Can rogue waves happen in Lake Michigan?

While the terminology tsunami does not technically apply in the Great Lakes (it is an ocean phenomenon), a large, rogue wave or set of waves crashing along our freshwater shores are not unheard of. In 2013, just such a wave occurred along one Lake Erie beach, sweeping several people up and taking them out to sea.



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Lake Superior is notorious for dangerous waves of a different kind: clusters of rogue waves. These abnormally large waves are colloquially known as “the three sisters” because they appear to travel as a trio, the second and third wave swamping a ship before it recovers from the first battering.

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The lakes have more coastline than the East and West coasts combined! While ocean waves are created by distant storm systems, waves on the Great Lakes are formed by localized winds.

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Mavericks Beach, California Mavericks Beach in Half Moon Bay, California is renowned for its powerful waves and is considered to have some of the largest surfable waves in the United States.

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Biggest Wave to Hit a Cruise Ship The cruise ships MS Bremen and MS Caledonian Star, both with Bahamian registrations, were both struck by a rogue wave in the South Atlantic Ocean in 2001. A rogue wave that was around 100 feet tall struck both ocean liners.

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Cruise ships are generally built to handle most waves in the ocean – they can routinely sail through 10-15 feet waves without issues. Waves up to 50 feet typically won't sink a ship, but can cause damage.

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Because of their sea-like characteristics, such as rolling waves, sustained winds, strong currents, great depths, and distant horizons, the five Great Lakes have long been called inland seas.

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As of Aug. 15, 2023, 24 people have died in Lake Michigan, which is frequently the lake where the most drownings occur. Across the Great Lakes 56 drownings have occurred.

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Scientists might not classify the big lakes as seas, but they often study them as if they were. “The modelers here who work on things like currents and waves and ice use ocean models,” says Lauren Fry, a principal investigator at NOAA's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory (GLERL) in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

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Hailed as the longest surfing wave on Earth, Chicama provides a left-hander that peels for up to 2.5 miles (four kilometers). The take-off point is near the headland, and the ride will take surfers all the way down to the local pier, i.e., the Muelle de Malabrigo.

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There is an abundance of life and different creatures you might find in Lake Michigan. Whales just aren't one of them. See all of the animals you can find in the lake here.

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“The waves hit you every three to five seconds in the Great Lakes, where in the ocean it might be 10 to 12 seconds between waves,” said Guy Meadows, a Michigan senior research scientist.

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It does, indeed, experience tides. However, the tides in Lake Michigan are miniscule compared to their ocean counterparts. They range from about one-half inch to one and one-half inches in height and they occur twice daily, just as they do on ocean shores.

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