Lake Michigan

Just so you can find your bearings in this enormous town, know that you are about 500 meters away from the shores of Lake Michigan. If you continue on your right, you will come across the Lake’s front Trail, a renowned hiking trail that stretches along Lake Michigan for 29 kilometers, or 18 miles. As it is very popular, you will encounter joggers, cyclists, rollerbladers and more. Referred to by locals as the LFT, this trail links various attractions in Chicago, including its parks, beaches, and pier. It is the perfect spot to get to know Lake Michigan and it certainly has more of a sea side feel to it than being infront of a lake. That tends to happen when you can’t see the horizon. It is worth mentioning that Lake Michigan is the size of the state of Virginia. And it is not even the largest of the 5 Great Lakes in the region! ! 13 million people live along its shores which spread across 4 states: Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Wisconsin and includes 2 major cities: Chicago and Milwaukee. As aforementionned, it is one of the 5 Great Lakes in Northern America. As the 4 others straddle the border with Canada, Lake Michigan is considered as the biggest lake in the United States, and is ranked 5th in the whole world. We’re talking 500 kilometers long! For reference’s sake, imagine you are in London, and the other shore is Dublin!!!

The designation Michigan, which then gave its name to the entire state, comes from one the the Algonquian languages spoken in the Great Lakes region, Ojibwe. The Ojibwe people settled around the Great Lakes, and had named this region : Mishi-gamiing, which roughly translates to Great water.The earliest traces of life on the shores of Lake Michigan, are attributed to the Hopewell culture, a pre-Columbian Native American culture present from the 2nd century BC until the 5th century of our time. Today, Chicago boasts 45 kilometers of coastline, 33 beaches and many islands! It is a little seaside resort that no one expected. There is plenty to explore! Whether a by boat, kayak, paddleboard or swimming, Lake Michigan is Chicago’s central attraction, an experience not to be missed