Every spot, ranked for right now

Bottom of Thunder Bay proper. Sibley to the east and the mainland to the west mean the fetch here almost never exceeds 30 km.

Enclosed marina basin inside the breakwall, with the Sibley Peninsula and Pie Island blocking everything from the east and southeast.

Tucked at the tip of the Sibley Peninsula. Flat in any westerly because the whole peninsula is upwind, but fully exposed to the open lake from the southeast.

A pocket harbour on the east side of the Sleeping Giant. Protected from west through north, and worth the trip on its own.

Inside Black Bay behind the Sibley Peninsula. One of the most reliably flat spots on the Canadian side in any westerly.

Hat Point and Grand Portage Island shield the bay from the northeast, and Isle Royale blocks the long eastern fetch entirely.

Deep inside Nipigon Bay with St Ignace and Simpson Islands across the mouth. About as protected as big water gets.

Artificial harbour behind Artists Point. Isle Royale sits 60 km offshore and cuts the fetch on anything from the east northeast.

Screened by the Rossport islands. Short fetch from nearly every direction, which makes it the standard bad-weather fallback on the north shore.

Natural harbour behind a rock reef at the tip of the Keweenaw. Protected inside, and utterly exposed the moment you leave it.

South facing bay on the Keweenaw tip, with warm shallow water and shelter from everything north.

The Slate Islands sit 10 km offshore and take the edge off any south or southwest sea.

A canal straight through the Keweenaw Peninsula. Completely immune to lake sea and the single best bad-weather option in Michigan.

West shore of Keweenaw Bay, with the Huron Mountains upwind in a southeasterly.

Head of a long bay that points northeast. Flat in anything from the west or south, and it funnels a northeast wind straight at you.

Man made harbour behind a rock breakwall. The most protected water between Two Harbors and Grand Marais.

Rocky exposed shoreline. Only worth it in a northwest wind blowing off the land, and even then watch how far out you drift.

Small harbour under the Huron Mountains. Protected from the south and west by high ground.

The Apostles form a natural breakwater. There is nearly always a lee behind one island or another, whatever the wind is doing.

The channel between Bayfield and Madeline is short-fetch water in almost any direction. The classic calm day cruise.

Inside Chequamegon Bay with the Bayfield Peninsula to the north. Very hard to blow out.

A long narrow bay pointing southwest, closed off by Chequamegon Point and Long Island. Warmest water on the lake and rarely rough.

Breakwall harbour that stays workable in a northeaster when the shoreline outside is unridable.

The point splits the wind. There is almost always a calm side, you just have to pick the right one.

Small breakwall harbour. Protected from the northeast swell that runs the length of the north shore.

Breakwall harbour with Presque Isle to the north. Sheltered from the northwest, wide open to a northeast blow.

The harbour side of Park Point is completely enclosed. The lake side is wide open to the whole length of the lake in a northeast wind.

Inside the ship canal. Flat in anything, at the cost of commercial traffic.

Bottom of Whitefish Bay. Short fetch from everywhere except due north, and the shallowest warmest water in the region.

Open to the south and southeast with hundreds of kilometres of fetch. Good only when the wind has a north component.

Enclosed marina near the Michigan border. The south shore here is open to the north, so this basin is the shelter.

Small protected harbour on an otherwise open stretch of the Wisconsin shore.

A pocket bay on the exposed north side of the Keweenaw. Good in a southerly, unusable in anything with north in it.

River mouth marina. Open to 250 km of northwest fetch once you clear the piers.

West facing shore on the outside of the Bayfield Peninsula. Flat in an easterly, exposed to the whole west end of the lake otherwise.

Shallow sand bay that warms early and stays workable in an offshore southerly.

Grand Island closes off the bay almost completely. The most dependable calm water on the Michigan shore, and the gateway to Pictured Rocks.

Natural harbour behind a sand point. Everything outside is open to 200 km of north and northwest fetch.

Harbour basin near Wawa. Michipicoten Island 50 km offshore breaks up a westerly sea before it arrives.

Sheltered corner of Whitefish Bay with the point to the north and the mainland wrapping the south.

The dividing line. Water east of the point is Whitefish Bay and comparatively protected; west of it is open lake.

A wide shallow bay north of the Sault. Warms up earlier than the rest of the lake and is protected from anything easterly.

Sheltered inner bay with Gros Cap to the south. Reliably the calmest water within reach of Sault Ste Marie.

River water rather than lake water. Effectively immune to any lake sea, which makes it the last resort on a truly blown out day.

River, not lake. Completely immune to any sea state on Superior.