Before the Ice Age there were no great lakes, only shallow basins, except for Lake Superior which had originated aeons earlier as a rift valley lake in the Central North American Rift System. The river that drained this area, the Laurentian River, flowed through the Toronto area.
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About a billion years ago, a fracture in the earth running from what is now Oklahoma to Lake Superior generated volcanic activity that almost split North America. Over a period of 20 million years, lava intermittently flowed from the fracture.
Lake Superior has its origins in the North American Mid-Continent Rift of 1.1 to 1.2 billion years ago, which produced a huge plume of hot mantle where the present lake sits. The crust tore apart, leaving an arc-shaped scar stretching form Kansas through Minnesota, then down to Michigan.
What would happen if Lake Superior dried up? Without Lake Superior, areas near the lake would see far less snow each winter, and the distribution of snow in the central and eastern regions around the lake would be far different. The effects would not be limited to snow.
Geology of Lake InferiorLake Inferior is an underground lake that is located beneath Lake Superior. It is believed to be formed by a process known as karstification, which is the dissolution of limestone and dolomite rock. This process creates sinkholes, caves, and underground rivers and lakes.
It's the 'forgotten' Great LakeLake Huron is often overlooked compared with the other four Great Lakes. Superior has a reputation as the coldest, deepest and largest.
Situated in south-east Siberia, the 3.15-million-ha Lake Baikal is the oldest (25 million years) and deepest (1,700 m) lake in the world. It contains 20% of the world's total unfrozen freshwater reserve.
Clear Lake is a California lake north of Napa County and San Francisco. It's the state's largest natural freshwater lake, covering 68 square miles. At 2.5 million years old, Clear Lake is the United States and North America's oldest lake.
Do you drink the lake water? Lake Superior is the cleanest of the Great Lakes, and many people drink the water regularly (even in their homes). On trip, the decision is yours. For your safety we bring a high quality water filter or boil our water.
Lake Superior is the largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area and the third-largest by volume, holding 10% of the world's surface fresh water.
Lake sturgeon are the largest fish in Lake Superior. They are among the oldest fish in the lake too. Did you know that a lake sturgeon can live to be older than 100 years? This species of fish has also been around for a long time—about 150 million years.
At 1,943 feet (592 meters), Crater Lake is the deepest lake in the United States and one of the deepest in the world. The depths were first explored thoroughly in 1886 by a party from the U.S. Geological Survey.
How many shipwrecks are in Lake Superior? There are over 6,000 shipwrecks in the Great Lakes, having caused an estimated loss of 30,000 mariners' lives. It is estimated that there are about 550 wrecks in Lake Superior, many of which are still undiscovered.