Lake Jessie, with somewhat of an oval shape, has a surface area of . This lake is on the northwest side of Winter Haven, Florida, and is just east of
Auburndale, Florida
Auburndale is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. The population was 13,507 at the 2010 census. According to the U.S. Census estimates of 2019, the city had a population of 16,650. It is part of the Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida Metropo ...
. Residential areas border this lake from the northwest shore all the way south along the west shore, ending where the south shore of the lake meets the east shore of the lake. At this point a canal separates the residences from some woods on the southeast shore of Lake Jessie. These woods are on the edge of
Winter Haven Municipal Airport
Winter Haven's Gilbert Airport is a city-owned, public-use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) northwest of the central business district of Winter Haven, a city in Polk County, Florida, United States. It is owned by the City of W ...
. Airport property occupies the entire east and northeast shores of the lake.
Jack Brown's Seaplane Base, on the northeast shore and a part of the airport uses the northeast shore of Lake Jessie for
seaplane
A seaplane is a powered fixed-wing aircraft capable of takeoff, taking off and water landing, landing (alighting) on water.Gunston, "The Cambridge Aerospace Dictionary", 2009. Seaplanes are usually divided into two categories based on their tec ...
takeoffs and landings. Most of the north shore of the lake is bordered by more woods.
Lake Jessie has public access at the public boat ramp on the west side of the lake, where Morton Road ends at the ramp. Boats may access Lake Jessie via a canal connecting this lake to
Lake Idylwild on the southeast corner of the lake. Another canal near Jack Brown's Seaplane Base provides access to
Lake Mariana
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much larger ...
to the north. However, this canal is very small and not always navigable. Lake Jessie is part of the south part of the
Winter Haven Chain of Lakes system, so boats may travel some distance to reach this lake. This lake has no public swimming areas. The Take Me Fishing website says Lake Jessie contains
largemouth bass
The largemouth bass (''Micropterus salmoides'') is a carnivorous freshwater gamefish in the Centrarchidae ( sunfish) family, a species of black bass native to the eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada and northern Mexico, but ...
and
bluegill
The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or "copper nose" as is common in Texas, is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and ...
.
["Guide to Polk 2013," at ''The Ledger'' online, at http://www.ledgerdata.com/guide_to_polk/666/lake-jessie-boad-ramp/ .]
References
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Jessie