Glen Lake
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| Glen Lake | |
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| Location | Leelanau County, Michigan |
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| Basin countries | United States |
| Surface area | 4,865 acres (19.69 km²) Big 1,400 acres (5.7 km²) Little |
| Max. depth | 130 ft (40 m) |
Glen Lake is a lake located in Leelanau County in the U.S. state of Michigan. Several villages and hamlets lie along or near its shore, including Burdickville, Glen Haven, and Glen Arbor. The lake actually consists of two large bodies of water connected by a narrow channel passing under a state route 22 bridge. The larger body to the east being referred to as "Big Glen Lake", and the smaller body to the west as "Little Glen Lake". The two bodies are hydrologically the same, and collectively referred to as Glen Lake. The total surface area of the two bodies are 4,865 acres (20 km²) and 1,400 acres (6 km²), with maximum depths of 130 feet (40 m) and 12 ft (4 m) respectively. There was a point in time where the lakes were actually the same depth but the sand from the Sleeping Bear Dunes has slowly filled in little Glen. Big Glen Lake is nearly perfectly round, while Little Glen is more elongated.
The lake is located in a spectacular setting of wooded rolling sand hills just east of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, centered at . It is considered by many[who?] to be one of the most beautiful lakes in the entire state. Filtered by the underlying and surrounding sands, its waters are remarkably clear and pure, and glow with an iridescent indigo blue. Its beauty makes it a popular lake for vacationers, and offers boating, swimming, and fishing for yellow perch, smallmouth bass, northern pike, brown trout, and lake trout.
The many trails, roads and elevations in the area make Glen Lake a popular destination for running training. At the end of August, many prestigious colleges and high schools send students from athletic programs to the Glen Lake area for training. Some of these institutions include the University of Michigan and the University of Virginia.
According to local legend, Glen Lake was recognized as the most beautiful lake in the world by National Geographic Magazine, though National Geographic flatly denies ever publishing such a ranking (similar legends persist among property owners and locals around other nearby lakes, most notably Torch Lake in Antrim County, which claims to have been ranked third).
