Taking the kids to Disney world and was wanting to do some fishing while I am down. Is it worth it to take my yak? Has anyone else done this or knows the area and can offer advice?
Posted Jan 18, 2020, 7:55 PM UTC
The lakes at Disney are loaded with bass and crappie.
And gators. You couldn't pay me enough to get in fresh water in Florida.
It isn't bad. The snakes are what you have to worry about
Yeah, because THAT'S better. Nope, I'll just as much stay away from the prehistoric murder lizards, thanks.
I'm doing some fishing in the gulf coast this March. Salt water has it's own horrors to pull out of the depths, but nothing like the inland lakes.
Have somehow survived unscathed after a decade down in Gulf Coast FL despite kayaking and fishing all the time. Gators are LAZY and they're the least of your concerns. Just don't reach over the side of your yak to grab fish and you'll be fine. Same goes for sharks. People worry about the wrong things. You're way more likely to step on a stingray or get some horrible infection from an oyster cut than to come withing spitting distance of a shark/gator/etc.
We got into kayaking when we lived in upstate New York. The Adirondack state park has amazing places for kayaking. We have since moved back to Louisiana and found that the kayaking is a lot of fun here too. The alligators don’t seem to bother you as long as you leave them alone. The snakes on the other hand seem to think your kayak is a nice place for a rest. Had to fight one off, luckily a paddle makes a good snake swatter.
I'm actually a Michigan native, but spent most of my adult life (18+ years) South of the Mason-Dixon thanks to my wife's Naval career.
Luckily, we were coastal. The Navy had this THING about being next to ocean for some obsessive reason. But it kept the bulk of the creepy crawlies away. We had a couple gators on base in Charleston, SC, that would decide to sun themselves on the road and you were forced to wait for them. It was also a nature preserve, you see, so they (and especially the big 16 foot one named "Charlie") got priority and military police escort.
One morning I got up to let my German Shepard out, and he refused to go out the door. Just barked at the yard like he was possessed. Upon looking a little closer, there was a 3 foot apex predator in my yard looking at me. It took the base about two hours to finally get him in a box and take him back to swampy waters.
After a few more stations, we ended up at the mouth of the tidal, brackish White Oak River in Swansboro, NC. Luckily no gators while we were there, but not unheard of. But the snakes... 8 foot long, supposedly harmless but I didn't feel that way when I went into the house for a drink while mowing the lawn on a sweltering summer day, only to find one of these things wrapped around my mower and hissing at me.
There long and short of it is that you Southerners can keep your murder lizards. I'm finally back in Michigan, where the summer are a sane temp and humidity, and the winters kill off enough bugs and reptiles to keep them from getting TOO big and numerous.
Do they let you fish the ponds? I cant imagine them letting you bring a rod into the park to go fishing. Maybe on the hotel property?
Back when we went, no. But a pack rod worked great. Now you can rent boats and I believe you can fish the ponds. May want to do some research first though. If you get caught they politely ask you to leave.
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I get this post is a bit old..
Dunno when you're coming, I'm a native of the area just south of Disney.. I got a few kayak accessible lakes that are juicy right now. But your transport vehicle needs 4x4 for sure.. Then I have others that don't need 4x4 but might require you to carry your stuff and yak a few yards.. Lake Davenport is just south of disney off 27, probably a 20 minute drive maybe 30 depending on traffic off disney property. It's got a well maintained boat ramp, and the fishing is Okay right now. (Not super juicy, its fished a lot though by those with 4000 dollar fish finders and stuff..) But your kayak has an advantage on the north side of the lake paddle into the canals where the homes are at. Fish those.
Just remember this about florida, land around and under lakes can be private. Once you're on the water there's nothing anyone can do about you being out there, you can own the land, but you cannot own the water.. Just have a state fishing license and ur protected. We have harassment laws for anglers as well.
So basically if you park in a public lot, and teleport yourself onto the water. Nobody can tell you to leave. The key here is being able to teleport yourself. Lol basically if you're gonna trespass to get to a body of water, don't park somewhere if you end up pissing security off they can legally have your shit towed. Park off site somewhere safe. Throw a white towel onto the antenna or in the door to signal your "broken down" florida has a law where even if your vehicle is on private property if its broken down then you have something like 3 days to have it moved off before it can be legally towed.
Hey man thats alot of good info right there thanks for taking the time to reply. I appreciate it!
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