Lake Michigan
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded, in clockwise order from the south, by the U.S. states of Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, and Michigan, which is named for it.
The word "Michigan" was originally used to refer to the lake itself, and is believed to come from the Ojibwa Indian word mishigami, meaning "great water."
Lake Michigan is the only one of the Great Lakes wholly within the borders of the United States; the others are shared with Canada. It has a surface area of 22,300 square miles (57750 square km), making it the largest freshwater lake in the US, the largest lake entirely within one country, and the 5th largest lake in the world. It is 307 miles (494 km) long by 118 miles (190 km) wide. Its greatest depth is 923 feet (281 m). It contains a volume of 4,918 cubic km of water. Its surface averages 580 feet (177 m) above sea level, the same as Lake Huron, to which it is connected through the Straits of Mackinac. Geologically and hydrologically, Michigan and Huron are the same body of water (sometimes called Lake Michigan-Huron), but are geographically distinct. The Mackinac Bridge is generally considered the dividing line between them. Both lakes are part of the Great Lakes Waterway. In earlier maps of the region, the name "Lake Illinois" has been found in place of "Michigan."
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Major cities
Some 12 million people live along Lake Michigan's shores. Many small cities in Northern Michigan are centered around a tourist base that takes advantage of the beauty and recreational opportunities offered by Lake Michigan. These cities have large seasonal populations that arrive from Chicago and inland cities in Southern Michigan. The southern tip of the lake is heavily industrialized. Cities on the shores of Lake Michigan with populations larger than 30,000 include:
Illinois
- Chicago, Illinois
- Evanston, Illinois
- Highland Park, Illinois
- North Chicago, Illinois
- Waukegan, Illinois
Indiana
Michigan
Wisconsin
- Green Bay, Wisconsin
- Kenosha, Wisconsin
- Manitowoc, Wisconsin
- Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- Racine, Wisconsin
- Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Beaches
Lake Michigan beaches, especially those beaches in Michigan and Northern Indiana, are known for their beauty. The sand is soft and off-white, known as "singing sands" due to the squeaking noise made when one walks across it (caused by the high quartz content). There are often high sand dunes covered in green beach grass and sand cherries, and the water is usually clear and cold (between 55 and 70 °F/13 and 21 °C) [1], even in late summer. Lake Michigan beaches in Northern Michigan are the only place in the world where one can find Petoskey stones, the state stone.
Steel mills are visible along the Indiana shoreline, but the pollution caused by these mills is believed to contribute to the color of sunsets.
The Chicago Skyline can be seen from the Indiana shore, but when standing on the beaches in Lower Michigan, it is impossible to see across the lake to Wisconsin, providing a view similar to that found on ocean coasts.
Parks
Several state parks are located on the lakeshore as well as the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore and Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Part of the shoreline is also in the Hiawatha National Forest and the Manistee National Forest. Part of the Michigan Islands National Wildlife Refuge is located in Lake Michigan.
Car ferries
Motorists can cross Lake Michigan by the SS Badger, a ferry that runs from Ludington, Michigan, to Manitowoc, Wisconsin. The Lake Express, established in 2004, is another ferry. It allows motorists to cross the lake between Muskegon, Michigan, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, at a much higher speed than the Ludington ferry.
Islands
Lighthouses
See also
- Grand Traverse Bay
- Door Peninsula
- Bay of Green Bay
- Leelanau Peninsula
- Big Bay De Noc
- Little Bay De Noc
- Little Traverse Bay
| North American Great Lakes |
| Lake Superior | Lake Michigan | Lake Huron | Lake Erie | Lake Ontario |
