5 facts many may not know about Lake Huron
It’s the “forgotten“Great Lake: Lake Huron is often overlooked compared with the other four Great Lakes. Superior has a reputation as the coldest, deepest and largest. Lake Erie, the warmest and shallowest Great Lake, is a world-renowned fishing ground. Ontario, bookended by the Niagara Falls and St. Lawrence Seaway, is the gateway to the ocean. And, at Lake Michigan, tourists flock to Chicago for its remarkable skyline along the shore.
Despite its remarkable size and pristine waters, Huron has been referred to as the “forgotten” or “orphaned” Great Lake because it lacks some of these distinguishable features.
It has 30,000 islands: The Great Lakes have 35,000 islands. Of these, 30,000 are in Lake Huron. The majority are sprinkled in Canada’s Georgian Bay. Perhaps the most famous island — not only in Huron, but in all of the Great Lakes — is Mackinac Island, the site of sacred grounds for Native Americans and a historically significant battleground from the War of 1812. Manitoulin Island is the largest freshwater island in the world and home to six First Nation tribes.
It’s the clearest Great Lake: When invasive zebra and quagga mussels arrived in Lake Huron, they filtered out microorganisms at a rapid clip. A 2017 study by the Michigan Tech Research Institute revealed Lake Huron has surpassed Lake Superior in clarity due, in part, to the introduction of the mussels.
It’s home to “Shipwreck Alley”: There are 14 federal marine sanctuaries in the United States. The only one in the Great Lakes is in Lake Huron. Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary is a 4,300-square-mile preserve near Alpena, Michigan, that holds the remains of 100 known shipwrecks. A combination of rocky shoals and treacherous weather earned the area the nickname “Shipwreck Alley.”
It’s connected to Lake Michigan: Because lakes Michigan and Huron are connected at the Straits of Mackinac, where water oscillates back and forth, scientists recognize them as one lake — the world’s largest by surface area.