# (Poll) Which of the Great Lakes do you think is the Greatest? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 11, 2020, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833 "2020-08-11T20:42:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Spoons](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spoons/32/3141_2.png) [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2020, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/41 "2020-08-13T20:14:17Z")
Ontario for me. I learned how to sail on it, and with friends, sailed across it a few times. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2020, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/42 "2020-08-13T20:48:28Z")
I think so, although I don’t have any stats. But when I lived in Chicago, I never heard of anyone drowning in the lake. Now, in West Michigan, it’s a very regular news story. Something about the undertow and rip current working together…? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2020, 9:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/43 "2020-08-13T21:44:49Z")
> [@Gatopescado](#): > > Bumper stickers around my neck of the woods say, _“There is Only One Great Lake: Tahoe”_ > > That’s my vote. What about Great Salt Lake? It even has “Great” in the name. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 13, 2020, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/44 "2020-08-13T22:17:38Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > I think you mean X Ocean rather than Ocean X. Isn’t Ocean X really Ocean Speed’s brother Rex? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/45 "2020-08-14T00:52:46Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > I think so, although I don’t have any stats. But when I lived in Chicago, I never heard of anyone drowning in the lake. Now, in West Michigan, it’s a very regular news story. > > Something about the undertow and rip current working together…? Lake Michigan’s eastern shore is generally more swimmable, due to the prevailing winds being out of the west, blowing the warmer surface water over to that side. This also makes the eastern shores rather more rough, with more active currents. Meanwhile on the western shore (where I live) we have those conditions less often, and the water is colder and calmer on this side, on average. But we have folks die on this side regularly too. A girl drowned right off my own beach back in 2010 when the wind blew her out far from shore in her little boat, and she panicked and jumped/fell in. Fisherfolks and tourists get swept off piers and jetties during storms. “Lake Michigan eats its wounded” is a phrase used for over a century in these waters. ---
**Author:** ![jnglmassiv](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f07891/32.png) [@jnglmassiv](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jnglmassiv)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/46 "2020-08-14T01:14:41Z")
Does anyone have one of those Great Lakes decals on their car like my (Michigan native) mom does? I see them pretty often. [https://www.greatlakesproud.com/products/great-lakes-sticker-original](https://www.greatlakesproud.com/products/great-lakes-sticker-original) ---
**Author:** ![PoppaSan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/poppasan/32/189_2.png) [@PoppaSan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoppaSan)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/47 "2020-08-14T05:33:56Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > Lake Superior holds the pee of everyone swimming in Superior. Michigan has the pee of both Michigan and Superior. By the time things flow to Ontario…let’s just say, I’d recommend swimming with your mouth closed tight. I was going to say Superior and Michigan both flow into Huron. Superior water doesn’t get into Lake Michigan until [I learned](https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/straits/) … > Overall, water flows from Lake Michigan to Lake Huron. However, research has found that it also oscillates (moves back and forth) and changes direction on an average of once every 1.5 days. [https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/straits/graphics/surface.gif](https://www.glerl.noaa.gov/res/straits/graphics/surface.gif) ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/48 "2020-08-14T06:51:36Z")
> [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](#): > > Also, while “Sea X” is not an English way of expressing things, we do have several “Sea of X” constructions: Sea of Azov, Sea of Okhotsk, Sea of Cortez. Not sure where those come from. I once did a search for Seas of \_\_\_ and only found about half a dozen worldwide. Besides the ones you list, there’s Sea of Marmara, Sea of Crete, Sea of Galilee (which is actually a lake), Sea of Japan, and one in Chile whose name I can’t remember. There’s more on the Moon than on Earth! Re: the Great Lakes: Michigan borders on all the lakes except Ontario. Ontario borders on all the lakes except Michigan. My vote for Greatest Lake: > **[Ontario Lacus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ontario_Lacus)** > > Ontario Lacus is a lake composed of methane, ethane and propane near the south pole of Saturn's moon Titan. Its character as a hydrocarbon lake was confirmed by observations from the Cassini spacecraft, published in the 31 July 2008 edition of Nature. Ontario Lacus has a surface area of about 15,000 square kilometers (5,800 sq mi), about 20% smaller than its terrestrial namesake, Lake Ontario in North America. In April 2012, it was announced that it may be more like a mudflat or salt pan. > On Ja... ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2020, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833/49 "2020-08-14T07:28:42Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > I once did a search for Seas of \_\_\_ and only found about half a dozen worldwide. Besides the ones you list, there’s Sea of Marmara, Sea of Crete, Sea of Galilee (which is actually a lake), Sea of Japan, and one in Chile whose name I can’t remember. There’s more on the Moon than on Earth! OK, did a search and found the one in Chile: Sea of Chiloé. Also missed Sea of Åland and Sea of the Hebrides. That makes for a total of 10. There’s 17 maria on the Moon whose English name is Sea of [something]. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/poll-which-of-the-great-lakes-do-you-think-is-the-greatest/917833.md?page=2)