Lake Okeechobee
Summary
| Links | Corps of Engineers site, State of Florida site, The Big O Hike |
| Location | Near Okeechobee, Lakeport, Moore Haven, Clewiston, South Bay, Pahokee, FL |
| Dates hiked | December 7 - 11, 2007 |
| Pictures | http://mpickering.homeip.net/gallery/okeechobee |
| Distance | 110 miles (123 if you count my little "mistake") |
GPS files
Note: due to battery concerns, I turned my GPS off after the second day. I turned it on briefly to take waypoints, but there's no track for the eastern side of the lake.
Description
Ever since I was a kid growing up in Central Florida, I always thought that Lake Okeechobee stood out on the map as one of Florida's most prominent features. I have always wondered what it looked like, whether you could see the other side, and if would seem like the ocean when seen up close. I finally decided to walk around the entire lake to see for myself.
I started at Okee-Tantie Recreation Area and continued counter-clockwise around the lake, until 4 1/2 days later, I returned to my starting point.
Day 1: Okee-Tantie to Lakeport
Okee-Tantie is just a few hundred yards past the official Florida Trail trailhead. You can register with the people at the bait store, give them your emergency contact information and expected return date, and they'll give you a parking permit for no charge. Your car is safe there, because they have a security booth manned 24 hours, and you park right outside it.
After walking along Highway 78 to cross the Kissimmee River, I climbed up onto the dike. The first thing you notice, is that you can't really see the lake at all. You can see a lot of trees and brush, apparently extending out several miles, but no water. A canal runs alongs the other side of the dike. This is true for nearly the entire western half of the lake.
A little while later, I came along a lock where some construction was going on. I chatted with an electrician for a minute, and he gave me some cold water out of their cooler. For the next few hours, there were small neighborhood developments all along the canal. After that, it gave way to cattle ranches. A helicopter was spraying something over the vegetation - from what I've read, the invasive trees are being treated and replaced with cypress trees. I got to the campsite outside Lakeport before dark, and set up. I had no problems at all at the campsite, which was on the canal side of the dike, and could see some buildings on the other side of the canal.
Day 2: Lakeport to Liberty Point
I made a big mistake today. After leaving camp and walking through Lakeport, I continued down the dike, assuming that's what I was supposed to do, and not bothering to check the map. I'm sure the FTA had blazed a warning, and I probably just missed it, but I should have turned left to head south along 78. Instead, I continued walking west on the dike, until it turned north. After a while, I thought something was wrong, especially since I didn't see any of the landmarks I was expecting. Sure enough, I was off the path, and had to retrace my steps back to Lakeport. I arrived essentially back where I started around noon, having walked about 12.5 miles for nothing. Since I was having a pretty bad morning, and had lost a huge amount of time, I decided I'd lose a little more and walk over to the Aruba Resort for lunch.
I chatted with the ladies at the restaurant and got a reuben (which tasted great by that point), then walked down 78 for a few miles. It's not a lot of fun, walking along a highway with traffic, but eventually, you climb back up onto the dike and walk parallel to the highway.
I came to the Moore Haven RV park around 4:00, and got some water. It was a nice park, and I was tempted to camp there for the night, but I was a little worried about the time, and decided to push on to meet my original schedule. After wandering around in Moore Haven for a while (the crossing over the Caloosahatchee River gave me a little trouble), I got back on the dike. The dike was paved at that point, and I walked into the night to reach the campsite just beyond Liberty Point.
There were some advantages to hiking in the night—first, it was simple, since the trail was paved. It was much cooler, obviously; and you could see lots of stars. I saw a very bright Mars rising, and saw the Milky Way for the first time in years. Lots of boats passed back and forth on the lake side, which was really more of a canal at that point than a lake.
The ground was hard at the campsite, and I had trouble staking the tent. The mosquitoes were awful. I didn't sleep well, and didn't bother to cook breakfast the next morning—I got out as quickly as I could to avoid the mosquitoes.
Day 3: Liberty Point to Pahokee
It took a little longer than I expected to reach Clewiston, where I was able to fill up on water at the park. It also took a while to get out of Clewiston, since you have to walk around a bit to get to the Industrial Canal crossing. A little later, I reached John Stretch Park, which was very nice, with water, bathrooms, and picnic tables. All along the south portion of the lake, there are sugar cane fields, which are irrigated by canals connected to the lake with dams. I came to South Bay at 3:00, which was my planned destination for the evening, but I decided to keep going another 11 miles to Pahokee. As I approached the Paul Rardin Park just beyond Torry Island, the sun was setting, and there were a lot of people out there to watch. Finally, you could start to see some of the water that was Lake Okeechobee.
After filling up my water at the park, I continued to Pahokee in the dark. It was about 5.6 miles more, but it sure felt longer. The Everglades Adventures campground is the first thing you come to, which is nearly a mile long itself. At about 7:30, I called the late arrival number and got a tent space right next to the lake. I hadn't really seen a good view of the lake yet, since it was dark, but I enjoyed the campground and even got a shower. It was a little steep, at $27, but there were no mosquitoes, and I made a good dinner and slept very well.
Day 4: Pahokee to Nubbin Slough
I followed up my good dinner with a good breakfast, and left camp about 7:45, after paying. There are excellent views of the lake, and even though the pavement had ended at this point, it was still a relatively easy hike. The sun was hotter than it had been the previous three days, and I was really starting to notice it. As I approached Port Mayaca, there was construction going on on top of the dike. I headed down toward the lake, and walked through the weeds and grass alongside the lake (or as close as you can get to the lake—there's a wall of big rocks all along the shore). This slowed me down significantly. As I finally passed the construction, I learned that you can't cross the St. Lucie Canal on the lock—you have to get down and go around to Highway 441. This is a major pain, and a significant amount of walking and backtracking just to get around. In addition, there is no water around the lock. I stopped in a neighborhood I passed along the way, and a homeowner let me fill up at their garden hose.
After spending 2 hours to walk the 2 miles between the Port Mayaca campsite and the opposite side of the Port Mayaca lock, I was finally on my way again. I had a GPS waypoint for the Chancy Bay pumping station, but either I missed it, or mislabeled it, because I have no idea when or where I passed it. I did get down off the dike at one point to get water from another kind homeowner before the final stretch to Nubbin Slough. It was dark when I got there at last, and I nearly camped at some random spot along the shore of the lake (though the "shore" at this point was really a line of brush and trees). Fortunately, I was lucky enough to find the campsite in the dark. Someone had left a large rock at the campsite, which was very helpful for pounding my tent stakes into the gravelly ground. The evening was nice, and I slept without my rain fly to try to take advantage of the coolness.
Day 5: Nubbin Slough to Okee-Tantee
I tried to start as early as possible to avoid the dreaded sun. I passed lots of people out for exercise along the dike. After crossing Taylor Creek, I got some water at the RV park, then continued the final few hours back to the starting point. The dike starts getting busy as you approach Okeechobee, with walkers, runners, and cyclists all out for exercise. Finally, I started seeing sights I recognized, and made it back to Okee-Tantee around 10:30.
Logistics
Water
Before I left, I thought water would be a no-brainer. After all, Lake Okeechobee is the second largest freshwater lake in the U.S.
How foolish to think that. As you can see from the pictures, there is no "lake" to speak of along the entire western side. There is a canal on the opposite side of the dike, and I filtered water there several times, but at best, you have to climb down from the dike to access it. Sometimes, there is thick brush between you and the canal, and you can't access it at all. You really have to keep track of your water supply.
You do pass near towns and neighborhoods in several places, where you can get water. You generally cannot get water from the various locks and other water control stations; there are faucets but they are all marked with "DANGER, do not use for drinking, washing, or cooking" signs. I don't know if it's just unfiltered water from the lake (in which case it would be a very convenient spot to filter), or if it contains chemicals; I've never seen a sign with so many disclaimers, and I didn't even try filtering the water.
There are lots of parks along the south portion of the lake, and all of these have water and bathrooms. Along the east side, the lake is generally behind a line of rocks and heavy brush, and it would be very difficult to access the water. Again, a canal runs along the east side of the lake, but it's not always possible to reach.
I carried 3 liters, and had enough water, but I stopped every chance I got.
Sanitation
As I mentioned above, there are lots of parks along the south part of the lake, fully equipped with bathrooms. There are a few places you can stop along the east side, and not much of anything on the west side. I did not have to dig any catholes, and honestly, I think it would have been difficult. You obviously cannot dig on the dike itself, and the flat ground at the bottom is generally close to water, and full of gravel to boot.
Sunscreen
There is absolutely no shade anywhere. Even in the winter, sunscreen is a must. Bring an extra bandana to cover your neck.
Canal crossings
Most of these are straightforward; you walk along the canal away from the lake, see a bridge, cross it, and walk back toward the lake. I got a little tripped up in Moore Haven; you need to cross the bridge, then immediately turn around and head down the sidewalk back toward the canal. I was looking for Florida Trail blazes, but didn't see any, so I continued too far down 27. There are Florida Trail signs along the dike, but the paths through the towns aren't always well-marked. I suggest you use Google Maps to see exactly where to cross in Moore Haven, Clewiston, and Port Mayaca. The others are easy enough.
Pavement vs. gravel
I wear Garmont Eclipse shoes, which are heavier than a running shoe, but lighter than a boot. This was helpful in the gravel sections, where there are occasional fist-sized chunks of gravel along the path. They were overkill for the paved portions, but if I were to do it again, I'd probably still take the Garmonts.
I carried trekking poles, which were helpful in climbing up and down from the dike, and I used them on the gravel sections. I stowed them in my pack for the pavement sections. I probably would not bring them again; I didn't bother taking them out for the 12 miles of gravel between Pahokee and Port Mayaca, and didn't miss them.
Roadwalk
You have to walk along 78 near Okee-Tantie and south of Lakeport (for about 3 miles), as well as walking along 441 at Port Mayaca and Taylor Creek. This is really no fun; there are cars and trucks passing and you really need to be careful. Port Mayaca is the worst; the bridge is fairly high, and there's no barrier between you and the traffic. So be very careful.
Conclusions
As much as I had looked forward to this trip, I was disappointed with the outcome. Walking along the dike is rather monotonous, and you really can't see much water until you get to Pahokee. It was hot when I went in early December, so I had that working against me as well. I decided to hike long days in order to finish early (my original trip was to be 5 1/2 days). I don't regret doing it and will certainly never forget it, but I think I will go back to something simpler (and in the woods) next year.
To answer my original questions: No, you cannot see the other side. If you look straight out at the lake (on the eastern side, of course), it looks like the ocean but without waves. However, you can still look to either side and see the curvature of the lake; it's big, but not unimaginably big.