Question About Bay Lake & Seven Seas Lagoon

[AndyMcV]

Hi Gang

I've seen pictures of people swimming and waterskiing, etc in the Seven Seas Lagoon and Bay Lake. I've also heard that you cannot swim in these.

On our last trip in June we stopped at the Poly and really like the look and location of the resort. However, now thinking about the water and not being able to play in the sand/water with my kids and swim in the lake seems really, really odd especially for a resort that sits on a "lake".

So what is the true story here, can you swim in the lake or not?

My second question would be... if you can't then why wouldn't the imagineers invent something that would clean the lake or make it possible for you to swim in it?

Andy

 

[Luvamouse]

No you can't swim there, here is one of many threads on it... Reason You Can't Swim...

If you Google words that fit, you'll find out a lot too. I think there are simply too many factors going on. It is beautiful to look at though and the pools make up for it to me.

 

[Lynne M]

There's no way you can 'clean' a freshwater lake of that size, short of lining it with concrete and dosing it with chlorine. Then it's not a lake anymore, it's just another swimming pool, and you lose all the wildlife (birds, fish, etc.) that makes it so scenic and wonderful. Seven Seas Lagoon (in front of the Poly) connects with Bay Lake (on the other side of CR), so Bay Lake's ecosystem would be destroyed as well.

People in FL don't really swim in lakes. The heat and humidity drive the bacterial count dangerously high. There may be alligators and snakes present. In warmer weather, there may be an amoeba called Naegleria fowleri present in the sediment at the bottom of the lake; if inhaled, this little critter can cause a fatal encephalitis. Google it, you'll see that there have been deaths in central FL in recent years because of it.

It's safe for boating and waterskiing, since you're not immersed in the water. But swimming is not safe.

 

[dburg30]

Do they even do skiing? I know they do parasailing, but do they take you water skiing?

 

[mmmears]

You can play on the beach at the Poly, though. Lots of kids are playing there in the sand with little buckets & shovels. It's just getting into the lake that's a no-no. But the Poly pool is right there at the beach, with a nice zero-entry that slopes gently just like a good beach should.

We plan to enjoy the sand and the hammocks, then take a dip in the volcano pool!

 

[spiceycat]

way back in the 70's you could swim in the lake.

but then the bacterial and amoeba moved in plus a few other things.

even then disney posted that you could swim - with nose plugs and ear plugs - but you know people. some swam without them and then tried to sue Disney.

so safer for WDW no SWIMMING - period.

before I let the kids too near the lake - be on the lookout for alligators. Disney definitely gets them. Now I think they can be moved regardless of how long they are - before - when they were on the endanger list - Disney could not move them until they were 4 or 5 feet long.

so anywhere near any lakes, streams, lagoon at Disney - be on the look out for gators. if you see one - report immediately.

oh if you have never seem a gator - to some people they look like logs. So any logs close to the Polyn - don't let your kids near it.

 

[spiceycat]

It was just a question, sheesh. Imagineers have done everything but put a man on the moon.

disney does not have a good record with animals. before when discover cove was around - they had a bunch of problems with the florida bluzzard.

they decide to follow sw and just shoot at them (not really to kill them - just to make a loud noise) - the environmentals were up at arms. Ignoring that sw had been doing it for years.

they are also the reason you cannot feed anything at Disney any longer.

disney use to have places were you could feed the fish. (okay some of us were feeding the birds)