re: I have never been to the Great Lakes.
I've been to Lake Erie twice, once in winter, when I walked way out on the ice, that was neat. But the first time was in summer. I remembered walking along a very ordinary gravel beach, and saw very ordinary waves and horizon, but I felt very strange, very uncomfortable. I couldn't put my finger on it until I realized--it didn't SMELL like the sea.
It was an odd experience.