![]() Some of the wrecks on the Lake Michigan side include the Sandusky, the Maitland and the Eber Ward. This preserve, known as the Straits of Mackinac Underwater Preserve, contains 12 marked shipwrecks. A number of ships met their demise trying to pass through this skinny channel - so many, in fact, that an underwater preserve was eventually created where divers can explore these sunken ships. Ships were at the mercy of unpredictable storms, dangerous currents, fog, ice, shallow areas and rocky shoals. The wreck was discovered by a diver on July 7, 2010, 155 years after the accident, in excellent condition.īefore the invention of radar in the 1940s, the Straits of Mackinac could be an extremely dangerous area to navigate. One of the most famous maritime disasters was the sinking of the Westmoreland, a steamer that sank on Dec. Like all of the Great Lakes, Lake Michigan has had its share of shipwrecks. In 1679, Nicolette explored the southernmost part of the lake where modern-day Chicago is. The formation that is recognized as Lake Michigan today began about 1.2 billion years ago when two tectonic plates were ripped apart, creating the Mid-Continent Rift.įrench explorer Samuel de Champlain sent his underling Jean Nicolett to find the “Northwest Passage” but he ended up discovering Lake Michigan around 1634. The pebble-shaped Petoskey stone, which is a fossilized coral, is unique to the northern Michigan shores of Lake Michigan and is the state stone. Predatory birds such as hawks and vultures are also prevalent on the lake, due to the wealth of wildlife to feast upon. The lake is also home to a wide range of bird populations, including water birds such as ducks, geese and swans, as well as crows, robins and bald eagles. The lake is also home to crawfish, freshwater sponges and sea lamprey, a metallic violet species of eel. Trout, salmon, walleye, and smallmouth bass fisheries are prevalent on the lake. Marshes, tallgrass prairies, savannas, forests and sand dunes that can reach several hundred feet, all provide excellent habitats for all types of wildlife on Lake Michigan. The lake’s average water depth is 279 feet (85 meters) and its maximum depth is 925 feet (282 meters). Ocean-like swells, especially during the winter, can result in a drastic temperature changes along the coast, shoreline erosion and difficult navigation. Winds and resulting waves keep Lake Michigan from freezing over, but it has been 90 percent frozen on a number of occasions. The water of Lake Michigan has an unusual circulatory pattern - it resembles the traffic flow in a suburban cul-de-sac - and moves very slowly. ![]() ![]() Water temperatures on Lake Michigan make it to the 60s in July and August and can sometimes make it into the 70s when air temperatures have been in the 90s for a number of continuous days.
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