Expect the
Unexpected
STORY BY HEATHER STEINBERGER / PHOTOS BY RICHARD STEINBERGER
O
rlando traffic is suffocating at the best of times, and morning rush hour on I-4 is no joke. As we inched forward in a twinkling sea of brake lights, I marveled at the urban sprawl that has gotten exponentially worse since I lived here more than 20 years ago. In the years since, I’ve returned to the city with my family for the usual reasons. When our daughter was small, we visited Walt Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, and of course, we returned to explore Universal Studios’ Wizarding World of Harry Potter when she was old enough to attend Hogwarts. Orlando is the theme park capital of the world, after all. This would be a different sort of visit for our family. For the first time, we were headed into Orange County’s Butler Chain of Lakes for a day of boating — just 15 miles west of downtown.
Orlando to the Butler Chain of Lakes
The Orlando area was primarily known for cotton plantations and cattle ranching until the early 1860s. When the Civil War put an end to the plantations, newcomers replanted the cotton fields with citrus groves. By the late 1800s, central Florida was also the center of the state’s citrus industry. The Great Freeze of 1894-’95 shut down the smaller growers, giving larger outfits an opportunity to buy up their land and expand operations south to Lake Wales. The railroad arrived in 1880, and by the early 20th century, the area was also a popular resort destination for those with means. Even so, by mid-century, Orlando had a population of just 50,000 people. Then came the House of Mouse. When Walt Disney World opened its doors in 1971 at Lake Buena Vista, 17 miles south of the city, growth exploded. Today, more than 2 million people make their homes in the metro area. Still, as we exited the interstate at Conroy Windermere Road and approached the 1887 town of Windermere, I felt the densely packed suburbs slowly releasing their grip. With the first flashes of blue water between the trees, I knew we had entered the Butler Chain of Lakes. The chain comprises 13 interconnected lakes that flow toward Reedy Creek, the Kissimmee
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LAKELANDBOATING.COM
