Clermont, Florida isn’t one of the bigger attractions that Florida is known for but it is certainly a hidden gem. Clermont’s moniker is “Choice of Champions”. The town is very active with many sporting competitions and pro athletes that come here to train all your round. The climate, hilly terrain, and abundance of lakes makes this an outdoors-man’s perfect location. I decided to try out Lake Minneola’s Waterfront Park as the first place I wanted to launch my new ISLE Scout Inflatable Paddle Board. Waterfront Park is a great location with a 600ft sandy beach, public restrooms, plentiful parking, outdoor and indoor showers, two pavilions, a splash pad, and access to the West Orange Trail. On any given day of the week you will see plenty of runners and cyclists passing by on the trail as well as people swimming along the shoreline.

It was extremely easy to find parking and to bring my paddle board over to the water to inflate it. I love the ease of transporting my inflatable paddle board since it folds up and fits into a backpack. It doesn’t take very long to blow up and I’m ready to get started paddling in no time. The first time I took out my paddle board on Lake Minneola there was literally no one else on the lake.The water was perfectly glass. I saw an amazing sunset and knew I had to come back. The second time I went out on the water it was the Saturday before Fourth of July and I could definitely tell people were gearing up for the holiday weekend. With a boat launch near the park you should watch out for watercrafts in the area. Overall we had a great time and were able to paddle 4 miles around the perimeter of the lake. You could do up to 10 miles doing the circumference of the whole lake from the looks of it. I would definitely recommend checking out Lake Minneola and Waterfront Park if you are ever in Clermont or the surrounding areas. More than likely the water will be a decent temperature and the lake will be tame if it’s not a holiday weekend. With the sandy beach at the park you get a little taste of the beach life even though you are in Central Florida!

PRO TIPS:

• Tip #1 Bring plenty of sunscreen and water. Florida is called the sunshine state for a reason and you definitely need to lather up and stay hydrated.
• Tip #2 Use the public showers to wash the sand and debris’s off your board before you take it back with you.
• Tip #3 Stay for the sunset, it’s worth it!