About Lake Okeechobee

About “The Big O”

Lake Okeechobee, is affectionately described as by the locals as “The Big O.” The average out-of-towner isn’t aware of this huge freshwater lake dwarfing the southeastern part of Florida, United States, Lake Okeechobee is the third largest freshwater lake that is located within a country. The larger ones are Iliamna Lake in Alaska and Lake Michigan. It is located at Everglades’ northern edge and 65 kilometers or 40 miles northwest of the famous West Palm Beach. Its name is a Hitchiti Indian name that means “big water”. Before, the lake has occupied the entire basin that includes the Everglades when it is part of the bigger prehistoric Pamlico Sea.

The lake is undeniably big, as it covers a total area of around 1,900 square kilometers or 730 square miles, which include several small islands. Its shoreline has a total length of 220 kilometers or 135 miles and the lake itself is 55 kilometers or 35 miles long. Depending on the lake’s water level, its surface is 4 to 5 meters or 12.5 to 15.5 feet above the average sea level. Its average depth is 3 to 4 meters or 10 to 12 feet.

Kissimmee River watershed, which is at the northern part, is the main source of the lake. The water passes several lakes first and the Kissimmee River before it finally flows to the lake. Before, the rainy season causes flooding in the surrounding areas when water overflows from the lake. The affected areas are the Everglades, Belle Glade, Clewiston, Okeechobee, and Pahokee. Flooding has stopped since the construction of a regulatory outlet system and adequate levees.

History of the Lake

Around 6,000 years ago, the lake was just dry land and didn’t show any signs of underwater life. For 2,000 years, wetlands started to form that resulted to the building up of peat deposits. As the rainfall increased over the years, the water table and sea level in Florida rose. During the next years, water from wetlands flow into the peats that resulted to the creation of the lake.

Before it was named Okeechobee, it was formerly called Mayaimi in the 16th century. The name also means “big water”. According to Hernando de Escalante Fontaneda, Mayaimi is the oldest known name of the lake. During the 18th century, British chroniclers and mapmakers know the lake as Laguna de Espiritu Santo, a Spanish name. In 19 century, the lake is called Lake Mayaca or Mayacco Lake, a name formulated after the Mayaca people.

Torey, Ritta, and Kreamer are islands located on the lake’s southern rim. Before, pioneers used to settle in the three islands. The settlements had a post office, town elections, school, and a general store. The main source of livelihood is farming. However, the people abandoned the settlements in the 1960s.

Authorized Uses for the Lake

Lake Okeechobee has several uses that are congressionally authorized. According to the United States Army Corps of Engineers, the lake can be used for navigation, recreation, storm and flood risk management, enhancement of wildlife and fish, and water supply for industry, municipalities, agricultural irrigation, regional groundwater control and sanitary control in estuaries. With its many uses, the lake is very significant to the people and communities around it. For many years, it has greatly helped and continuously helping people to have quality life.

Fishing, National Scenic Trail and Rim Canal

The lake is a sanctuary of several kinds of fish. The most common fish that freely multiply in the lake include bluegill, crappie, and largemouth bass. Many have regarded Lake Okeechobee as among the best bass fishing in the world. Bassmasters has ranked Lake Okeechobee as the 12th best place to fish in the United States. Pickerel is also present but in recent years people who use to catch fish in the lake saw a decline in its number. Catching of Pickerel has become less common.

Lake Okeechobee is surrounded with a dike that measures 100 feet or 30 meters wide. The dike is part of the 2,090 kilometers or 1,300 miles Florida National Scenic Trail. In most of perimeter, there is paved pathway that is well-maintained. Authorized vehicles can use the pathway. Most commonly, bicyclists and hikers use the pathway.

The lake has a rim canal that helps people to easily navigate and reach a specific part or location. The rim was created when the dike was being constructed. A significant amount of earth was excavated along the inner side of the dike’s perimeter during construction. The result is a deep channel along the lake’s perimeter. People prefer to use the canal to go to locations than using the open lake because navigation in the open lake is tricky.

Hurricanes

Though the lake has many uses and has greatly helped people’s lives, it has also caused damages and has killed thousands of people because of the hurricanes that hit it. The Great Miami Hurricane hit the lake area in 1926, which resulted to the killing of around 300 people. Hurricane Okeechobee hit the lake in 1928. It actually crossed over Lake Okeechobee and has resulted to the killing of thousands. The Red Cross estimated the deaths to have reached 1,836. However, the National Weather Serve revised the data into more than 2,500 deaths in 2003. The damages the two hurricanes have caused pushed the Florida State Legislature to promote the construction of “Okeechobee Flood Control District”.

Environmental Efforts

In 2007, the managers of state water and wildlife removed mud in thousands of truckload from the floor of the lake. It was part of the effort to restore the natural sandy base of the lake and to create better wildlife habitat and clearer water.

In early 2008, the water level of the lake remained below the normal levels. This exposed the larger portion of the lake bed, which resulted to the drying out of organic matter. The dried organic matter caught fire later. In August of that year, Tropical Storm Fay has poured rain equivalent to a record of 1.2 meters water level increase. The latest outpouring of heavy rain sin the lake was in 2013 that resulted to a very high rise in the levels of the lake.