 Great Lakes Circle Tour | |
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| Route information | |
| Existed | 1988–present |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
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TheGreat Lakes Circle Tour is a designated scenic road system connecting all of theGreat Lakes and theSt. Lawrence River.[1] It consists of routes for circumnavigating the lakes, either individually or collectively. It was designated by theGreat Lakes Commission in 1988.
 Lake Superior Circle Tour | |
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| Location | AroundLake Superior |
| Length | 1,280.56 mi (2,060.86 km) |
| Existed | 1988–present |
TheLake Superior Circle Tour (LSCT) follows state and provincial highways that are nearby the lake to loop around the entirety of Lake Superior. The LSCT follows state highways in the US states of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, and provincial highways in the Canadian province of Ontario.
In Michigan, the tour runs from the state line atIronwood toSault Ste. Marie. In between it followsU.S. Highway 2 (US 2) toWakefield,M-28 toBergland andM-64 toOntonagon. At Ontonagon, the LSCT continues east alongM-38 toM-26. It follows M-26 toHoughton and then followsUS 41 north toCopper Harbor. There is a loop route alongM-203 betweenHancock andCalumet. Travelers following the tour need to backtrack down US 41 to Houghton and then follow US 41 back to M-28 inCovington. US 41/M-28 carries the tour toHarvey where M-28 carries it eastward. There is a spur routing alongM-77 running north fromSeney toGrand Marais. The mainline tour departs from M-28 to loop northward alongM-123 throughNewberry toParadise and back to M-28. Then it follows M-28 for a third time until reachingInterstate 75 (I-75) where it follows the freeway north to Sault Ste. Marie. It leaves Michigan on theSault Ste. Marie International Bridge crossing into Ontario.[2]
Once in Ontario, the tour follows city streets throughSault Ste. Marie toHighway 17, theTrans-Canada Highway. It follows Highway 17 north along the mountainous shoreline through a remote region of Ontario. The highway curves to the west 190 miles (300 km) north of Sault Ste. Marie, and hugs the northern shore of the lake toNipigon. It meetsHighway 11, which isconcurrent with Highway 17 thereafter. The tour follows theThunder Bay Expressway throughThunder Bay. At the intersection of theHarbour Expressway, Highway 11/Highway 17 turns west; the tour continues south, now onHighway 61. Forty miles (60 km) south of Thunder Bay, the tour crosses thePigeon River into Minnesota.[3]
The LSCT followsMinnesota State Highway 61 (MN 61) between theCanada–United States border (near Thunder Bay) and the city ofDuluth. In Duluth, the tour route followsI-35 southbound to theUS 2 exit to Wisconsin.[4]
The circle tour crosses into Wisconsin on theBong Memorial Bridge carryingUS 2 between Duluth, Minnesota andSuperior, Wisconsin. In Superior, the tour route follows US 2/US 53 toWisconsin Highway 13 (WIS 13). NearAshland, the tour route returns to US 2 across Northern Wisconsin toHurley and the border with Michigan at Ironwood.[4]
 Lake Michigan Circle Tour | |
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| Location | Lake Michigan |
| Existed | 1988–present |
TheLake Michigan Circle Tour (LMCT) loops aroundLake Michigan following state highways. These highways are usually the closest to the lake.[1] The LMCT follows state highways in the US states ofIllinois,Indiana,Michigan andWisconsin. A special "spur route" follows theSSBadgerferry across the lake betweenLudington, Michigan andManitowoc, Wisconsin.
The LMCT followsIllinois Route 137 from the Wisconsin state line south onSheridan Road and joins Lake Shore Drive (U.S. 41). The route then follows U.S. 41 as U.S. Routes 12 and 20 run concurrent but split quickly. The tour then follows U.S. Route 12 into Indiana.
The LMCT followsI-94 andUS 12 in Indiana.[5]The Indiana portion of the Lake Michigan Circle Tour is the urban stretch of the lake. It begins on the Illinois line in the City ofHammond. US 12 continues eastward through the 2nd most populous portion of the State ofIndiana. TheGary-Hammond PMSA, a portion of the Chicago-Gary-Kenosha, IL-IN-WICombined Statistical Area (CMSA)[6] which includes all ofLake andPorter Counties. The third county along the shore,LaPorte County is in theSouth Bend CMSA. The only "rural" area is the ten miles (16 km) across northern Porter County, where route passes throughIndiana Dunes National Park.
Starting from Chicago, US 12 entersHammond, Indiana, beforeWhiting. Here, US 12,US 20 andUS 41 all share Indianapolis Boulevard. Along the lakefront, is Lakefront Park and Wihala Beach County Park. Located here is the Horseshoe Casino.[7] Whiting also provides easy access toWolf Lake, which is a remnant of the wetlands and lakes that formed along the shores of Lake Michigan creating a massive wetlands on theIllinois andIndiana border.
US 12 turns more southerly as it passes west and south ofIndiana Harbor, an industrial complex of mills, refineries, and docks. EnteringEast Chicago, US 12 turns east onto Columbus Drive, heading through the Indiana Harbor neighborhood ofEast Chicago. FromEast Chicago US 12 becomes Industrial Drive inGary.[7]
The alternate route for the Circle Tour is along I-94, which is joined with I-80 as theBorman Expressway. EnteringHammond the first stop could be the South Shore Welcome Center located on Kennedy Boulevard off the interstate.[8] Hammond developed because of the wetlands and numerous lakes. The area was not considered suitable for farming or development, until the meat packing industry began to thrive in Chicago. With the creation of refrigerated rail cars, a source of ice was needed. The lakes ofnorthern Indiana were seen as a source of that ice and meat packing moved across the line, creating processing plants and ice house.[9]
Gary is on both routes of the Circle Tour. I-80/I-94 and US 12 both enter the city. US 12 is closer to the lake, entering from East Chicago on Industrial Drive. Named appropriately for the industries and the Gary Airport that developed along the lakefront.U.S. Steel's Gary Plant began in 1906, and brought major industries to this area. Located on the southern shore ofLake Michigan, the city offered direct access to the iron fields of northern Michigan and Minnesota and the coal fields of Ohio and West Virginia.[9]
Following Industrial Drive, US 12 heads southeast, crossing under theIndiana Toll Road. At 4th Street, it turns east into downtown Gary.Downtown Gary is the home of theRailcats Minor League Baseball.[7] Continuing east into theMiller community of Gary, and this is the closest the circle tour comes to theChicago, South Shore and South Bend Railroad, the last interurban in theUnited States. Lake Street to the north will take motorists toLake Michigan and over to Marquette Park, the first dune park along the Indiana Shore. Continuing on US 12, which is now called theDunes Highway, the buildings end and forest and wetlands dominate. At County Line Road are the signs toIndiana Dunes National Park's West Beach facility and the east end of theMiller community. This is also the location for parking for the Marquette Hike/Bike trail.[8]
Crossing County Line Road on US 12 you enterPortage, inPorter County. Portage owes its growth as a bedroom community to the creation of thePort of Indiana complex.
US 12 continues eastward as theDunes Highway passing quickly through the town ofBurns Harbor
Porter bills itself as the gateway to the Indiana Dunes. Its location with bothIndiana Dunes State Park andIndiana Dunes National Park support their claim.
TheDunes Highway continues east into the town ofChesterton, which lies mostly south of US 12, US 20 and I-94.
Beverly Shores was a dune development of the Bartlett Family. Today, it is a residential community with remnants of the various development ideas used to lure home buyers into the dunes.Spanish Eclectic train depot and town hall, and the Old North Church with theCentury of Progress Architectural District homes from the1933 Chicago World's Fair are still present in this diverse architectural community.[7]
Michigan City is just east of Beverly Shores after US 12/Dunes Highway has passed through the Town of the Pines, turned northward along County Line Road. As theDunes Highway turns east into theLaporte County and the Michigan City limits, you come to the east end ofIndiana Dunes National Park atMount Baldy. The road continues as northeast towardMichigan leavingIndiana at Michiana Shores.
The LMCT enters Michigan inBerrien County alongUS 12. NearNew Buffalo the tour switches to followI-94 north to theBenton Harbor/St. Joseph area. Here the LMCT followsBL I-94 andM-63 back to the freeway, this time theI-196/US 31 freeway. AtHolland, the LMCT turns ontoBL I-196/US 31. Formerly it also followedBUS US 31 through Holland until that designation was removed. The Circle Tour continues to follow US 31 northward deviating atMuskegon andMontague–Whitehall for the variousbusiness loops.[10] AtLudington, the Lake Michigan Circle Tour meets a '"connecting route" over theS.S. Badger carferry.[5] The tour continues to follow US 31 toManistee where it joinsM-22 up and around theLeelanau Peninsula, with a special spur loop followingM-109. It rejoins US 31 at Traverse City and follows US 31 to the northern terminus of US 31 south ofMackinaw City. There it runs alongI-75 north to theUpper Peninsula of Michigan. TheLake Huron Circle Tour joins I-75 at the northern terminus ofUS 23 and both run together on I-75 over theMackinac Bridge. North of the toll plaza inSt. Ignace, The LHCT takes Exit 344A to followBL I-75 while the LMCT takes Exit 344B to followUS 2.[10]
In the Upper Peninsula, the circle tour follows US 2 westward toRapid River. HereUS 41 joins US 2. AtGladstoneM-35 joins to form a three-wayconcurrency south toEscanaba. South of Escanaba, the circle tour follows M-35 toMenominee. Here M-35 ends and US 41 carries the circle tour south into Wisconsin.[10] There is a "spur route" designated alongM-183 and Delta County Road 483 on theGarden Peninsula.[5]
In Wisconsin, the LMCT followsUS 41 south toI-43 in theGreen Bay area. From I-43, it runs up into theDoor Peninsula alongWIS 57 andWIS 42 and back south to I-43. It continues along I-43 toPort Washington where it briefly followsWIS 32 for a few miles throughPort Washington then back onto I-43 toMilwaukee where it re-joinsWIS 32 to the state border.[5]
 Lake Huron Circle Tour | |
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| Location | Lake Huron |
| Existed | 1988–present |
TheLake Huron Circle Tour (LHCT) progresses clockwise from a starting point at theBlue Water Bridge inPort Huron, Michigan–Sarnia, Ontario. The LHCT continues around Lake Huron, touching on locations including the following:
A Michigan spur route utilizes a segment ofM-134 toDeTour Village.[11]
An Ontario spur route uses theMSChi-Cheemaun ferry to cross the mouth of Lake Huron'sGeorgian Bay from the Bruce Peninsula toManitoulin Island and return.[11]
 Lake Erie Circle Tour | |
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| Location | Lake Erie |
| Length | 680 mi (1,090 km) |
| Existed | 1988–present |
TheLake Erie Circle Tour (LECT) loops aroundLake Erie following state and provincial highways. These highways are usually the closest to the lake.[1] The LECT follows state highways in the US states ofNew York,Pennsylvania,Ohio, andMichigan and provincial highways in theCanadian province ofOntario.
Starting inDetroit, the LECT followsInterstate 75 (I-75) south from theAmbassador Bridge to exit 43. There it followsM-85 throughLincoln Park toTrenton. At exit 28, the LECT rejoins I-75 and runs south throughMonroe to the state line, crossing intoToledo, Ohio.[12]
Crossing into the state of Ohio, the LECT leavesI-75 to followI-280 around the east side of Toledo. The tour then exits I-280 and runs alongSR 2 to the city ofSandusky, home ofCedar Point. There it joinsU.S. Route 6 (US 6) toCleveland. West of Cleveland, US 6 merges withUS 20 and SR 2 in a three-wayconcurrency. The LECT will continue to follow SR 2 through downtown Cleveland. On the east side of the city, the tour continues onSR 283 throughEuclid toPainesville. There it merges onto US 20 untilGeneva. The tour followsSR 531 east along the lake between Geneva andConneaut, where it returns along US 20 east to the state line.
The LECT followsPennsylvania Route 5 throughErie County. This is also the routing of theSeaway Trail.
Entering New York, the road becomesNew York State Route 5 toBuffalo. There it follows thePeace Bridge to Ontario.
The LECT followsOntario Highway 3 through the province, running the entire length from the Peace Bridge to the Ambassador Bridge.
 Seaway Trail | |
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| Location | Ohio–Pennsylvania state line toCanada–United States border |
| Length | 518 mi[13] (834 km) |
| Existed | 1978[14]–present |
Unlike the other four Great Lakes,Lake Ontario is posted not as a circle tour but as part of the US-onlySeaway Trail. The trail begins inErie County, Pennsylvania and travels throughBuffalo,Niagara Falls,Rochester,Oswego, andOgdensburg before ending at theSeaway International Bridge nearMassena.
Plans for the Great Lakes Circle Tours were started in 1985. TheMichigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) was in consultation with its counterparts in Wisconsin (WisDOT), Minnesota (MnDOT) and Ontario (Ministry of Transportation of Ontario, MTO) in May 1986 to establish a tour route around Lake Superior. The project was started by Paula Blanchard, the First Lady of Michigan at the time. She was an adviser to theMichigan Department of Commerce and called for the formation of the tour in the fall of 1985 at a tourism conference. Representatives from the three states and province agreed to the plan. Michigan drafted the first design for the signs in early 1986, sending the design to the other governments for approval.[15] TheGreat Lakes Commission approved the formation of a Great Lakes Circle Tour in November 1988.[16]
