lake-okeechobee

Florida Lakes

locally referred to as The Lake or The Big O, is the largest freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida.

It is the seventh largest freshwater lake in United States and the second largest freshwater lake contained entirely within the lower 48 states.

Okeechobee covers 730 square miles (1,890 km²), approximately half the size of the state of Rhode Island, and is relatively shallow, with an average depth of only 9 feet (3 m).

The lake is divided between Glades, Okeechobee, Martin, Palm Beach, and Hendry counties.

Maps of Florida show that all five of these counties meet at one point near the center of the lake.

Florida Lake Map

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lake-okeechobee. History

Okeechobee is thought to have been formed out of the ocean about 6,000 years ago when the waters receded.

At its capacity, the lake holds 1 trillion gallons of water and is the headwaters of the Everglades.

The name Okeechobee comes from the Hitchiti words oki (water) and chubi (big), and means "big water".

It was previously called Macaco and Mayaimi, the latter the origin of the name of the city Miami, Florida by way of the Miami River.

The floor of the lake is a limestone basin, and the lake varies in depth from 1 to 13 feet (0.3 to 4 m).

Its water is somewhat murky from nutrient-enriched runoff from surrounding farmlands.

The surface is above sea level.

The lake is enclosed by a 20-foot (6 m) high dike built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers after a hurricane in 1928 breached the old dike, flooding surrounding communities and claiming thousands of lives.

There are several inflows, including Taylor Creek and the Kissimmee River, and several small outlets, such as the Miami River, the New River on the east, and the Caloosahatchee River (via the Caloosahatchee Canal and Lake Hicpochee) on the southwest.

Seminole Indian. Florida

An appropriate name for the largest fresh water lake in the United States, occurring entirely in one state.

The Florida Game and Freshwater Fish Commission states, "there is no place that can compare with Lake Okeechobee, not only for lunker bass, history and wildlife, but its size."

The lake is approximately 37 miles long by 30 miles wide, totaling over 730 square miles with an average depth of only 10 feet.

To fishermen nationwide, it's renowned for the number of bass it contains per acre.

Lake Okeechobee also produces more bass over 7 pounds than any lake in Florida and the United States.

Lake Okeechobee is located in central southern Florida, north of the Everglades and south of Orlando.

It links the Atlantic and Gulf sides of Florida via the Port Mayaca Lock on the east side of the lake and the Moore Haven Lock on the lake’s western side.

Drainage canals lower the lake and drain adjacent lands for farming.

Agricultural activities around the Lake Okeechobee area include cattle ranching, dairy farming, and crop production of sugarcane, winter vegetables, citrus, sod, sweet corn and rice.

Lake Okeechobee Trail

The 100-foot (30 m)-wide dike surrounding Lake Okeechobee is a part of the Florida Trail, a 1,400-mile long trail that is a National Scenic Trail.

There is a well-maintained paved pathway along the majority of the perimeter.

It is used by hikers and bicyclists, and is wide enough to accommodate authorized vehicles.

Fishing

The most common fish in this lake are largemouth bass

Crappie and

Bluegill

Pickerel

have been less commonly caught.

Lake-Tohopekaliga

Lake-Eola.

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lake-okeechobee Flights to Orlando

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