Photo essay: Wild winter surf on Lake Michigan
January 13, 2020 | Topics: Places
By Eddee Daniel
While the dire predictions of a snowy apocalypse proved to be the usual weather forecasting hyperbole, the storm that swept in from the northeast over the weekend was very real on Lake Michigan. Already at a record high water mark, the lake was whipped by up to 50-mile-an-hour gusts into a frenzy that pummeled the shoreline. I went to see the action at McKinley Beach and discovered not only the supercharged surf hitting the breakwaters, but also a surprising number of other (crazy) people out enjoying (!!) themselves in one way and another, despite the driving sleet. Check it out:
Aftermath
The storm that unleashed the wilderness of a Great Lake upon the shores of Wisconsin was both dangerous and destructive. Some news reports called the damage to the Port of Milwaukee “catastrophic.” I revisited the lakefront a few days after I shot the photos above and got a few more:
Eddee Daniel is a board member of Preserve Our Parks.