This past Summer, I paddled Horseshoe Lake a couple of times at the invitation of Ben Quaintance. We launched at 10 am on weekdays and were joined by one or two other paddlers.
A large stand of cypress trees on the East side provides pleasant shaded paddling until mid-day. At that point we loaded up and headed over to
Tacker's Shake Shack for a burger.
I've heard that Horseshoe Lake is popular with power boaters. However, on the weekdays I visited, there were very few power boats on the lake and they were not a problem. Perhaps this would be an issue on weekends.
More information about this location can be found here:
Paddling Horseshoe Lake