Hike Bike Paddle Camp Florida with authors Sandra Friend and John Keatley as your guides
Covering 730 square miles, Lake Okeechobee is the liquid heart of South Florida
It isn’t rare for winds to streak across the surface of Lake Okeechobee, picking up speed as they travel. But some mornings are windier than others, and this was one of them.
Our 2020 update of the state of the Florida Trail around Lake Okeechobee. Thru-hikers should continue to use Okeechobee West as their route around the lake. We provide full details on why.
Nine days, 109 miles: that’s the circuit around Lake Okeechobee to complete a walk around the second largest lake inside American borders on the Big O Hike.
Clewiston, the center of the sugar cane industry in South Florida, is perched along the rim of one of America’s largest lakes, Lake Okeechobee.
Also known as Lake Okeechobee Recreation Area, this waterfront park in Okeechobee offers expansive views of Lake Okeechobee from its shoreline and pier
Making the decision to walk the Florida Trail east or west around Lake Okeechobee used to be easy. Now, with construction zones blocking access to much of the southern half of the lake, it isn’t. Here are the facts on each route’s strengths and weaknesses to help you decide the best route for you.
Beloved of paddlers and largely protected by Fisheating Creek WMA, South Florida’s wildest waterway rises south of Lake Placid and flows towards Lake Okeechobee.
13.8 miles. One of the most accessible segments of the Big O provides some of the best views of Lake Okeechobee from the dike
8.6 miles. Along the north shoreline of Lake Okeechobee, this paved segment of the Florida Trail is one of its prettiest, offering sweeping views of the lake.
10.4 miles. Along the vast marshes that buffer Buckhead Ridge, the sweep of the Florida Trail past Indian Prairie leads up to the mouth of the Kissimmee River
11.9 miles. In the sweep of the Herbert Hoover Dike past Lakeport, the Florida Trail overlooks the vast western marshes of Lake Okeechobee
11.8 miles. On a southbound hike between Moore Haven and Clewiston, arrive at sunrise for the best light show on Lake Okeechobee.
