Canada

of Ontario, Canada

Ontario

"Lake Erie"

Lake Erie is the warmest, and shallowest of all the Great Lakes, Canada on one side and the USA on the other. With an average depth of only 19 meters (62 feet), Lake Erie is the shallowest of the five Great Lakes. The shallowness of the lake presents various hazards to navigation in stormy weather, when dangerous ground swells are common. In addition, the lake is closed by ice to shipping from mid-December through March. Despite these obstacles, great quantities of cargo from grain to iron ore and limestone, which are key to the steel industry in the area are carried on Lake Erie. The lake is a key component of the Saint Lawrence Seaway and is connected with the Hudson River by the Erie Canal.

The boundary between the United States and Canada generally follows the long axis of Lake Erie, which extends in a northeast to southwest direction for 388 kilometers (241 miles). The lake’s area, which is the fourth largest of the Great Lakes, is nearly evenly divided between the two countries. The shores along western New York and eastern Ohio are an important fruit-growing area. Major ports and industrial centers on Lake Erie include Buffalo, New York; Erie, Pennsylvania; Cleveland and Toledo, Ohio; Detroit, Michigan; and Leamington and Port Colborne, Ontario.

Lake Erie receives the waters of Lake Huron by way of the Saint Clair River, Lake Saint Clair, and the Detroit River. In the east, the lake empties via the Niagara River into Lake Ontario. There are some islands in the western end of Lake Erie, the largest being Pelee Island, Ontario.

This is the lighthouse at Port Dover, Ontario on Lake Erie.

Long Point, this is the first area settled along the lake. You can see on the map from the first page how far it extends out into the lake.

The James B, a fishing boat coming back into Port Dover Harbour.

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