40 Midwest Spots for Amazing Summer Water Getaways

Fish come in all sizes, and all spirits too. Little bluegills hang out under docks, their curiosity piqued by nothing more than a bit of hot dog on a child’s hook. Walleye lurk deep in cold waters and fight back with Melvillean furor. Trout play coy, chasing feathered flies that flit on the surface of rippling streams. Catfish just seem dopey. But big or small, easy or tough, in a pond or on a Great Lake, catching them always follows the same arc. The bait. The wait. The tug on the line. The leap of the heart. The reeling in—a timeless battle of survival and will, energy coursing between two species along a single taut filament, the victor never a guarantee. ANYWHERE!

Leave your cares (and maybe your car) behind with a ride to a vacation accessible only by boat. Kelleys Island and Put-In-Bay are the marquee names in a cluster of Lake Erie isles west of Cleveland. Highlights include beaches, a state park, a towering war memorial, small resorts—and a lifestyle that moves at a golf-cart pace. MARBLEHEAD, CATAWBA. SANDUSKY, OH

Everything you’ve heard about Mackinac Island is true: The fudge. The gingerbread architecture. The carriages. And, yes, the hordes of tourists. (Escape the bustle and get big Lake Huron views on an 8-mile bike ride or hike around the island.) MACKINAW CITY + ST. IGNACE, MI

A third of Beaver Island’s 54 square miles remain state-owned and largely undeveloped, inhabited by foxes, migrating cranes and, naturally, beavers. In town, you’ll find a few hotels and shops, a working lighthouse, sand beaches and all the fresh whitefish you can eat. CHARLEVOIX, MI

Sunshine turns Lake Superior a tempting blue-green, but the Caribbean this is not. Most years, the lake’s surface temp maxes out around 65 degrees. Roll up your cuffs and let the surf lick your toes, or leap in for an unforgettable baptism in the world’s largest body of fresh water. MICHIGAN, MINNESOTA, WISCONSIN

Time travel 390 million years back at Falls of the Ohio State Park, where amateur paleontologists can hunt for 600-plus different types of Devonian fossils on rock beds washed clean by the Ohio River. Some creatures are as big as a bus, others tinier than a pencil tip. CLARKSVILLE, IN

Six ingredients make up a Door County fish boil: whitefish, water, potatoes, salt, butter and lemon. Well, seven, if you count the kerosene, splashed on the open fire for the grand finale. DOOR COUNTY, WI

Made famous by native son Bob Dylan, Minnesota’s North Shore Scenic Drive is thick with gems. Historic Split Rock Lighthouse. Rocky beaches. Family-run smokehouses. And so very many waterfalls, plunging through pristine woods, out to Lake Superior. DULUTH, MN, TO CANADA

The Mississippi River cuts through our nation’s heart—a 2,300-some-mile artery of commerce and culture. Hero of literature and song. Life-giving and life-taking. Where it flexes its muscle, the river stretches miles wide. But at the headwaters in Itasca State Park, the Mississippi spills from a serene Minnesota lake as a slim channel, shallow, clear and cold. To avoid tourists, come early. In the quiet of a new day, you can cross the infant river on stepping stones, alone with your thoughts, save for an occasional chortling loon. PARK RAPIDS, MN

Held each September on the Red River, the Fargo-Moorhead area Canoe Parade is both a participatory and spectator event, a kooky, open-invite display of community and creativity, paddling joyfully downstream. MOORHEAD, MN

Apostle Islands National Lakeshore encompasses 12 miles of rugged Lake Superior coast and most of a 22-island archipelago. You can take a narrated cruise, but the real thrill is guiding a kayak through caves carved over millennia by the water. BAYFIELD, WI

With the right attitude, any kayak trip is an adventure. But these three rivers are truly one of a kind.

Ancient cypress trees rise from the swampy Cache River Wetlands, part of a state-run natural area in southern Illinois. Hushed and eerily beautiful, it’s the northernmost marsh of its kind in the U.S. CYPRESS, IL

For a new perspective on the Windy City, join a guided float down the Chicago River and get an architecture lesson in the shadows of glittering skyscrapers. CHICAGO

The Niobrara National Scenic River offers days’ worth of calm paddling in the scenic Sandhills, with countless spots to pull off and hike (including to Nebraska’s tallest waterfall, Smith Falls). VALENTINE, NE

Opened in 1957, the Mackinac Bridge stretches for 5 miles, spanning the point where lakes Michigan and Huron kiss. As many as 30,000 people come each Labor Day to hike across it, but this year’s Bridge Walk has been canceled due to the pandemic. We’ll see you in 2021, Big Mac. MACKINAW CITY + ST. IGNACE, MI

No promise of a message in a bottle, but freshwater waves polish and deliver treasure, same as any salt sea. Keep your eyes down to find fossil-freckled Petoskey stones by Lake Michigan, agate along Lake Superior or colorful glass on any Great Lakes shore. IN, IL, MI, MN, OH, WI

A moose sighting up north is a rite of passage. Just about the best odds are at dawn and dusk in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, a million-acre patchwork of lakes and forest along the Canada border—or at Isle Royale National Park, a cluster of 450-plus islands in Lake Superior accessible only by air or water. ELY + GRAND MARAIS, MN; MI

At Falls Park in South Dakota’s largest city, 7,400 gallons of water cascade over gorgeous pink Sioux quartzite boulders—every second. SIOUX FALLS, SD

Every once in a while, a gushy marketing nickname is actually correct. Case in point: the Waterpark Capital of the World. Swoosh around every flume the Dells throw at you, then line up (with a zillion other families) to do it again. WISCONSIN DELLS, WI

Hey, Bridget Jones fans. You know that scene where Bridge and Daniel recite bawdy limericks in a rowboat on a gauzy afternoon? That could be you, in Forest Park, drifting with your sweetie around the 1904 World’s Fair-era Grand Basin. Parasol recommended. ST. LOUIS

For slaves in the antebellum South, the Ohio River marked the boundary of freedom. With its meditation labyrinth, Black Brigade Monument to volunteer soldiers, and zany all-ages toys, Smale Riverfront Park cleverly invites both play and reflection. Rock on riverfront porch-swing benches and take in the view. CINCINNATI

Philosophical question: If a summer passes without floating downriver in a big inflated donut tethered to your friends—and to a tube you’ve rented just to carry the cooler—have you really summered at all? ANYWHERE!

Lake Michigan’s epic dunes are living mountains—shaped by wind, stitched together by plant roots and subtly changed each time we walk upon them.

Some 50 miles of trails crisscross Indiana Dunes National Park’s diverse and fragile ecosystem. Look for Chicago from the Dune Succession Trail at West Beach. PORTAGE, IN

Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore stretches for 35 achingly gorgeous miles; the highest dune drops 450 feet into the cerulean abyss of Lake Michigan. EMPIRE, MI

Some water sports are, you know, sports. Others are acts of pure sloth. Enter tanking, a uniquely Nebraskan pastime of floating down a river in a cattle tank. No oar. No pole. No motor. In fact, no steering, acceleration or propulsion of any kind. (Though some outfitters rig tanks with bench seats and tables for playing cards or holding drinks.) You can hitch a tank most anywhere in the state, but the Calamus, Middle Loup and Cedar rivers are hot spots. NEBRASKA

That’s it. Just go to Chicago and feel how water courses through the Windy City’s veins. Zip down Lake Shore Drive, flanked by high-rises and Lake Michigan. (Or rent a bike to ride on the parallel trail.) Watch bridges lift for sailboats along the revived Chicago River. (Or see it happen from the inside out at the Bridgehouse Museum.) Join the party on Oak Street Beach. (Or escape it on 12th Street Beach.) Wade in Crown Fountain, where glowing portraits “spit” on gleeful kids. (Or stay dry watching Buckingham Fountain’s regular light and water shows.) Take to the sky on Navy Pier’s Ferris wheel for a 360-degree view of how water shapes this town. (Or get a four-state vista from the Willis Tower.) We could go on—but you’re probably already there.

Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary protects a swath of Lake Huron known as Shipwreck Alley. Peer into the depths of maritime history on a glass-bottom boat tour. ALPENA, MI

Unfettered by hills or trees, breezes roll into mighty winds outside Wichita, making Cheney State Park and Reservoir one of the most unlikely big-time sailing destinations in the United States. CHENEY, KS

Sure, it’s a little old-school, but the Riverboat Twilight is one of the Mississippi’s most memorable rides, with stops in historic towns, narrated sightseeing and pitch-perfect live banjo music on deck. LECLAIRE, IA

All hail the minivan of the not-so-high seas. Comfy. Roomy. Trusty. (Aerodynamics are so overrated.) Head out early, stop for a swim, snack on potato chips—and when the sun sets, put on home. ANYWHERE!

Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore gets its name from striking sandstone cliffs streaked by minerals. It’s especially lovely at sunset. See the Lake Superior lakeshore by tour boat or kayak, or explore the forested shoreline to hike to beaches and waterfalls. MUNISING TO GRAND MARAIS, MI

Hundreds of lighthouses ring the Great Lakes, many open seasonally for visitors (some even for overnight guests). Get ready for a steep climb up spiral steps to see sweeping lake vistas—and hear or read tales about lighthouse keepers’ solitary lives. MI, WI, IL, OH, MN, IN

Former Boundary Waters guide John Kerschbaum traded canoe paddling for cruising on Gondola Romantica in 2000 (after shipping an authentic vessel from Venice to Minnesota). He's been crooning to lovers on the St. Croix ever since. STILLWATER, MN

At Palms Book State Park, ride on a hand-cranked raft across Kitch-iti-kipi, the state’s largest freshwater spring, gushing more than 10,000 gallons per minute. You’ll be mesmerized by swirling clouds of sand and ancient tree trunks. MANISTIQUE, MI

Gawk at the 135-foot-tall Aerial Lift Bridge as it rises more than 20 times each day for sailboats and skyscraper-length ships traveling between Lake Superior and Duluth Harbor. The first version of the unusual bridge was completed in 1905, and a remodeled bridge opened in 1930. DULUTH, MN

The famously clear Geneva Lake is ringed by resorts, vacation homes and 19th-century mansions. Excursions on Lake Geneva Cruise Line offer close-up views of the Victorian mansions around the spring-fed lake, while more than 25 miles of lakeshore walking paths run through the manicured grounds of estates, most still privately owned. LAKE GENEVA, WI

Starting in July, giant water lilies bloom in the reflecting pools of the Missouri Botanical Garden. The plants—which can grow as fast as an inch an hour—have leaf spans of up to six feet. If St. Louis isn’t on your summer itinerary, most Midwest botanical gardens boast one or more lakes or ponds that might show off aquatic plants, fountains or waterfalls. ST. LOUIS, MO

At the confluence of the Big and Little Arkansas rivers, Keeper of the Plains honors local Native American tribes. At 9 p.m. in the summer, flames from the fire drums illuminate the river. Another way to experience the statue: sunset or sunrise views from a kayak. WICHITA

At Voyageurs National Park, a maze of waterways carries boaters into boreal forest where the namesake fur trappers once reigned. Rented houseboats are a popular choice for multiday trips in the 340-square-mile park. INTERNATIONAL FALLS, MN

The 900-acre Belle Isle Park in the Detroit River delivers a lineup of next-to-nature moments. Its free aquarium features more than 1,000 fish; also see a marble lighthouse, beach, conservatory and maritime museum. DETROIT