Lock 7: Jaycee Park

This site, on the north shore of Lake Okeechobee, has a 400-foot fishing pier with a covered pavilion at the end providing vantage for scoping birds on the lake and shoreline. The panoramic view from atop the 35-foot tall Herbert Hoover Dike above the parking area provides an additional vantage point. Search for herons, egrets, ibis, gulls, terns and skimmers. Flocks of Black Skimmers can often be seen loafing in the parking lot during the fall and winter months. Royal, Caspian and Least Terns are often present. Watch for Brown Pelicans, American White Pelicans, Double-crested Cormorants, Anhingas, Common Loons, both species of whistling-ducks offshore. Bald Eagles and Ospreys are often perched on the light poles. A boat ramp at the southern end of the park provides access to the lake. The park also serves as an access point and rest stop for long-distance hikers on the 110-mile Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail (part of the Florida National Scenic Trail), which runs atop the dike and encircles the entire lake. Hike or bike southwest from here on the dike trail for 4 miles to reach the Okee-Tantie Recreation Area, watching for Limpkins and Purple Gallinules along the shore.