BIG! Lake Michigan. Have you seen it in person? What do you think of when you hear the word lake? More than likely a body of water that you can see across to the other side–even if it is a big lake. But Lake Michigan is a GREAT BIG lake. Most people are completely surprised when they visit the coastline of Lake Michigan (or any of the other Great Lakes) and see for the first time how massive the lake truly is. You can’t wave to Aunt Minnie in Wisconsin…no way. Notice what Wikipedia says about Lake Michigan:
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America and the only one located entirely within the United States. The other four Great Lakes are shared by the US and Canada. It is the second largest of the Great Lakes by volume[1] and the third largest by surface area, after Lake Superior and Lake Huron (and is slightly smaller than the U.S. state of West Virginia). To the east, its basin is conjoined with that of Lake Huron through the wide Straits of Mackinac, giving it the same surface elevation as its easterly counterpart. Lake Michigan is bounded, from west to east, by the U.S. states of Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Michigan. The word “Michigan” originally referred to the lake itself, and is believed to come from the Ojibwa word mishigami meaning “great water”.[3]
It is 118 miles wide by 307 miles long, reaching a depth of up to 923ft. That is a lot of water. A lot of water with no sharks! Bonus.
This was taken last January on my beach walk with Rockefeller.
And this one was this past summer:
Check out the other “BIG” photos at the Weekly Photo Challenge.
~~Heather~~
Oh! I LOVE Lake Michigan! We lived in Alaska for 10 years, and it was incredibly beautiful, but you know what? I missed our beautiful great lakes–especially Lake Michigan! So many happy memories were/are made along her shores!
Yes! You know exactly what I am saying. If I ever moved away, I know I would miss it terribly.
So beautiful! it looks more like a sea than a lake. Now I’m fascinated by the Great Lakes and must read more!
Lake Michigan … it’s my favorite lake – my heart belongs to the ocean but looking at Lake Michigan is like looking at the ocean and I never seen a lake that green. Brilliant choice for the challenge.
Hi Heather!
What beautiful beach shots…looks like the ocean. I didn’t know squat about Lake Michigan until today. Interesting factoids!
xo, Adrienne
You know, I live on the lake but after this, our lake looks like a pond!
Beautiful. It looks like the ocean with the waves!
What a perfect subject for your topic of ‘Big’. I love lake Michigan. I live in Northwest Indiana and plenty of our beaches are on the big lake.
I was astonished at how long it took a ferry to cross the Lake. Big water is right! We loved how much it was like a beach. We were thinking how lovely it would be to live in Chicago, but only if we could afford Lincoln Park… Then again, I remember Oklahoma winters; Chicago winters couldn’t be any better.
I remember the look on Peter’s cousin, Ralph’s, face who was visiting from NJ, when we took him to South Haven. First off, he thought that grass would be growing right up to the water’s edge. Secondly, he couldn’t see across to the other side. He just stood there will his mouth agape.
Aren’t we lucky that we’re less than an hour away from this beauty?
Wow that isn’t a lake its a small sea!
It’s a lake that thinks its a sea! I looked across that body of water one time about 20 years ago. Amazing.
Haven’t ever seen any of the great lakes but they have to be big if they are called great.
It’s quite a lake! A great place to grow up.
Beautiful shots.
Beautiful photographs – the first is my favorite!
Over 300 miles long? That is a serious lake. It looks more like an ocean since you can’t see the other side. Beautiful.