Photo: @timelessaerialphotography
The surfing scene around the Great Lakes is one-of-a-kind. I’ve personally never been anywhere else where more people are just generally stoked to have access to a wave, even if it rarely breaks in the first place, and all without egos or even the slightest hint of a “if you don’t live here, don’t surf here” vibe. At least that’s my limited experience in a small corner of the Midwest during the dead of winter.
Speaking of which, the dead of winter also happens to be the time when surfers in the area are often going to find a limited window to score waves.
Brian Tanis, a photographer who hunts waves around Lake Michigan once told me a good day is always a surprise. “We know the places that really hold these types of waves and have this setup but it can all be really delicate,” he said after an all-time Great Lakes session. “It can be finicky. And there isn’t a lot of history or data, so it’s not like we have data sheets with tons of information. We’re all still kind of learning.”
Reminding us that winters around the Great Lakes are full of rare, cool sights is this drone footage from Lake Michigan. There was no evidence of another all-time surf session because, well, chunks of ice floating in the water are probably going to put a damper on those plans — even for a crowd that has no problem throwing on 5/4 hoodies if it might mean snagging a knee-high roller.
Enjoy.
