Lake Okeechobee Trail - Northern Section
Kissimmee River Trailhead – St. Lucie Canal
by Dana Farnsworth, Outdoor Travels
At 110 miles total, the Lake Okeechobee Trail should have many trailheads for access, parking and information. Well, currently the total falls a bit short of many. The total? Two. Yes, two official trailheads along the length of the LOST trail. That’s not to say that there are not other “non-official” areas to park and access the trail, as there are – we started our ride of the northern section at one of the 14 of them. The northern section has a widely used official trailhead at the Kissimmee River. We elected to begin our ride northeast of the official trailhead at the Okeechobee access point - a sandy parking lot with below average bathroom facilities and a hard to find water pipe that serves as a source for potable water. These facilities, needless to say, left a lot to be desired.
From this point there are roughly two miles of paved surface along the top of the dike that travel to the southwest back to the Kissimmee River trailhead. To the north and eventually turning southeast there are approximately 24.5 miles of smooth paved surface to St. Lucie Canal.
As is common for all trail sections along the LOST Trail, the track runs along the top of the dike that surrounds Florida’s largest lake. Here for the most part, gorgeous views of the lake are paralleled on the opposite side with an attractive canal that is also popular with water sports seekers. The views of Lake Okeechobee are very attractive and often resemble those of a calm ocean.
It’s a good thing that the view is nice, as there is a lot left to desire otherwise. First, there is NO shade in this area. Trees are nonexistent along the trail. There are also limited bathroom facilities and no potable water along the trail, so make sure to bring plenty of fluids. Did I mention that on the day I rode this section, I experienced headwinds so fierce that maintaining 10 miles per hour while riding northeast was a Herculean effort? Mostly due to the exposed nature of riding along the top of a raised earthen mound with no windbreak from trees, riding the first portion was and probably always is an exercise in patience as well as conditioning.
There are also two rather confusing areas along this section. At two points, one at Taylor Creek and the other at St. Lucie Canal, a rider must leave the main trail along the dike and circumnavigate the creek and/or canal. This requires riding away from the trail, along busy SR 441 and then back onto the trail. It really breaks up the rhythm of a ride and can be confusing, not to mention dangerous if a rider is not aware of these diversions before hand.
So, with all these negatives, I’m asking myself, “Why did I enjoy this ride at all?” Well, the answer isn’t obvious, but it is easy. Fist, as far as interesting wildlife goes, many armadillos, which were mostly oblivious to our presence, populated one section around the Henry Creek access point. All sorts of water birds are also easily visible along this section. Also the scenery along the lake changes with the weather’s mood. We watched as the sun bleached the water and then later was gradually blocked by pockets of clouds. Off in the distance along the water’s horizon we eventually could see a small rain shower blending the clouds into the lake’s surface. All of these things are nice, but not overly unique in my opinion. So the question remains…
What intrigues me the most has to be the overall length of the LOST Trail. On this particular day, my wife and I logged over 45 miles on an out and back ride of just one section – in distance traveled, that’s still not even half of the trail’s overall 110-mile length. I have been dreaming of a full circumnavigation of the lake where I would ride for two or three days and stay in little private hotels or bed and breakfast inns along the trail. The longest rail to trail project in the state is currently about two-thirds of this trails size. Even if the infrastructure isn’t up to par with trails like the West Orange Trail or the Pinellas Rail Trail the LOST trail still offers great recreation opportunities and endless options for short walks to epic rides.
