Lake Superior – A Majestic Coast

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The Lake Superior Coast is a world class travel corridor. Those who have made the trip from Thunder Bay to Sault Ste. Marie are sure to agree with the description of this Great Lake coast and its attraction to draw visitors. This is what you see when you visit the towns on the north shore like Red Rock, Nipigon, Terrace Bay, Marathon, White River and Wawa.

Lake Superior

'The Legend lives on from the Chippewa on down of the big lake they call Gitchigoomee ...' Gordon Lightfoot

“No one in modern time has captured the mystery and legend of Lake Superior more powerfully nor more simply than Gordon Lightfoot in his epic song about the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald in November 1975.

Superior is immense in size, the largest by area freshwater body of water in the world and is often referred to as an inland sea.

Natural & Rugged

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The scenery along Superior’s north shore in particular is stunning where the Pre Cambrian shield meets the waters of Superior in an endless array of 1000 foot cliffs crashing into water that is so clear it is possible to see 30 meters deep. With its pebble beaches, and tide like water movements where Mother Nature can make river water flow upstream and where storms can churn waves to 30 feet high as they did on November10 1975 simply add an element of magic and mystery to the majesty of the setting.

Superior has sand beaches that reach off into the horizon and it is a land of unending vistas from high rock perches and canyons and tunnels bored through rock to let the trains and cars of modern time find better purchase as they travel its rugged shore. The Lake Superior shoreline also has a number of peninsulas and island archipealagos noted for their remoteness, scenic quality and ecological values.

Land of Story & Legend

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Superior is a land of story and legend from paleo Indian pictograph sites to the series of mesas and sills that make up the Sleeping Giant and the legend of Nanabijou who protects Thunder Bay and was voted by the Canadian public as the most popular Natural Wonder in Canada.

The natural splendour and rugged beauty of Superior's north shore have enchanted visitors for generations. Many have undertaken efforts to share the beauty of the area with the world and protect it for future generations. Early artists travelling with explorers such as LaVerendrye and later with the fur traders of the Northwest Company captured the rugged beauty of the Superior shore, then as the area became accessible to ground transportation the Group of Seven artists, in the 1920’s, captured the beauty of the Superior North Shore in their paintings.

At its simplest Lake Superior is the point in North America where the gentle plains of the Midwest meet the ruggedness of the Canadian Shield and forever where East shall meet West.

Except from paper written on the Lake Superior Heritage Coast by Dale Ashbee and Ian Mettam.

About John Cameron

John knows what Northwest Ontario and Thunder Bay has to offer as a tourism destination. A life long resident of the region, John has lived in Thunder Bay for over 30 years. A former sports journalist, John has a passion sports having worked in television, radio and print. He continues to write a weekly column on curling for Thunder Bay’s daily paper, the Chronicle Journal. John works as a development officer for Tourism Thunder Bay with sports tourism a key part of his portfolio.