Best Spots to View Lake Okeechobee

Lake Okeechobee is one of the largest fresh water lakes in the United States. The word Okeechobee is a Seminole word meaning “big water” which is just the perfect description for this large body of water that sits in the Southern region of Florida.

With a measure of 730 square miles, it is not possible to see the opposite end of the lake from the other because of how large this body of water is. You would need to consider an aerial view for that. Standing on one side of the lake and looking out at it you would think you are looking at the ocean.

Now if you are a nature enthusiast and enjoy lakes, there are a few ways to access the lake and to view it. In this article I will share with you some of the best spots to view Lake Okeechobee from based on a recent road trip I took around the lake.

The best views I came across on the road trip are as follows;

Pahokee View

Pahokee is a city in Florida in Palm Beach County, just outside of Belle Glade. While taking the road trip we were coming from the South and took the US 27 to Belle Glade then from US 27 unto the 715 which we rode for a while. The 715 takes you through the city of Pahokee. After driving for a while we were able to make a left unto Lake Avenue. Just after taking that left unto Lake Avenue we went straight in front of us up a ramp. Over that ramp was the Pahokee Marina and there we were able to get a very good look of the lake.

It was a better view of the Lake to me than when we went to Clewiston, which I will talk about more later. The view from Pahokee gave you the feel that you were looking out into the ocean and because it is a marina there is a pier there, yachts were docked there as well. I was able to spot a big bird trying to gulp down a fish, a baby shark at that.

Pahokee is a good access point if you have a boat and want to bring it out into the lake. Families can go there to have a picnic as there are picnic benches available, or individuals just to go bird watching or wave watching. There is also a hiking trail. 💡Oh it’s a also a nice backdrop for family photos as we saw a family there taking family photos 😀.

Port Mayaca View

After we left the Pahokee Marina, we continued our journey on to the city of Okeechobee. We left the marina and turned unto main street which is also 441continuing North. While traveling along we had to go over a bridge, the bridge was quite high and allowed us to get a great view of the lake also. Though maybe not safe it is a nice spot to take photographs of the lake.

Once we got over the bridge we turned left to go on the path to the port at Port Mayaca. It was a great view of the Lake but it did not have a boat dock as the area in Pahokee, it still was a great way to view the lake and the area is nice and quiet if you just want to have a picnic or spend some quiet time with the beau.

Okeechobee View

After we entered the county of Okeechobee we drove for a while before we could find a good place to view the lake from. That was because there were a lot of businesses along the route that had the lake behind them but not an actual spot to view it from.

When we finally found the first location I was not too impressed by it. The parking lot was just pure gravel and the water had grass like plants growing out of it.

As we continued driving for a while we were able to find a hotel that was just infront of the lake and we were able to pull in and take a few pictures. Then after we went back into the vehicle to drive back south we spot another area for viewing the Lake in the Taylor Creek area of Okeechobee city.

This was nicely built up area, clean parking lot, has a pier, and bathrooms. It’s called the Lake Okeechobee Park. There are benches on the pier for sitting and we were able to spot some fishermen fishing as well.

While driving back south instead of going back the way we came we continued on so we could make a circle and see the west side Lake Okeechobee. Unfortunately, passing through Buckhead Ridge in Glades County, We were not able to see any of the lake. There were a lot of farm land with livestock around that area, but we were able get a view of the Kissimmee river which is connected to Lake Okeechobee.

When we drove into Clewiston it was already night time but good thing I had gotten a view of the lake from the Clewiston end from before.

Clewiston View

Clewiston another city in Florida, gave us a view of the lake from the Southern end. The Clewiston View of the lake where we went gave us a small glimpse into it. We were not able to see the vastness of the lake as we did with the other areas, but we did manage to see a few boaters riding along the lake waving at us as they passed by.

At the Clewiston view there are picnic benches out if you are just wanting to pull the car up and hang out for a few hours or do what others do you might just want to do a drive around. I was a bit disappointed when I saw it because we were expecting to be able to drive for a good 10 to 20 minutes to get the view of the lake, but some areas were closed off due to construction and we were only able to go so far. We ended parking up next to one of the benches and just enjoying the cool breeze and the view of the lake.

The one thing I did notice was that while in Clewiston the water was a bit more on the bluer side versus when we went to the other sites. The water was had a dirtier look.

Now the reason why we did this road trip was because of my curiosity about the lake. It was one thing knowing about the lake and another thing getting a view of it for myself. It was nice to get out for a bit and not only see the lake but see the surrounding areas, places I have never been to before.

While driving through Pahokee we were able to see some very nice homes along the side of the road with the lake in the back of them. Some had boats in the yard while some did not. We even spotted some for sale signs for land in the area. The Okeechobee strip off the 441 route, had a lot of RV Parks along the lake and a few resorts, but the highlight in those areas were the RV parks.

I should point out that the Okeechoobee area was a lot more populated than the other parts we drove through. There are few places you could find to eat in Pahokee, most of them off the main route. Some of the ones we saw on the main looked like they were closed down, but Okeechobee had more places to eat and gas stations.

While riding along we could also see signs showing other scenic trails to the lake like in areas such as Moore Haven, Clewiston, and Pahokee. These were areas that were more for hiking than for driving up to.

We were able to also spot some wildlife in and around the lake. There were boars in the water at Clewiston and we spotted a Pelican on the Marina at Pahokee. The pelican was trying to swallow a baby shark 😲. We also saw a few birds in Okeechobee