Swimming

Hang Ten, Dude

Surfers are fighting for the right to do their thing on Lake Michigan. Chicago does not allow surfing at the Chicago Park District because of concerns that it is too dangerous. But a group of surfers called the Surfrider Foundation are trying to sway public opinion in their favor. Storms in the Winter can bring delicious waves that attract surfers from across the nation and Chicago is the only Great Lakes City that bans the sport. If the surfers are successful in getting the city to lift the ban then some are arguing this may make Chicago more attractive Read More » »

A Chase in Lake Michigan

Ed in Sugar Grove, Ill., sends us this photograph, about which he writes:

“This is a photo taken in early July of this year at Central Beach, Indiana Dunes National Seashore. The photo depicts my son Robert about to hitch a ride on my dog Hank while retrieving a stick. Central Beach is a wonderful jewel nestled in the southern basin of Lake Michigan and has always provided my family with memorable visits over the past fifteen years.”

Thanks, Ed, for sharing this photo! Looks like a fun time all around!

It’s not too Read More » »

To the Beach!

Nancy from Reedsville, Wisc., send us this story from her childhood:

As a kid growing up on a dairy farm in Northeast Wisconsin, we never took a family vacation, who would milk the cows? We couldn’t be gone. There were always plenty of chores to do, milking, barn cleaning, tractor driving and the ever popular baling hay. We always seemed to set temperature records on baling days. “I’m bored,” was not in our vocabulary. That phrase would elicit numerous possible jobs from my parents. Bored was a dirty word. If you said it you risked weeding the garden or some other Read More » »

Taking a swim can be hazardous to your health

To swim or not to swim, that is a question? Sadly, bathers throughout the Great Lakes all too frequently have to ask themselves whether their favorite beach poses a health hazard.

In 2006, for example, 181 notifications for contamination were issued at 52 Ohio beaches along the Lake Erie shoreline. Among the 52 beaches, 42, or 81 percent, had at least one advisory during the 2006 swimming months of June, July and August. Fortunately, most advisories were of short duration. Still, counting 6,076 beach days among the state’s 52 monitored Lake Erie beaches, warnings were issued on 731 days, Read More » »

Photo: The Great Lakes Give Us Joy

Here’s a photo that comes to us from Alison in Rockford, Michigan, who’s entering in the adult category. About her photo, Alison writes:
  
Protecting the Great Lakes is important to my family.  Our reason is simple: The Great Lakes give us joy.  My family’s list is long of activities we enjoy around the Great Lakes.  We can tell stories about catching a Coho, jumping the waves, getting buried in the sand, camping near the beach, watching the sun set, throwing rocks from shore, and building sand sculptures to name a few.  These activities Read More » »