Lake Superior
Pukaskia Provincial Park, Ontario
Not only is Lake Superior the largest of the Great Lakes, it also has the largest surface area of any freshwater lake in the world. With an average depth approaching 500 feet, Superior also is the coldest and deepest (1,332 feet) of the Great Lakes. The drainage basin, totaling 49,300 square miles, encompasses parts of Michigan, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ontario.
The first French explorers approaching the great inland sea by way of the Ottawa River and Lake Huron referred to their discovery as le lac superieur. Properly translated, the expression means “Upper Lake,” that is, the lake above Lake Huron. Kitchi-gummi or Kitchi gami, renditions of a Chippewa Indian word, signifies Great-water or Great-lake. A Jesuit name, Lac Tracy, was never officially adopted.
Length - 350 miles
Breadth - 160 miles
Depth (average) - 489 feet
Depth (maximum) - 1,332 feet
Volume - 2,935 cubic miles
Shoreline Length - 2,730 miles
Water Surface Area - 31,700 square miles
Water Retention/Replacement Time - 191 years
Outlet - Saint Mary’s River to Lake Huron
Population - 673,000