Scouting Cams: Observation Camera Libraries

See it for yourself! Curated library of live cameras that highlight a wide overview of the sea states in Lake Superior and Michigan. More Lake Cams coming soon!

A set of highly detailed animations for primary swell size and direction and wind gusts for all of the Great Lakes region. Pin point nuanced wind and wave conditions with a fully animated weather conditions observation map.

An interactive map that collects real time data from buoys around the lakes to create a colorful visualization of conditions. Toggle between Wave height, Wind speed, Wind gusts, and Air Temp. You can also check out a data table at the bottom of the page.

This is a data table chart that organizes buoys for each of the Great Lakes. Sort the table by Buoy Name, Wind, Waves, and Temps.the data table will list the most recent buoy readings. Making it quick to instantly pinpoint where the conditions are happening and compare sea states.

NOAA 5-Day Forecasts: Open Water Zones - The Great Lakes

Overview marine forecasts divided into large zoned sections of the Great Lakes. Similar to what you might hear over your weather radio, these will also include sea state, wave size, and brief marine weather forecasts.

This is a site and project designed with Apostle Islands sea kayak guides in mind. They offer real time wave observation and sea state updates for the Inland Sea Caves with a nifty color coded system.

Standing Waves & “Lake-Races”

The DamDrop Wave located here is a nice 2-4’ standing wave on the Cedar river in Charles City, Iowa. This is comparable to a Surge narrows in the middle of a quintessential Midwestern downtown. For sea kayak surfing, we’re looking for 800 - 4000 CFS to produce a surf-able wave. Lower flow rate range for beginners, higher ranges for more experienced.

The Beaver and Baptism rivers that are known to produce (“lakerace”) tiderace-like rapids and conditions on the MN shore of Lake Superior. With high level flows, these rivers produce fast currents, eddy lines, and waves that can be accessed by sea kayak from the lake. If you want to experience coastal currents on Lake Superior these are a great place to start.

Beaver River Main Feature: ‘Lake Race’ starting from the mouth of the river.

Baptism River Main Feature: Progressing eddy lines and river current strength up to a small surf able whitewater wave.