venturing4th: A challenge

We started on our bike ride about 10am. It was cloudy, windy, of course, and for the first time since we have been in Florida, the temperature did not reach the 80s or 90s. In fact, it was in the lower 60s when we set off. As I mentioned yesterday, Lake Okeechobee is the second largest fresh water lake wholly within the boundaries of the United States. It is forty-five miles in average diameter, and approximately 750 square miles in area; it is about 24 feet at its deepest, with an average depth of 14 feet. There is a man-made protection called Hoover Dike, begun in in 1929 and completed in 1971, which was built to protect communities surrounding the lake from flooding during the hurricane season. In both Florida Bicycle Trails and Florida Hiking Trails, both brochures we picked up at the Florida Welcome Center weeks ago, the Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail (LOST), is highlighted. In the cycling trail guide the description is that the trail is located atop the Herbert Hoover Dike and that there are access points all along the highways that surround the Lake. Right across the highway from the access road to our campground there is a sign that indicates that you can access the trail in .3 miles. So off we went this morning on our bikes.

The problems began when, after traveling about 300 feet from the highway, we came to a high fence with a padlocked gate. No access here! We could see the dike through the gate but there was no way to get there. Right next door was a condominium park and we rode in there to see if the access might be through this park. We talked to a man who was maintaining the pool and he said that no, we could not get to the trail at this point. Someone had recently purchased the property and had closed off the access road. We would have to travel to the next access point at the locks, oh, many 3/4 of a mile down the highway. Almost three miles later, down the highway, we found the locks that gave us access.

There was one of these signs across the highway from our RV park. This sign was at the locks.

The locks with access to the trail.

We started north on the trail figuring that we had already passed by the southern route on our drive up yesterday. But, when we got to the same place 2 1/2 miles north, where we had been prevented access, there were newly built locks that didn't provide a way across. We would have to leave the trail, go out to the road and use the bridge to get to the trail on the other side of the locks. Only problem is, there was that locked gate that now kept us from leaving the trail and going around by the bridge.

There was a very nice man, Roger, and his little dog, who told us all about the nasty man who would not let people access the trail, either coming or going. Another man who happened to be waking by, also complained about the barricades and he said that he had written to the state but that there had been no response. The only thing that we could do was backtrack on the trail and then go south, which is what we did.

Once that little adventure was behind us we had a pleasant cycle. We went about 23 miles from beginning to end and saw some interesting birds and, of course, the Lake. There was a cross wind on top of the dike, but on the return trip I figure out that if I rode my bike about two feet to the side and behind Frederic I could use him to break the wind and I didn't have some much trouble.