# "Inland lake"?! What the hell other kind of lake is there? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 23, 2005, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826 "2005-03-23T02:37:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![OxyMoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9a140/32.png) [@OxyMoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OxyMoron)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/1 "2005-03-23T02:37:01Z")
Pretty much said it all in the title. My question comes from today’s Washington Post, whose coverage of the Minnesota school shooting tragedy begins (second graf): > [@](#): > > They said [the gunman] then traveled to the high school in Red Lake, a town of a few thousand on the southern shore of an _ **inland lake** _, where witnesses said he charged into the school waving his gun and grinning as he shot down students, teachers and a school security guard. (_emph. added_) Huh? If it’s not “inland,” it’s called…the ocean. Or so I thought. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/2 "2005-03-23T02:48:22Z")
Lake of fire? ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/3 "2005-03-23T02:49:41Z")
Why, a [**coastal lake**](http://listsmart.osl.state.or.us/pipermail/odfw-news/2004-November/000362.html), of course! ---
**Author:** ![Garfield226](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Garfield226](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Garfield226)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/4 "2005-03-23T02:51:46Z")
Perhaps the term distinguishes river-fed and river-drained lakes from lakes which are not? ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/5 "2005-03-23T02:52:20Z")
A coastal lake or an island lake perhaps? ---
**Author:** ![PigBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/97f17d/32.png) [@PigBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PigBoy)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/6 "2005-03-23T03:08:41Z")
I’d guess that in this instance it might be meant to distinguish this lake from Lake Superior. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/7 "2005-03-23T03:09:05Z")
Notice the state where the event took place? Minnesota, along with Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, all of Michigan, Ohio, New York, and Ontario have access to a handful of freshwater seas, Lakes that are removed from those larger bodies of water are frequently identified as “inland lakes.” It is probably just a regional expression, but it distinguishes the smaller lakes from the Great Lakes. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/8 "2005-03-23T03:09:13Z")
Veronica Lake? ---
**Author:** ![OxyMoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9a140/32.png) [@OxyMoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OxyMoron)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/9 "2005-03-23T03:27:13Z")
> [@Jack Batty](#): > > Veronica Lake? Nah, more Ricki Lake - in her _Hairspray_ days, when she was pretty big. As for the serious answers - I suppose I get the distinction, but it strikes me as a distinction without a difference for anyone but hydrologists - I mean, Lake Superior is still inland. It’s in quite a lot of land, but it’s inland. And a coastal lake is still inland, otherwise it’d be a bay or an estuary or an inlet or some damn other thing. And trust me, ain’t no WaPo reporter who’s got that kind of scientific literacy, nohow. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/10 "2005-03-23T03:35:54Z")
> [@](#): > > And trust me, ain’t no WaPo reporter who’s got that kind of scientific literacy, nohow. However, a _Post_ re-write man pulling stuff off of AP or Reuters which originated from a local source in Minnesota just might keep a regionalism if it kept the text moving. ---
**Author:** ![dqa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dqa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dqa)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/11 "2005-03-23T03:49:09Z")
> [@OxyMoron](#): > > And a coastal lake is still inland, otherwise it’d be a bay or an estuary or an inlet or some damn other thing. Let me make sure I understand this properly: Lake Pontchartrain: estuary? Lake Charles: coastal lake? Lake Ronkonkoma: apparently part of a group known as [kettle lakes](http://wotan.liu.edu/~esenig/formation.html) , but could it still qualify as a coastal lake, considering its proximity to the sea? Or must there necessarily be an outlet? ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/12 "2005-03-23T12:56:50Z")
> [@tomndebb](#): > > Notice the state where the event took place? Minnesota, along with Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, all of Michigan, Ohio, New York, and Ontario have access to a handful of freshwater seas, Lakes that are removed from those larger bodies of water are frequently identified as “inland lakes.” It is probably just a regional expression, but it distinguishes the smaller lakes from the Great Lakes. Slight hijack, but I once heard that _all lakes in Ohio_ (other than Lake Erie) _are manmade_. Being a lifelong Ohioan, I would assume this is true, for the most part. ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/13 "2005-03-23T13:03:49Z")
Even though the term is awkward, I can understand the sentiment. Growing up on the Great Lakes, it was apparant to me even as a small child that using the same word to describe Lake Superior and the inland lakes was wrong. They’re just not the same. Imagine if you lived by the ocean and both the ocean and the lakes around it were called “oceans.” It never makes sense. I wish someone would coin a new term, but until they do, “inland lakes” it is. ---
**Author:** ![xbuckeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9e8a1a/32.png) [@xbuckeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xbuckeye)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/14 "2005-03-23T13:22:25Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Slight hijack, but I once heard that _all lakes in Ohio_ (other than Lake Erie) _are manmade_. Being a lifelong Ohioan, I would assume this is true, for the most part. Ohio actually has a bunch of kettle lakes, which are glacial formations. To further stir up trouble, kettle lakes are usually inland lakes, too. I don’t know where St. Paris is, but if you get into the glaciated parts of the state (and MN, WI, MI, etc.) most of the lakes are glacial reminants. My theory on ‘inland’ is that you can’t connect it to large bodies of water through navigable waterways but in practice it seems like a rather nebulous term. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/15 "2005-03-23T13:28:26Z")
An Outland lake. They’re filled with grape soda, and you can walk on them, but only if you’re a penguin. ---
**Author:** ![keeper0](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@keeper0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keeper0)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/16 "2005-03-23T13:38:50Z")
> [@Athena](#): > > Growing up on the Great Lakes, it was apparant to me even as a small child that using the same word to describe Lake Superior and the inland lakes was wrong. They’re just not the same. And not just that. The Great Lakes are so big, that when you are in the vicinity of one, you assume that any reference to “lake” means the Great Lake. A newspaper report that said “lakeside” or “shore” or other aquatic adjective would mislead a local if they really meant one of the puddles. The best analogy I can think of would be standing on Long Island and referring to “the city” when you meant Newark. ---
**Author:** ![a\_pirahna\_brother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4bbf92/32.png) [@a\_pirahna\_brother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/a_pirahna_brother)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/17 "2005-03-23T14:05:38Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Slight hijack, but I once heard that _all lakes in Ohio_ (other than Lake Erie) _are manmade_. Being a lifelong Ohioan, I would assume this is true, for the most part. Not sure about OH, but all WV lakes are manmade. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/18 "2005-03-23T14:16:52Z")
From Michigan. The Great Lakes are freshwater seas. Equating them with “inland lakes” (a perfectly acceptable, normal phrase for us) is just fundamentally _wrong_. I’m _not_ a geologist (or whoever studies these things), and I’ve not read with great detail all of the other links, but here’s my Michigan understanding of different inland lakes: [ul] [li]Spring fed, lake just starts out from underground springs.[/li][li]Man-made, dammed rivers.[/li][li]Low-areas fed by rivers/streams, where water accumulates. Low-areas can be formed by a whole lot of reasons. Strictly speaking, the Great Lakes are this type (glacially-formed low areas fed by rivers).[/li][/ul] In virtually all of these instances, though, they’re characterized by slow moving water in small quantities. The water gets pee-warm and sometimes looks pee-yellow or -greenish (not, not “pea”). There’s a lot of seaweed (no, we don’t call it lakeweed) sometimes. They’re not navigable by freighters (big boats that haul freight). In fact, this describes Lake St. Clair to a tee, and the only reason I won’t call it an “inland lake” is because it’s connected to the St. Lawrence system and is, in fact, navigable (but I think requires constant dredging – unsure). I think I wouldn’t call Lakes Mead, Tahoe, and Powell inland lakes, even though by my definition they “are.” They’re big enough, clear enough, and different enough that they’re not what I picture in my mind when I think of mucky, little inland lakes. Hey, in fact, let me clarify my definition now: inland lakes are those mucky little things that are glorifed ponds. ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/19 "2005-03-23T14:59:53Z")
> [@xbuckeye](#): > > Ohio actually has a bunch of kettle lakes, which are glacial formations. To further stir up trouble, kettle lakes are usually inland lakes, too. I don’t know where St. Paris is, but if you get into the glaciated parts of the state (and MN, WI, MI, etc.) most of the lakes are glacial reminants. > > My theory on ‘inland’ is that you can’t connect it to large bodies of water through navigable waterways but in practice it seems like a rather nebulous term. Yea, I believe you are correct. In fact, I believe [Silver Lake](http://www.tcnewsnet.com/main.asp?SectionID=4&SubSectionID=4&ArticleID=135711) in New Carlisle, OH is one such lake. ---
**Author:** ![Balthisar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/balthisar/32/2825_2.png) [@Balthisar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Balthisar)\ **Post date:** [March 23, 2005, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826/20 "2005-03-23T15:30:53Z")
Oh, in case it’s not obvious, for those that live on/near the water “inland” kind of implies that it’s not coastal. If it’s not big enough to have coast, then it’s an inland lake. So now I wonder about those that live near puny little lakes like Champlain or Mead – do you refer to the coastline? I wouldn’t think so, but I don’t know. Whereas in Michigan, we sure do refer to the coast of the Great Lakes. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/inland-lake-what-the-hell-other-kind-of-lake-is-there/295826.md?page=2)