what are the Great Lakes and its waters like in the winter months?
My perspective of flying the region for many years and photographing images for my book, Michigan Lighthouses, An Aerial Photographic Perspective, has allowed me an enviable view of the Straits in the winter. (We also have more lighthouses than any other state in the Union). When flying and photographing from my Cessna 172 Skyhawk, I might be traveling at 50 feet or at 5,000 feet. This allows a point of view seldom seen by any other means. Certainly one flying overhead in a Boeing 737 at 35,000 feet and five hundred miles per hour has little sense or appreciation of the factors affecting life in the region. Before the advent of the Weather Channel, the term Lake Effect was seldom used or understood outside the Great Lakes region. The Great Lakes are an atmospheric phenomenon occurring in the middle of the nation, affecting the lives of millions of people. This microcosm of weather creates winds and pressure patterns that literally piles water on an opposite shore. This seiche may take
