Geography of Michigan

Michigan is a special state made up of two parts, called peninsulas, that are mostly surrounded by water. These peninsulas are next to four big lakes known as the Great Lakes. The smaller part is called the Upper Peninsula, and it touches the state of Wisconsin on one side. The bigger part is the Lower Peninsula, and it touches Indiana and Ohio on the south. These two peninsulas are also close to Ontario, a part of Canada, separated by the water of the Great Lakes. They are also separated from each other by a narrow stretch of water called the Straits of Mackinac.

Because Michigan is mostly surrounded by the Great Lakes, almost all of its rivers and streams flow into what is called the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence watershed. Michigan shares about half of three of the Great Lakes: Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, and Lake Huron. It also has smaller parts of Lake St. Clair and Lake Erie. Michigan has around 11,000 inland lakes too! The whole state, including its land and water areas, covers about 97,990 square miles, making it the largest state east of the Mississippi River.

Michigan’s land area is mostly covered in forests, with more than half of it still wooded. The state sits between about 41° and 49° north latitude, and between 82° and 91° west longitude. With all its water and land, Michigan is the eleventh largest state in the United States.

Upper Peninsula

Main article: Upper Peninsula of Michigan

The Upper Peninsula of Michigan is a forested and hilly area in the western part of the state. The Porcupine Mountains are some of the oldest mountains in the world and reach almost 2,000 feet tall. The highest point in Michigan, Mount Arvon, is in the Huron Mountains and stands at 1,979 feet above sea level. Though the Upper Peninsula is as big as several smaller states put together, it has only around 300,000 people living there.

Because of how Michigan’s land is shaped, the distance between its far corners is very long. The town of Ironwood on the far west side of the Upper Peninsula is about 630 highway miles from Lambertville on the southeast side of the Lower Peninsula. This distance keeps the Upper Peninsula somewhat separate from the rest of Michigan, giving it its own unique culture and economy.

Lower Peninsula

Main article: Lower Peninsula of Michigan

The Lower Peninsula of Michigan looks like a mitten and is 277 miles long and 195 miles wide. It covers most of the state's land. The land is mostly flat with some small hills. The highest point is either Briar Hill at 1,705 feet or a nearby spot close to Cadillac. The lowest point is where Lake Erie meets the land at 571 feet.

The Thumb is a special part that stretches out into Lake Huron and Saginaw Bay. It is mostly flat with a few gentle hills. The Leelanau Peninsula is located in Northern Lower Michigan.

Great Lakes

Main article: Great Lakes

Michigan is surrounded by four of the Great Lakes: Lake Erie, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, and Lake Superior. Because ships have traveled these lakes for a long time, Michigan has about 150 lighthouses, the most of any state. The state shares its southern border with Ohio and Indiana.

Michigan’s northern borders are mostly water. It touches Illinois and Wisconsin in Lake Michigan, then has a land border with Wisconsin and the Upper Peninsula. After that, it touches Wisconsin and Minnesota in Lake Superior, and ends near the Canadian province of Ontario.

Michigan has many islands in the Great Lakes, such as Isle Royale, Grand Island, Drummond Island, Mackinac Island, and Belle Isle. After Alaska, Michigan has the longest shoreline of any state, with 3,288 miles (5,292 km). If you count the islands, the shoreline grows to 4,344 miles (6,991 km).

Inland lakes and rivers

Main articles: List of lakes in Michigan and List of rivers of Michigan

Michigan has many lakes inside its borders, covering a total area of 1,305 square miles (3,380 km²). Because of this, no place in the state is more than 6 miles (9.7 km) away from a lake, and no place is more than 85 miles (137 km) from one of the Great Lakes.

The state’s rivers are usually short and not very deep, but some can be used for fun activities in boats. Important rivers include the Au Sable, Thunder Bay, Cheboygan, and Saginaw, which all flow into Lake Huron; the Ontonagon and Tahquamenon, which flow into Lake Superior; and the St. Joseph, Kalamazoo, Grand, Muskegon, Manistee, and Escanaba, which flow into Lake Michigan.

Protected areas

Main article: Protected areas of Michigan

See also: List of Michigan state parks

Michigan has many special places set aside for nature and recreation. Three important areas are managed by the National Park Service: Isle Royale National Park, found in Lake Superior near Thunder Bay, Ontario; Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, along the Lake Superior coast between Munising and Grand Marais; and Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, on the shore of Lake Michigan near Frankfort, Empire, and Glen Arbor.

Other protected areas include: Keweenaw National Historical Park, Huron National Forest, Manistee National Forest, Hiawatha National Forest, Ottawa National Forest, Fumee Lake Natural Area, and Father Marquette National Memorial. Michigan also has parts of the North Country National Scenic Trail.

The state itself has many parks and forests, including 78 state parks, 19 recreation areas, and 6 state forests. Some well-known ones are Holland State Park, Mackinac Island State Park, Au Sable State Forest, and Mackinaw State Forest.

Climate

Michigan has a humid continental climate, with two distinct regions. The southern part of the Lower Peninsula, south of Saginaw Bay and from the Grand Rapids area southward, has hot summers and cold winters. The northern part of the Lower Peninsula and the entire Upper Peninsula experiences warmer but shorter summers and longer, colder winters. Some areas can have temperatures below freezing from December through February, and the state often sees heavy lake-effect snow. Michigan gets about 30–40 inches of rain each year.

The state has around 30 thunderstorm days each year, which can sometimes be severe, especially in the south. Michigan averages 17 tornadoes per year, mostly in the southern part, near Tornado Alley. Tornadoes are much rarer in the Upper Peninsula.

Geology

See also: Michigan Basin and Laurentian Upland

Michigan's land is formed in many different ways. The Upper Peninsula has rocks and boulders, with types of stones like sandstones, limestones, copper, and iron. The Lower Peninsula has layers of soil and rocks from long ago, including some that have coal.

The soil in Michigan varies a lot. In the southern part, the soil is rich and good for growing things. But in the Upper Peninsula, the land is rocky and hilly, making it hard to grow crops. The weather there is softer and warmer because of the nearby lakes.

Ecology

Michigan is home to many types of trees. You can find trees such as basswood, maple, elm, sassafras, butternut, walnut, poplar, hickory, oak, willow, pine, birch, beech, hemlock, witchhazel, tamarack, cedar, locust, dogwood, and ash growing in its forests. These trees help make Michigan a beautiful and green place to live.