Buck Lake
Orange County, FloridaView mapDirections
Florida DEP publishes the water-quality measurements for Buck Lake. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- 48 ft max depth
- Limited data
Buck Lake in Orange County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 18 µg/L.
Buck Lake is a productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Orange County, Florida with an estimated average depth of about 48 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Compared to the 319 other monitored lakes in Orange County, Buck Lake ranks #18 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, FDEP, last sampled 2025-03-25. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyBacteria tested: low
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Based on E. coli testing, Buck Lake rarely exceeded the EPA safe-swimming threshold (235 MPN/100mL) — on 4% of 25 samples across 7 seasons.
This is a historical summary of past testing, not a current condition — bacteria levels change quickly, especially after rain. Always check Florida’s current beach and health-department advisories before swimming.
Whether Buck Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for the Florida Department of Environmental Protection and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Buck Lake
These are the measurements Florida DEP publishes for Buck Lake, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Murky, only visible to about 4.8 ft. Phosphorus 18 µg/L. TSI 50.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 4.8ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 18µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | No reading The green pigment in algae — a direct measure of how much algae is in the water. | |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 50 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Buck Lake
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Water Temperature
Buck Lake typically sits around 75°F at the surface in October. Summer average is about 84°F. Usually warmest in Aug (about 87°F) and coldest in Dec (about 68°F). These are typical values by month — not a live reading.
Column height runs from this lake’s coldest month (68°F) to its warmest (87°F).
Typical surface water temperature by month, from 137 field readings (2010–2025) via the EPA Water Quality Portal. See the full Buck Lake water temperature breakdown →
Lake Details
Max depth
~48 ft est.
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Florida has not published bathymetry for Buck Lake.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
1 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Surface area
104 acres
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
1.8 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
75 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Buck Lake
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Buck Lake in Orange County, Florida — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water.
Top-rated places to stay near Buck Lake
Prices for Oct 16–18, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Planning a whole trip? See where to stay at Florida’s top lakes →
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Fishing Buck Lake
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2024).
Water clarity
Stable5 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+0.7 µg/L/yr4 years
Nearby Lakes in Orange County
Frequently asked questions about Buck Lake
Where is Buck Lake?
- Buck Lake is a lake in Orange County, Florida. Its water-quality measurements are published by Florida DEP and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Buck Lake?
- Buck Lake in Orange County, Florida has water-quality measurements published by Florida DEP, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 4.8 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 18 µg/L.
Is Buck Lake safe to swim in?
- Based on E. coli testing, Buck Lake rarely exceeded the EPA safe-swimming threshold (235 MPN/100mL) — on 4% of 25 samples across 7 seasons. That is a historical summary of past bacteria testing, not a current reading and not a swimming clearance. Bacteria levels can spike quickly after heavy rain, so whether Buck Lake is safe to swim in today is a call for Florida's water agency and the county health department; check their current beach advisories before you swim.
What is the water temperature of Buck Lake?
- Buck Lake typically sits around 75°F at the surface in October, from 137 EPA Water Quality Portal field readings (2010–2025). That is a typical value for the month, not a live reading.
How deep is Buck Lake?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Buck Lake, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 48 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate.
Explore Buck Lake across LakeQuality
Planning a trip around Canaveral?
Buck Lake is about 40 miles from Canaveral National Seashore. Crowds there swing hard by season, so the month you pick changes both how busy the park is and what lodging costs.
Best time to visit Canaveral →More lakes in Florida
Other Lakes in Florida
Eutrophic Lakes in Florida
Where this data comes from
33 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Submitting organization not recorded for these samples33 samples · 2020–2025
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)