Great Lakes Cities

[PFloyd]

Originally Posted by Razor

Yes, True..Even rivers have their merits..You just can't boat out to a secluded bay, drop anchor and still fish on glassy waters while staring at a Boreal tree line while listening to the Loons and White Throated Sparrows. Look at me painting a visual!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sL_YJC1SjHE

After I moved to Toronto from the US, I was fairly prejudiced against lakes in terms of how good they could be compared to the ocean.
Then, I was introduced to Ontario's vast cottaging culture by my wife, and I was blown away by the stunning beauty of the Canadian Shield, the Boreal forests and lakes. Wintertime is even more breathtaking;
We like it so much that we now own an amazing cottage in Muskoka. Can't wait to get there next weekend!

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

yeah, that whole nonsense was an incredibly stupid tangent for this thread to go off on. all other things being equal (and they usually aren't), i'd rather swim in freshwater because you don't have to shower afterwards, but it's not like swimming in salt water is terrible or anything, just keep your eyes and mouth closed if you go underwater. or just wear a snorkel mask or goggles if you want to see underwater. it's not that hard to figure out.


it depends on the water recreation you're into. if you're into water skiing, then smaller lakes are certainly better than the great lakes/ocean, but if you're into sailing, then a larger body of water is definitely better.

if you're into scuba diving or surfing, then the ocean obviously trumps all.

yes, it was... and I'll shoulder the blame for being a big part of it, though I wasn't one who brought up the superior "Midwestern freshwater" nor got into all the lake pros/ocean cons, but rather just recognized that millions of your fellow Midwesterners actually might be of a different opinion than you and find ocean swimming quite pleasurable (and it just kinda seems like there's a hell of a lot of evidence for that).

There were some unnecessary posts that went into "Great Lakes awesome, Oceans 🞵🞵🞵🞵"... and that's just ridiculous... it shouldn't be an either/or thing. Otherwise, it comes off as an inferiority complex defense mechanism on the part of non-coastal people, which is more annoying to me than anything. And you Midwestern guys on here are generally a lot more fun and cool than certain other regional contingents.

[pj3000]

Buffalo always gets a bad rap. It has one of the best locations on the Great Lakes, in my opinion... at the end of Lake Erie right where massive open water is squeezed into a river on the way to Niagara Falls. Crossing the Peace Bridge and witnessing the power of the rapidly moving mass of water from four Great Lakes is always awe inspiring to me.

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by pj3000

There were some unnecessary posts that went into "Great Lakes awesome, Oceans 🞵🞵🞵🞵"... and that's just ridiculous... it shouldn't be an either/or thing. Otherwise, it comes off as an inferiority complex defense mechanism on the part of non-coastal people, which is more annoying to me than anything. And you Midwestern guys on here are generally a lot more fun and cool than certain other regional contingents.

unfortunately, there are a lot of annoying inferiority complex people out here in flyover country. it's one of my least favorite aspects of the midwest.

but there are also plenty of cool midwesterners who don't give a 🞵🞵🞵🞵 about 🞵🞵🞵🞵. i like to think (hope) that we're in the majority. who knows?

[Razor]

Originally Posted by PFloyd

After I moved to Toronto from the US, I was fairly prejudiced against lakes in terms of how good they could be compared to the ocean.
Then, I was introduced to Ontario's vast cottaging culture by my wife, and I was blown away by the stunning beauty of the Canadian Shield, the Boreal forests and lakes. Wintertime is even more breathtaking;
We like it so much that we now own an amazing cottage in Muskoka. Can't wait to get there next weekend!

Nice!

Now if you were to keep on going up the 400 and then hook onto the 11(about 5 more hours) you would be really getting into shield and lake country.

Originally Posted by pj3000

Buffalo always gets a bad rap. It has one of the best locations on the Great Lakes, in my opinion... at the end of Lake Erie right where massive open water is squeezed into a river on the way to Niagara Falls. Crossing the Peace Bridge and witnessing the power of the rapidly moving mass of water from four Great Lakes is always awe inspiring to me.

Yes seen that..I know exactly where/what you mean.

[Steely Dan]

yeah, niagra is impressive as hell, both the falls and the ensuing the river rapids canyon.

it's one of the coolest natural splendors i've seen anywhere in north america.

it's a global-level marvel, on the order of iguazu or victoria falls in terms of waterfall size and scale.


source: https://www.allwallpaper.in/landscapes-nature-canada-niagara-falls-waterfalls-wallpaper-13253.html

[PFloyd]

Originally Posted by Razor

Nice!

Now if you were to keep on going up the 400 and then hook onto the 11(about 5 more hours) you would be really getting into shield and lake country.

Yeah, it's mind boggling how big Ontario is. Even before going farther north, the place is vast: 30,000 islands on Georgian Bay around Parry Sound, Bruce Peninsula, Manitoulin Island, Muskoka, Lake of Bays, Haliburton Highlands, Kawartha Lakes, Thousand islands on the St. Lawrence, Algonquin, Killarney, and then farther north, Quetico, etc. etc. So many places I have no idea. And always the ever present Canadian shield rock, pine forests, and lakes and more lakes (250,000 lakes in Ontario alone). Beautiful.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

yeah, niagra is impressive as hell, both the falls and the ensuing the river rapids canyon.

it's one of the coolest natural splendors i've seen anywhere in north america.

it's a global-level marvel, on the order of iguazu or victoria falls in terms of waterfall size and scale.


source: https://www.allwallpaper.in/landscapes-nature-canada-niagara-falls-waterfalls-wallpaper-13253.html

oh totally, the Falls and canyon are incredible. I've been there probably 50+ times in my life and I'm always awed.

Earlier, I was just talking about how in Buffalo you can see a Great Lake turn into a massive powerful river when it's still miles away from the Falls. You can't witness it anywhere else on the planet, simply because it's the only place on Earth where something like it exists.

The power of that gigantic volume of water that has been flowing for 1,000 miles over an elevation change of only 33 feet... now all of a sudden getting ready to drop 10X that elevation change down into Lake Ontario... truly a one-of-a-kind natural wonder on Earth. Buffalo has that at its doorstep, which to me is the type of underpinning characteristic that makes a city really cool.

[Razor]

Originally Posted by PFloyd

Yeah, it's mind boggling how big Ontario is. Even before going farther north, the place is vast: 30,000 islands on Georgian Bay around Parry Sound, Bruce Peninsula, Manitoulin Island, Muskoka, Lake of Bays, Haliburton Highlands, Kawartha Lakes, Thousand islands on the St. Lawrence, Algonquin, Killarney, and then farther north, Quetico, etc. etc. So many places I have no idea. And always the ever present Canadian shield rock, pine forests, and lakes and more lakes (250,000 lakes in Ontario alone). Beautiful.

Oh for sure..In all fairness though, unless you don't mind leeches and crappy bottoms, a lot of these Northern Ontario lakes aren't swimmer friendly unless you jump in from a boat in the middle of the lake, or find a sweet spot to enter in from the shore..Some of them are best left for fishing or canoeing..Even getting to them can be rough going, unless you are a 🞵🞵🞵🞵 🞵🞵🞵🞵 fisherman with the right vehicle.There are so many lakes and so many back roads to get to them, so you really have to know your way around to remember some of these spots if you were a 🞵🞵🞵🞵 🞵🞵🞵🞵 angler..That's what makes Georgian Bay and the Muskokas so popular..The beaches and accessibility.

[pj3000]

Originally Posted by Razor

Oh for sure..In all fairness though, unless you don't mind leeches and crappy bottoms, a lot of these Northern Ontario lakes aren't swimmer friendly unless you jump in from a boat in the middle of the lake, or find a sweet spot to enter in from the shore..Some of them are best left for fishing or canoeing..Even getting to them can be rough going, unless you are a 🞵🞵🞵🞵 🞵🞵🞵🞵 fisherman with the right vehicle.There are so many lakes and so many back roads to get to them, so you really have to know your way around to remember some of these spots if you were a 🞵🞵🞵🞵 🞵🞵🞵🞵 angler..That's what makes Georgian Bay and the Muskokas so popular..The beaches and accessibility.

I love the Georgian Bay region. A few years back, I kayked over several days from Penetanguishene along the southern shoreline to Tobermory.

We'd like to do the northern shoreline route to Killarney/Manitoulin someday, but that takes some serious preparation, planning, and packing, since that's a total wilderness route over a long period of time. On the southern route, we stopped and partied, ate, and slept well at Wasaga Beach, Collingwood, Owen Sound, Lion's Head, Tobermory, etc. It was fun.

[benp]

Originally Posted by pj3000

Buffalo always gets a bad rap. It has one of the best locations on the Great Lakes, in my opinion... at the end of Lake Erie right where massive open water is squeezed into a river on the way to Niagara Falls. Crossing the Peace Bridge and witnessing the power of the rapidly moving mass of water from four Great Lakes is always awe inspiring to me.

BfloErie2013 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Lake Erie waves near Hamburg, just south of Buffalo.

IMG_1040 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Lake Erie converging with the Buffalo River at the start of the Niagara River, Buffalo.

IMG_1142 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Looking south toward the Peace Bridge between Buffalo and Ft. Erie, as Lake Erie flows into the Niagara.

IMG_1671 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Near the base of the American Falls.

IMG_0947 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Looking into the lower Niagara River Gorge from the Whirlpool Bridge, Niagara Falls.

IMG_2112 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Devil's Hole Cave, near the bottom of the Niagara Gorge.

IMG_2054 by bpawlik, on Flickr
Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant. Across the river (not seen) is the Sir Adam Beck Hydro Generating Station on the Canadian side.

000_0728 by bpawlik, on Flickr
View from Fort Niagara, looking across toward Canada where the Niagara River meets Lake Ontario.

[dc_denizen]

swimming in a lake is infinitely more refreshing than in the ocean.

the reason the great lakes are not popular in the summer is uncertain weather. We camped in Brevort, MI when I was a kid and I remember rain, mosquitoes, damp food...not much fun. But it would have been great on a sunny day.

[Razor]

Originally Posted by pj3000

I love the Georgian Bay region. A few years back, I kayked over several days from Penetanguishene along the southern shoreline to Tobermory.

We'd like to do the northern shoreline route to Killarney/Manitoulin someday, but that takes some serious preparation, planning, and packing, since that's a total wilderness route over a long period of time. On the southern route, we stopped and partied, ate, and slept well at Wasaga Beach, Collingwood, Owen Sound, Lion's Head, Tobermory, etc. It was fun.

Sounded like a good trip..Nice!.Do come back and do that other trip. That whole area is amazing, and like somebody else said if we didn't get our cold winters, that whole area would definitelybe more ramped up and capitalized on.Especially Wasaga Beach.People certainly make up for it in the short summer we have here though..Nobody celebrates the summer like Canadians. Hence Ontario's strong cottage and camping culture. This is why on any given summer weekend a lot of towns, especially some of the smaller resource based ones, are dead..Lots of their residents are at some camp or their cottage.

[lio45]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I am not super fussy or finicky but if I have my choice in terms of water, I pick:

- swimming pool

(big drop)

In practice I have to say it's the exact same thing for me in my area of Florida in winter. Reason #1 by far: the ocean is cool-ish, while the pool gets decently warm.

(Reason #2, the pool is right there in the backyard. Reason #3, the pool is crystal clear.)

[Steely Dan]

when it comes to swimming, i'd rank my water type preferences thusly:

1. freshwater

2. salt water

3. chlorinated pool water


swimming in a chlorinated pool isn't horrible or anything, but i think i'm a little more sensitive to chlorine than the average person, and it can be mildly irritating for me at times, hence my preference for freshwater, or salt water following that.

now, i know down in florida that swimming in freshwater rivers and lakes is often a no-no due to gators and water-borne bacteria that can kill you, so i totally get the allure of the pool down there, but we don't have those issues up here in the great lakes region. there's really nothing in our water that can eat, sting, poison, or otherwise kill you.

the scariest creature i've ever encountered while swimming in the great lakes is a northern water snake. anytime you come across a 5 foot long snake while swimming it's a little intimidating, but they're non-venomous and will only strike out of fear, so if you get out of their way, you're all good. the venomous water moccasins of the southeast don't make it up this far north (our winters are too cold for them, thank god), so anytime you encounter a water snake in the upper midwest, you can be sure it's a non-venomous, mostly harmless northern water snake.

[Acajack]

Salt-water pools aren't as hard on the skin and the eyes. That's my preference. (I also happen to have one in my backyard.)

The scariest things in lakes in this part of the world are leeches. But generally the areas where they are found are known to people, so most people don't generally swim there.

[Centropolis]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

when it comes to swimming, i'd rank my water type preferences thusly:

1. freshwater

2. salt water

3. chlorinated pool water


swimming in a chlorinated pool isn't horrible or anything, but i think i'm a little more sensitive to chlorine than the average person, and it can be mildly irritating for me at times, hence my preference for freshwater, or salt water following that.

now, i know down in florida that swimming in freshwater rivers and lakes is often a no-no due to gators and water-borne bacteria that can kill you, so i totally get the allure of the pool down there, but we don't have those issues up here in the great lakes region. there's really nothing in our water that can eat, sting, poison, or otherwise kill you.

the scariest creature i've ever encountered while swimming in the great lakes is a northern water snake. anytime you come across a 5 foot long snake while swimming it's a little intimidating, but they're non-venomous and will only strike out of fear, so if you get out of their way, you're all good. the venomous water moccasins of the southeast don't make it up this far north (our winters are too cold for them, thank god), so anytime you encounter a water snake in the upper midwest, you can be sure it's a non-venomous, mostly harmless northern water snake.

yeah, i spent my youth swimmimg in clear spring-fed ozark rivers but plenty of venomous water snakes. we have them around st. louis, even.

[Steely Dan]

Originally Posted by Centropolis

yeah, i spent my youth swimmimg in clear spring-fed ozark rivers but plenty of venomous water snakes. we have them around st. louis, even.

water moccasin territory gets dangerously close to the upper midwest.


source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_piscivorus


please keep that 🞵🞵🞵🞵 down there.

[Chef]

Originally Posted by Steely Dan

the scariest creature i've ever encountered while swimming in the great lakes is a northern water snake. anytime you come across a 5 foot long snake while swimming it's a little intimidating, but they're non-venomous and will only strike out of fear, so if you get out of their way, you're all good. the venomous water moccasins of the southeast don't make it up this far north (our winters are too cold for them, thank god), so anytime you encounter a water snake in the upper midwest, you can be sure it's a non-venomous, mostly harmless northern water snake.

Occasionally large muskies will attack people. Usually it is somebody splashing the surface of the water getting their hand shredded.

[Razor]

Nothing scary here in the waterways..Just certain land animals, like this one on the Quebec side of the Capital region.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDLF9XOQ-E4