Lake Michigan, Freshwater lake in northern United States
Lake Michigan is the only Great Lake lying entirely within the United States, bordered by Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and Michigan. It is the second-largest Great Lake by volume (1,180 cu mi; 4,900 km3) and depth (923 ft; 281 m), and the third-largest by surface area (22,300 sq mi; 57,757 km2). The Straits of Mackinac join it to Lake Huron at the same surface elevation.
Indigenous peoples lived along the shores for thousands of years before French explorers arrived in the mid-1600s and established trade routes. Cities grew along the shoreline in the following centuries, and shipping carried settlers and goods between the developing communities.
The name Michigan comes from the Ojibwe word mishigami, meaning "great water". Around 12 million people live along the shore, and many northern Michigan towns swell in summer with visitors from Chicago, Milwaukee and Detroit. The southern end of the lake is heavily industrialised.
Conditions on the water can change quickly, and wind may pick up suddenly on a calm morning, so visitors should watch for weather shifts. Most shoreline spots are accessible from May through September, when water temperatures rise and public beaches open for swimming.
On some winter days, parts of the lake freeze and large sheets of ice break apart and pile up under strong winds, forming tall, jagged mounds along the shore. This phenomenon temporarily transforms the coastline into a frosty landscape that looks nothing like the summer beaches.
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