

Majestic pines and powerhouse art. Coastal lighthouses and riverside jazz.
Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario — the largest group of freshwater lakes on Earth. They’re more like inland seas with forested islands, rock caves and sand-dune beaches. The Great Lakes were first charted by French explorers in the late 1600s. Towns on their coasts quickly prospered and attracted a steady stream of immigrants to this resource-rich section of the country.
Today, the lake-bordering states offer modern-day explorers - and vacationers - a first-hand look at the wilderness that inspired industrial innovation and powered great cities while furnishing scenic vistas of rural life.