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Verified upcoming fishing trips are available for Lake Dora. View the available trip option below.
Lake Dora, located in Mount Dora, is known as “the New England of the South” to many people. In keeping with the combination of Southern hospitality and New England charm, this theme extends beyond the entrance to this spectacular community in Leesburg.
Mount Dora’s city, which surrounds Lake Dora, embraces this theme with its milder climate, sophisticated shopping, and vibrant cultural life, making it a unique Florida destination. It has won many awards for being such a wonderful place to live and fish; some others are:
Dora Lake, a 4,500-acre lake, is one of the seven lakes of the Harris Chain of Lakes located in Lake County in central Florida. The lake is a favorite location for fishing and recreational boating. The Dora Canal connects Lake Dora to Lake Eustis to the north, and Lake Dora connects to Lake Apopka to the south via Lake Beauclair and the Apopka-Beauclair Canal.
My Dora offers many ways to get a bird’s-eye view of the waterways, including private fishing charters, boat rentals, and the popular Dora Canal tour offered by locals.
The choice is yours; the options are endless. Rent a boat by the hour, be seated along with passengers on a local tour, or interact with the outdoors on a private charter. Higher-end tours also exist, like a seaplane ride over the waterways. Renting a paddleboard, kayak, or canoe is potentially much less expensive.
Dora has many scenic areas, as there is a lot to take in. A prominent local hot spot is the pathways at the Palm Island Boardwalk.
Leesburg and Lake County have over 130 miles of usable waterways; there’s plenty to do.
Lake Dora’s southwestern shore is a wetland, and its southeastern coast is a narrow strip of land separating Lake Dora from Lake Beauclair.
The lake is teeming with wildlife, including many types of fish, waterfowl, reptiles, and mammals. The famous Dora Canal is a popular area for bird-watching and is the primary focus of guided tour boats that maneuver the waterways.
Location: latitude 28° 47’21.733″, longitude 81° 41’51.643″, GPS datum—WGS-1984. Station DMR is located near the center of Lake Dora.
Two public boat ramps provide direct access to Lake Dora: one on the northern shore in Tavares and the other on the eastern shore in Mount Dora. Both ramps are very usable, with plenty of parking for vehicles and boat trailers.
A public boat ramp is located one mile off U.S. 27 on S.R. 630-A at Keene Park Road; refer to the map below for directions.
Anyone interested in fishing Lake Dora or the Harris Chain of Lakes should consult with local guides and resources before heading out to fish. You can find additional local Mt Dora resources here!
We hope you enjoy exploring the website. It focuses primarily on bass fishing but also offers excellent information on other freshwater topics, including bluegill, crappie, snakehead, peacock bass, and catfish throughout the U.S.