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Great Lakes Circle Tour

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Great Lakes Circle Tour

The Great Lakes Circle Tour is a designated scenic road system connecting all of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River. It consists of routes for circumnavigating the lakes, either individually or collectively. It was designated by the Great Lakes Commission in 1988.

The Lake Superior Circle Tour (LSCT) follows state and provincial highways that are nearby the lake to loop around the entirety of Lake Superior. The LSCT follows state highways in the US states of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Minnesota, and provincial highways in the Canadian province of Ontario.

In Michigan, the tour runs from the state line at Ironwood to Sault Ste. Marie. In between it follows U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) to Wakefield, M-28 to Bergland and M-64 to Ontonagon. At Ontonagon, the LSCT continues east along M-38 to M-26. It follows M-26 to Houghton and then follows US 41 north to Copper Harbor. There is a loop route along M-203 between Hancock and Calumet. Travelers following the tour need to backtrack down US 41 to Houghton and then follow US 41 back to M-28 in Covington. US 41/M-28 carries the tour to Harvey where M-28 carries it eastward. There is a spur routing along M-77 running north from Seney to Grand Marais. The mainline tour departs from M-28 to loop northward along M-123 through Newberry to Paradise and back to M-28. Then it follows M-28 for a third time until reaching Interstate 75 (I-75) where it follows the freeway north to Sault Ste. Marie. It leaves Michigan on the Sault Ste. Marie International Bridge crossing into Ontario.

Once in Ontario, the tour follows city streets through Sault Ste. Marie to Highway 17, the Trans-Canada Highway. It follows Highway 17 north along the mountainous shoreline through a remote region of Ontario. The highway curves to the west 190 miles (300 km) north of Sault Ste. Marie, and hugs the northern shore of the lake to Nipigon. It meets Highway 11, which is concurrent with Highway 17 thereafter. The tour follows the Thunder Bay Expressway through Thunder Bay. At the intersection of the Harbour Expressway, Highway 11/Highway 17 turns west; the tour continues south, now on Highway 61. Forty miles (60 km) south of Thunder Bay, the tour crosses the Pigeon River into Minnesota.

The LSCT follows Minnesota State Highway 61 (MN 61) between the Canada–United States border (near Thunder Bay) and the city of Duluth. In Duluth, the tour route follows I-35 southbound to the US 2 exit to Wisconsin.

The circle tour crosses into Wisconsin on the Bong Memorial Bridge carrying US 2 between Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. In Superior, the tour route follows US 2/US 53 to Wisconsin Highway 13 (WIS 13). Near Ashland, the tour route returns to US 2 across Northern Wisconsin to Hurley and the border with Michigan at Ironwood.

The Lake Michigan Circle Tour (LMCT) loops around Lake Michigan following state highways. These highways are usually the closest to the lake. The LMCT follows state highways in the US states of Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin. A special "spur route" follows the SS Badger ferry across the lake between Ludington, Michigan and Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

The LMCT follows Illinois Route 137 from the Wisconsin state line south on Sheridan Road and joins Lake Shore Drive (U.S. 41). The route then follows U.S. 41 as U.S. Routes 12 and 20 run concurrent but split quickly. The tour then follows U.S. Route 12 into Indiana.

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