Lake Michigan is one of the four Great Lakes that surround Michigan. It is nearest to Grand Rapids, the residents of which flock to Lake Michigan beaches during the summer months. The Lake dumps into Lake Huron at the Straits of Mackinac.
Transportation
Lake Michigan has been a major shipping route, allowing for trade between industrial cities on her shores and beyond. There are currently two ferries that connect Michigan and Wisconsin.
Coastal cities, towns, and villages
Illinois
Indiana
Michigan
Wisconsin
Quartz
The beaches of Lake Michigan boast beautiful sand with one of the highest quartz contents in the world. This makes the sand exceptionally good for precision metal casting, allowing West Michigan to play a major role in the automotive industry. The high quartz content also creates the peculiar squeaking sound made when beach-goers shuffle their feet across the sand.
