10 Great Lakes in Michigan That Aren’t the Great Lakes

Summertime in Michigan. You really can’t beat it. How lucky are we to be surrounded by Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, Lake Huron and Lake Erie? There’s really no reason to ever get bored during the summer in Michigan.

If you’ve never been to a Great Lake, hop in the car and hit the road. Take your pick. I am partial to Lake Michigan. Lake Superior is beautiful, but it's ice cold. It’s worth the drive to the U.P. though—the drive alone is fun—and Lake Superior is a sight. Lake Huron is cool; I haven’t spent a lot of time there. I need to hit the east side of the state more. As far as Lake Erie goes, I have never swum in it. If you’ve been to Cedar Point, you’ve seen it.

Michigan also provides you the opportunity to see a sunrise on the east side of the state and a sunset on the west side of the state. My wife and I plan on heading to the east side of the state the night before so we can catch the sunrise. Then we plan on taking our time, driving west across the state to see the sunset on the west side of the state.

Let’s be real. Hitting the Great Lakes during the summer is fun, but it can also be nuts with lots of boats and people having a blast. I grew up around it and I miss it. But that kind of scene isn’t everybody’s thing. I get it. Sometimes it’s nice to just hit an inland lake.

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There are over 11,000 inland lakes in the state of Michigan. That’s a lot of opportunities to explore something new or revisit an old favorite.

Take your boat to an inland lake. Grab your fishing poles, your fishing license (the DNR doesn’t mess around), the cooler, food, beverages, life jackets and hit the inland lake. Even if you don’t have a boat, a lot of inland lakes have beaches.

I used to fish Sister Lakes when I was a kid. It was always fun heading out to the lakes to swim and fish. I can remember the rush of the bobber going under the surface. It was even better when the fish stayed on and I could land it. There’s plenty of pan fish to catch. Have a blast.

Anyway, let's get into the list of a few of the best inland lakes.