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The North Channel: The Great Lakes' best kept secret

  You don’t hear much about Lake Huron. It’s home to what is known as the North Channel. It's filled with hundreds of islands. It's like the Caribbean, but instead of sand and palm trees, you have rock and pine trees. So why does Lake Huron often get ignored when we talk about the Great Lakes the surround our state?

Roy Eaton joined us on Stateside to answer that very question. He's the weatherman and newscaster for the North Channel. His broadcast, Cruisers’ Net, airs every morning at 9 in the summer on VHF radio.

The North Channel is located at the northern side of Manitoulin Island, the largest freshwater island in the world.

Eaton has sailed all the Great Lakes, Bermuda, Antigua, the Virgin Islands and the Florida Keys.  Yet he says Lake Huron’s North Channel is his favorite. The geography is what draws the eye and what lands the North Channel the top ratings of best places to boat in international boating magazines like Cruising World and Sailing.

If you want to discover the North Channel but don't have a boat, no worries. You can rent a boat, or charter a boat from some of the bays, like Gore Bayand Little Current, on Manitoulin Island.

*Listen to the full interview with Roy Eaton on Michigan Radio at 3:00 pm. Audio for this story will be added by 4:30 pm. 

Copyright 2021 Michigan Radio. To see more, visit Michigan Radio.

There is a great anchorage spot at the end of the fjord of Baie Fine in Killarney Provincial Park, on the farthest east end of the North Channel.
Emily Fox /
There is a great anchorage spot at the end of the fjord of Baie Fine in Killarney Provincial Park, on the farthest east end of the North Channel.
 Lake Topaz is a dead lake you can hike to from Baie Fine in Killarney.
Emily Fox /
Lake Topaz is a dead lake you can hike to from Baie Fine in Killarney.
Baie Fine in Killarney Provincial Park is the only fjord in North America.
Emily Fox /
Baie Fine in Killarney Provincial Park is the only fjord in North America.
There are hundreds of islands on Lake Huron's north channel. This island is in Whalesback Channel.
Emily Fox /
There are hundreds of islands on Lake Huron's north channel. This island is in Whalesback Channel.
The many islands of the North Channel start to pop up around Michigan's Drummond Island.
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The many islands of the North Channel start to pop up around Michigan's Drummond Island.

Read more about the Stateside.