This route circles Lake Okeechobee, the largest freshwater body in Florida and one of the most decisive geographical elements in the history of the southern peninsula. The route passes through five counties and connects small communities whose economies have traditionally depended on agriculture, cattle ranching, and water management.
For centuries, the lake was inhabited by Indigenous communities and served as a setting for conflicts during the Seminole Wars. In the early twentieth century, large drainage projects and the construction of the Herbert Hoover Dike radically transformed the environment, enabling agricultural development but increasing vulnerability to flooding and hurricanes, as occurred during the devastating 1928 storm.
Along the route appear towns such as Pahokee, Belle Glade, Clewiston, Moore Haven, and Okeechobee, many of them shaped by cycles of prosperity and decline linked to sugar production, the railroad, and hydraulic control.
The complete route and its historical context are part of Discovering Florida – Volume 2.
