Is Lake Buffum safe?
Winter Haven, Florida · safety score updated nightly
Yes — it is one of the safer places in the metro to walk around.
VibeLoco rates Lake Buffum as “Go”.
Gogo's take on Lake Buffum
“Go. Lake Buffum is a peaceful, rural lakeside enclave with minimal violent crime and quiet residential surroundings. Visitors should mainly be prepared for a secluded environment that requires personal transportation and basic situational awareness around open water and unlit rural roads.”
About the area
Lake Buffum is a tranquil freshwater lake surrounded by citrus groves, ranches, and scattered lakefront properties in rural southern Polk County. It offers open water views, boating, and fishing opportunities away from heavy suburban congestion.
- Rural / Secluded
- Lakeside
- Car-Dependent
- Quiet
Walking and biking in Lake Buffum
Walk score: 4/100 · Bike score: 18/100
There are no dedicated bike lanes, multi-use paths, or bike-share programs; cycling is limited to narrow rural two-lane roads with unpaved shoulders.
Reasons to go, and reasons to think twice
Pros
- Very low violent crime rate typical of rural residential lake communities
- Peaceful, uncrowded setting ideal for freshwater angling and boating
- High rates of private homeownership and stable residential properties
Cons
- Extremely isolated with long emergency response and medical transit times
- Lack of street lighting and sidewalks along narrow two-lane rural roads
- Sparse commercial amenities requiring driving 15 to 25 minutes for dining and supplies
Homelessness: Visible homelessness is practically non-existent in this rural lake area, with social services and shelters located in larger municipal centers such as Bartow and Winter Haven.
What Lake Buffum is like at each time of day
- Morning · 5a – 11a
- Peaceful and scenic as anglers head out onto the water, with very little vehicular traffic.
- Afternoon · 11a – 5p
- Calm and sunny with occasional local residential and agricultural vehicle movement.
- Evening · 5p – 10p
- Quiet and serene with striking lake sunsets, though light levels drop quickly.
- Late night · 10p – 5a
- Pitch-black on backroads with virtually no pedestrian or vehicle activity, feeling safe but isolated.
Transit, parking and getting around
There is no public transit service operating in the immediate Lake Buffum area; the Citrus Connection bus network serves urbanized Winter Haven and Bartow several miles to the north and west.
Free public parking is available at the Lake Buffum boat ramp with space for vehicles and boat trailers, while private lakefront residences offer ample on-site driveway parking.
Things to do in Lake Buffum
- Launch a bass boat or kayak from the Lake Buffum Public Boat Ramp for freshwater fishing
- Watch native bird species including ospreys and bald eagles along the quiet shoreline
- Take a scenic rural drive through surrounding Polk County citrus groves and pastureland
Local favorites
- Catfish Country · Seafood Restaurant · 4.5★ (1820)Beloved local outpost in nearby Bartow serving fried catfish, hushpuppies, and Southern comfort sides.
- The Purple Onion · American Restaurant · 4.4★ (460)Down-home diner in nearby Fort Meade offering hearty breakfasts and classic comfort plates.
- Brocato's Market · Grocery Store · 4.6★ (210)Convenient local grocery and meat market serving the rural outskirts of southern Polk County.
Scores are safety-driven — recent reported crime and local news plus Census income, poverty, housing, education, household and access data — refreshed nightly. Walk and bike scores are shown separately and do not affect the safety score. A guide, not a guarantee — conditions change street to street.