Exploring the World with Pokémon Go: Secret Lake Park
After exploring the Cross Seminole Trail, I went the other direction from my house and visited Secret Lake Park. There were a lot of secrets to find here.
Secret Lake Park is in a not so secret location if you look at maps. Though without them, I might not have found this place. Nestled in the middle of not just multiple lakes, but a neighborhood or two along the way.
But I wasn’t the only one who was aware of this place. And I can only imagine how much more crowded it is normally. Not only did I come visit early in the morning. Right as the sun came up in fact making this one of my earliest adventures in a day. It was thanksgiving when I visited here. Which meant that most people were probably still asleep.
I wonder what this place is like a on a normal day. Or at least how crowded it would be in a pre Covid world. I still constantly wonder what the world after Covid will be like. Certainly not the same as the past. And I’ll look forward to whatever that changed world is like.
Boats:
Once I left the parking lot, I got to explore Secret Lake Park properly. There were a few spots such as the Casselberry rec center that I could not go to since I don’t like in that town. I’m currently living in Longwood for those of you who care about such things.
One thing that struck me in a positive way was noticing that there are multiple spots for non motor boats to enter the nearby lake. In fact, I quickly discovered that there were multiple lakes all around this park. Little canals connect them to each other. I even saw a little bridge over one of them. Kayaking down Wekiva Springs is a unique and fun experience, but its been a while since I have been out on a calm lake.
As if boating and the standard open areas of a park were not good enough for visitors, Secret Lake Park also has multiple basketball courts. I always love versatile parks like this one. I pressed on, excited by my find and knowing I would discover plenty more.
Murals:
Many parks have murals and Secret Lake Park was not different. Plenty of signage dotted the shore in this part of the park telling me all sorts of tidbits about the area. Its worth reading these things honestly. Not only did people put work into them, but you might learn something new. Its truly a mutual exchange where everyone is bettered.
There were artistic murals scattered about too. Unsurprisingly they depicted fish. I mean what else would you do art on next to a lake? Speaking of art, some of the trees thought they would get in on the act. Those leaves look amazing in the morning light. The colors all mesh well enough that you might be fooled into thinking that its paintings.
Multiple Lakes:
Quite a bit of the water is obstructed at Secret Lake Park. After all, how else would the lake be a secret if one could easily see it? Well as it turned out, once you went deep enough into the park where it no longer needed to hide, it was easy to see the lake and all the surrounding bodies of water near it.
Since I came right after sunrise, the light reflected off the water giving me some pretty amazing photos. I’m going to make a habit of going out to parks early in the morning. This time of day is one where too many people are either asleep or getting ready for work. But there is a special beauty to the world in the early morning.
I also spotted a large playground. Normally I can’t go anywhere near these spots in the park. Children at play with parents nearby. I wonder what they would think about some weird looking due randomly taking pictures. That’s a whole lot of nope. So since I had a chance to look at a playground without accidently setting off red flags, I did what I could.
Swamp Land:
As I continued walking around Secret Lake Park, I found a different sort of secret. After multiple Florida swamp parks, I knew I would find something neat if I followed this boardwalk bridge.
Best of all, the journey was neat in itself. I love the swamp environments in Florida parks. Though I wish the mosquitos would go torment other people and leave me alone. There were also a ton of squirrels here. I was worried a few times I might get to close to one and they might decide to attack instead of run. Luckily, I didn’t get into confrontations with wildlife.
At the other end of the boardwalk, the swamp opened up and I found a soccer field waiting for me. As if there wasn’t already enough to do here, Secret Lake Park even has soccer fields. It didn’t look like much space from a map, but its amazing just how much is crammed into this space.
Back to the Path:
I didn’t want to run across the soccer fields. They looked a bit flooded. Instead, I went back across the boardwalk and through the swamp. The park has a path that goes around the outside. I returned to that route and continued on my way.
The sun continued to rise and the sky was turning to the blue that you see in most of my blog photos. But it was still early enough in the day that the orange and yellows that you see around dusk and dawn were still visible in the sky.
In a few of my other posts I have talked about land value and the sort of homes you might find just out of view when I visit nice parks like this one. The people living nearby have yards that back up to the lakes and canals. So even from my limited view and your even more limited pictures, I saw the docks that those people used to enter without leaving their backyards. I can only imagine the obscene cost of those homes.
Beyond the Soccer Fields:
The path turned as I completed more of the circle around Secret Lake Park. You can see more pictures of the soccer fields and the spots I visited when I emerged from the swamp. But naturally there was more. The more I explored the more amazed I became at the sheer number of things one could do here.
As if everything else wasn’t enough, this park also has at least one baseball field. This place has everything. Pretty sure there are tennis courts too. I just didn’t get close enough to them for there to be multiple pictures of them so far. Maybe further down.
I didn’t regret visiting at all. In fact I was more sad that the rest of my day would be spent dealing with Thanksgiving. Its one of my least favorite holidays. Right up there with Christmas and Valentines Day as the days I loathe most the entire year.
Back to the Start:
Rounding one final bend, I took pictures of a few of the spots I had missed last time I came around. Being back at the beginning of the park, I finally checked the time and found that I enjoyed a full hour at the park. All in all I mentioned this multiple times already but I loved everything I saw at Secret Lake Park. Maybe it should be less of a secret so that it can be shared with others.
There is plenty of space and an equal number of activities. From Soccer to Basketball to Baseball, all bases are covered there. That doesn’t take into account boating, hiking, and of course a nice relaxing sit on a bench. And for the little ones, there are plenty of things to do on that playground I mentioned earlier. No matter your reasons for coming here, this park will be able to accommodate just about any plans.
Pokémon Go:
Secret Lake Park was an incredible experience in the real world. And there was an equally incredible time to be had in Pokémon Go. Now this is more like it. After all the trails and small parks, this location delivered. 3 EX Eligible Gyms and plenty of Pokestops made this worth the journey for Pokémon Go alone. That doesn’t even take into account everything else.
With plentiful spawns every step of the way, I was never left wanting in game or in reality. I can’t recommend this park enough. No matter what reason you might choose to be outside, Secret Lake Park will be able to make your day better.
Axew is still my buddy and the little Dragon loved this bridge. I made sure to come back here just for the sake of taking this picture on another lap around Secret Lake Park. One day this little fella will grow up to be a big strong Haxorus. But not yet. Still needs to see more of the world.
Wrap Up:
Here I am happy as can be to have visited this park. I didn’t regret anything while here. Thanksgiving might be a day that brings me down, but this park gave me enough of an emotional boost that I think I’ll be fine this time around. I am excited to see where my adventures take me next. Guess that is something to be thankful for.