Johns Lake near Orlando and other central Florida lakes

[John Mac]

I do not currently own a jet boat but I am seriously considering one.
Attended the Orlando Boat Show today and spent a lot of time looking at the Yamahas (VForce is the main local dealer).
The boat will likely be almost exclusively used on Johns Lake in West Orlando which splits Orange and Lake Counties. We live on the lake and have a dock with a lift.
Primary interest in the jet is the safety profile with the absence of the propeller, relatively low maintenance and the relatively lower initial cost if I decide to buy new. I have five kids ranging in age from 17 down to 8. Primary use would be water sports on the lake. Would like for them to able to eventually operate the boat independently once they are properly trained and licensed and of the appropriate age so that I won't have to always be the "boat slave" so, again, the safety aspect is very important. And would plan to keep the boat for a while once they get comfortable with it.
Wondering if anyone has any experience with this particular lake or any of the similar lakes throughout central Florida and any significant problems with weeds and debris interfering with usage on a regular basis. Would hate to spend the money and then regret it if we spend half our time cleaning out the intakes.

We do have a Yamaha WaveRunner which has been great with no major issues but not sure how well that translates over to a jet boat.
Any insights from central Florida locals most welcome.
Thanks!

 

[VitaminSea]

Welcome aboard! Took my waverunner out to John’s lake for the first time about a month ago (before all the rain), and was shocked to see many boats stranded on their lifts due to the low water level. Overall, seemed like a clean lake, with the exception of certain grassy areas. As you mentioned, didn’t have an issue with the ski getting clogged, but I’m sure it can happen.

A great tool is the reverse trick. When you feel the attritional drag on the pump, put it in reverse, get some momentum going, and cut the engine (can do this one at a time if you have dual engines), and immediately put the throttle of the dead engine into FWD to allow the bucket to be open. The backwards momentum should allow water to enter the pump from the rear, and help clear the grates.

To note, this is true on the boats with manual throttle linkage (non-SD/wake), as those are electronic and I believe whenever the engine is cut off the nozzle bucket returns to the neutral space.

I’m sure there are times of the year when the lake will have more vegetation than others, and this might be problematic. Another thought, have you cruised around on the lake on the ski and taken a survey of which neighbors have Yamaha boats, and potentially try to connect with them to see if they experience issues?

I live closer to the Dora/Harris Chain of lakes, and often seen may Yamaha’s out there w/o issue, and whenever I’ve taken the boat on the lake I’ve only encountered issues around the ramp (Trimble), as the water isn’t very deep there (2.5-4 ft) and has lots of aquatic vegetation.

As an aside, cruising around your lake, I felt like the landscape was more akin to the Carolina’s, amazes me how much hillier Clermont is than that balance of flat Florida!

Good luck in your quest!

 

[spatty99]

If you will boat almost exclusively on your home lake and primarily doing watersports, I would absolutely go with a v-drive. That is exactly what they do best. I live on a central Florida lake, first 5 years with a Yamaha, last 5 years with a Moomba, would only switch back if Yamaha drastically improved wakes/waves or we trailered the boat a lot more.

 

[John Mac]

Welcome aboard! Took my waverunner out to John’s lake for the first time about a month ago (before all the rain), and was shocked to see many boats stranded on their lifts due to the low water level. Overall, seemed like a clean lake, with the exception of certain grassy areas. As you mentioned, didn’t have an issue with the ski getting clogged, but I’m sure it can happen.

A great tool is the reverse trick. When you feel the attritional drag on the pump, put it in reverse, get some momentum going, and cut the engine (can do this one at a time if you have dual engines), and immediately put the throttle of the dead engine into FWD to allow the bucket to be open. The backwards momentum should allow water to enter the pump from the rear, and help clear the grates.

To note, this is true on the boats with manual throttle linkage (non-SD/wake), as those are electronic and I believe whenever the engine is cut off the nozzle bucket returns to the neutral space.

I’m sure there are times of the year when the lake will have more vegetation than others, and this might be problematic. Another thought, have you cruised around on the lake on the ski and taken a survey of which neighbors have Yamaha boats, and potentially try to connect with them to see if they experience issues?

I live closer to the Dora/Harris Chain of lakes, and often seen may Yamaha’s out there w/o issue, and whenever I’ve taken the boat on the lake I’ve only encountered issues around the ramp (Trimble), as the water isn’t very deep there (2.5-4 ft) and has lots of aquatic vegetation.

As an aside, cruising around your lake, I felt like the landscape was more akin to the Carolina’s, amazes me how much hillier Clermont is than that balance of flat Florida!

Good luck in your quest!

Thanks for the response!

 

[John Mac]

If you will boat almost exclusively on your home lake and primarily doing watersports, I would absolutely go with a v-drive. That is exactly what they do best. I live on a central Florida lake, first 5 years with a Yamaha, last 5 years with a Moomba, would only switch back if Yamaha drastically improved wakes/waves or we trailered the boat a lot more.

Thank you, appreciate the response!

 

[1BadTundra]

We have family in FL, and my son goes to college there. The question we always ask, and never get a straight answer... Aren't you worried about gators when boating/skiing in the lakes down there? We have been told, the way to tell if a gator is present is to look for water.

 

[VitaminSea]

We have been told, the way to tell if a gator is present is to look for water.

A very true statement, just because a gactor wasn't present yesterday, doesn’t mean that is still the case.

If I were to swim in a lake or water sports, my comfort would be a lake with great water clarity, and still then I’m not wild about the idea. But then again I swim in the ICW and gulf where I know sea life (including sharks) are present.

The chain of lakes closest to my house certainly has gators (if I go out midweek I have seen the floating on the surface), but it doesn’t seem to effect others from tubing, swimming or hanging out in 3ft of water (and the water clarity there is generally less than 3ft). I have never heard of a gator attack or incident on the lake. Generally it’s a gator attacking a dog on the shore line. Just my perspective.

 

[jocolo21]

O boat on the Butler chain, in windermere other than that we go to Dunedin Clearwater and Sarasota you will be ok with a Yamaha, if you are just into watersport then a dedicated wakeboat will be ok except you will be landlock and wont be able to go to the ocean, yes i know the sell salt edition wakeboat , my friend has one and almost sank in the inner coastal. So just choose your battles amd go with it.

This pic was at 1130 pm at 3 rookers in Dunedin

 

[John Mac]

A very true statement, just because a gactor wasn't present yesterday, doesn’t mean that is still the case.

If I were to swim in a lake or water sports, my comfort would be a lake with great water clarity, and still then I’m not wild about the idea. But then again I swim in the ICW and gulf where I know sea life (including sharks) are present.

The chain of lakes closest to my house certainly has gators (if I go out midweek I have seen the floating on the surface), but it doesn’t seem to effect others from tubing, swimming or hanging out in 3ft of water (and the water clarity there is generally less than 3ft). I have never heard of a gator attack or incident on the lake. Generally it’s a gator attacking a dog on the shore line. Just my perspective.

O boat on the Butler chain, in windermere other than that we go to Dunedin Clearwater and Sarasota you will be ok with a Yamaha, if you are just into watersport then a dedicated wakeboat will be ok except you will be landlock and wont be able to go to the ocean, yes i know the sell salt edition wakeboat , my friend has one and almost sank in the inner coastal. So just choose your battles amd go with it.

This pic was at 1130 pm at 3 rookers in Dunedin

Thanks for the post. Just to clarify, in your opinion, a Yamaha jet boat is fine on Butler chain and other similar lakes around Windermere? I think John's Lake is very similar in depth and grass to those others. Thank you.