Surfing the Great Lakes: “A Special Place in My Heart”

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Growing up in Chicago, I didn’t know a thing about surfing. Then in my early twenties, a friend told me it’s possible to surf Lake Michigan. I immediately called bullshit on him. I was wrong.

You can surf a lake. On Lake Superior, the largest of the Great Lakes, the highest reported waves have approached 30 feet during violent fall storms like the one that sank the Edmund Fitzgerald in November 1975. The highest waves measured on Lake Michigan have been just over 20 feet, occurring at the south end when storm-force north winds (55 miles per hour and greater) blow down the entire 325 mile length of the lake. These open water 20 foot waves don’t translate into beautiful barrels on the beach though, it’s a washing machine nightmare with howling onshore winds.

You have to be be very dedicated to find the right spot at the right time to score clean surf, and it usually only lasts a few hours. Sometimes the oneway drive to the break alone is a few hours. Over time, we learned the pulse of the lake. It took years to get it dialed in. The wind that would make particular spots work and others not. We surfed every opportunity we had. We would surf in January with the water at 33 degrees and a windchill of 10 below zero until the lake froze over, and we loved every moment of frigid discomfort.

In 2004, I had the opportunity to move to Hawaii. My drive for this move was surfing — born by the lake, yet realized in full when I arrived to the islands. Hawaii is home now, but the Great Lakes have a special place in my heart. I recently went back to Chicago to visit family and friends and as was lucky enough to be there for one day when the wind was up.

Jack Flynn and I jumped in the car leaving Chicago with Sabbath blasting on the radio. We headed over the Skyway toll-road to Indiana to check a few spots. The surf we scored is not the best the lake has to offer, not even close — but it was surf: fresh water, smokestacks billowing industry along the shoreline, my closest friend, and the nostalgia that comes with that combination. For me it was epic.

I always have a few cameras with me wherever I go and a sack of film. I surfed for a bit with one of my oldest friends, then loaded up the gear for some photos. Here are a few shots from the session. Indiana Dunes Highway. My brains are okay.

For more from Mike Caputo, visit AlohaBigMike.com, and be sure to follow him on Instagram and Flickr.