A Pretty Great Lake

Nestled in between the St. Clair River and the Detroit River is a comparatively smaller lake. Named by French explorers in the late 1600's, Lake St. Clair has never been granted the same "Great Lake" status as the other five. Locals from the region, laugh as they say, "It's not a Great Lake, but a pretty Good Lake!"

From a bird's eye view, Lake St. Clair looks heart shaped and acts as a vital organ protecting the overall health of the Great Lakes ecosystem. The remaining wetlands of the northern shore act as important filters for the water flowing downstream. From our canoe, we could see the lake was teaming with fish as we watched dozens jump out of the water in front of our canoe. Sitting next to the lake one night, we made friends with a local fisherman who surprised us by catching the largest Gar Pike we had ever seen.

Before paddling Lake St. Clair, Jon and I assumed that the lake wouldn't be much of a challenge. After all, it isn't even a "Great Lake." One morning, as waves crashed over our canoe, we quickly realized that Lake St. Clair should be treated with as much respect and caution as any other Great Lake. That day we learned that the lake you don't respect is the one that will teach you to respect it. Fortunate to have found a safe harbour at Belle River Marina, we spent the entire windbound day exploring the area by bicycles which the friendly staff at the marina lent to us. The marina also provided us with a place to pitch our tent and we felt quite safe knowing that their security guard, Fletcher, was looking after the property throughout the night. We were actually happy to be windbound because it allowed us the opportunity to learn about a truly "Great" lake instead of just "a pretty good one."