by Port Miami / Miami Beach fire department vessels.

Miami Fire Rescur

and then passed by Virgin's location for cruises. 

Miami and Ft. Lauderdale and full of oversized boats.

The light sprinkle we had earlier turned into a torrent as we passed through here. I notice a man standing on a barge. I also noticed that he was shirtless. Then I saw that he had a shirtless friend on the barge with him. 

They must have decided they needed cover from the rain, and I saw them move the barge to be under the bridge.

A short while later I looked and they were gone. Clark said they came out from under the bridge and carried on down the waterway. Whoops! Right after that a thunderstorm came by right overhead. I only hoped they had their shirts hidden somewhere dry because they were going to need something warm to put on as the temperatures dropped significantly when the storm came in. 

After that, the weather continued to improve throughout the day as the thunderstorm as well as the cloudy skies from  earlier in the day became things of the past. Beyond the Shepard Broad Causeway bridge, we passed through Hollywood, Florida where we saw quite a few folks enjoying the bars / restaurants on the water's edge.

Shepard Broad Causeway Bridge

One of several bars on the water

Nice Mural on this building

Our journey today took us by a variety of boats including

Tikki Beach

and

Bluefoot

The "road" signs through here were plentiful and hard to all too often hard to read. Is that a Minimum Wake or a Slow Speed No Wake? Sometimes the fine print said "On Weekends and Holidays Only".  Many of the speed signs required binoculars to read the whole board.

Some signs were informational ...

Environmental Protection Area

Some gave detailed warnings ...

Caution
Seagrass Area
Shallow

and some gave no detail whatsoever. 

Danger

Entering "Port Everglades / Fort Lauderdale",  the scenery changed dramatically from large personal houses and vessels to industrial.

 Here another unusual building stood out to Clark

Port Everglades

and then another caught his eye across the way.

Nova Southeastern University
Oceanographic Center

Next, we came upon a cruise ship with a police boat guard nearby.

Disney Cruise Ship
Police boat on guard

US Coast Guard boats were positioned here as well.

USCG vessel

USCG boat

We saw a couple of huge houses that stood out even among the mansions located through here.

Corner lot on the ICW for sale

The boats, both large and small, seen through here were as interesting as the houses.

Blue Moon

Taxi

Pontoon Party boat with
Guests in the water

The obligatory Tiki Hut Boat

A large sports boat passed by us but not under its own power. It had a tow boat in front and one in the rear. I could only wonder how much that costs!

Tow in front and back 
to keep all in line

Finally, after a long day on the water, we approached the end of our journey. We had just a few more bridges before we could tie up for the night.

"Pompano Beach" mural at bridge

Weighing his choices, Clark decided that we should add some fuel to the boat. At nearly $6 a gallon for diesel, he decided to add some fuel as opposed to filling up. We took on 75 gallons with hopes that the next place we plan to get fuel will have lower prices. 

At 5:30, after almost 9 hours of travel on the ICW, we arrived at our friend's house in Pompano Beach and rafted up to his boat at the dock behind his house. As is usual when we stop here, Clark and Steve went out to Pizza Hut and brought back dinner - such a treat after a long, and sometimes tedious, trip on the water.