Big Bay de Noc is a bay in the Upper Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The bay, which opens into Lake Michigan's Green Bay, is enclosed by Delta County. The Garden Peninsula is on the east side of the bay and the Stonington Peninsula is on the west side. The small Delta County settlements of Garden and Nahma are harbors on the shore of the bay.[2]

Big Bay de Noc
In the foreground is Snail Shell Harbor and in the background is Sand Bay, both of which are bays of Big Bay de Noc.
In the foreground is Snail Shell Harbor and in the background is Sand Bay, both of which are bays of Big Bay de Noc.
Location of Big Bay de Noc in Michigan, USA.
Location of Big Bay de Noc in Michigan, USA.
Big Bay de Noc
Location of Big Bay de Noc in Michigan, USA.
Location of Big Bay de Noc in Michigan, USA.
Big Bay de Noc
Coordinates45°47′N 86°42′W / 45.783°N 86.700°W / 45.783; -86.700
TypeBay
Surface elevation581 feet (177 m)[1]

As with the more thickly-settled Little Bay de Noc, the bay's name comes from the Noquet (or Noc) Native American people (thought to have been related to the Menominee of the Algonquian language group), who once lived along the shores.

The bay is historically important for its 19th-century use as a center of the Lake Michigan iron smelting industry. A former smelting complex has been preserved as Fayette State Park. The state park's Snail Shell Harbor, off Big Bay de Noc, offers a harbor of refuge for small boats and yachts.

A lighthouse, the Peninsula Point Light, marks the entrance of the bay.[2]

Climate

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Taken by Resourcesat-2 on March 20, 2022
 
Taken from the International Space Station on February 22, 2014; view oriented so that the top of the image looks southeast
Big Bay de Noc
Climate chart (explanation)
J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
 
 
63
 
 
−10
−15
 
 
52
 
 
−13
−18
 
 
55
 
 
−4
−8
 
 
78
 
 
4
−1
 
 
63
 
 
11
6
 
 
91
 
 
12
11
 
 
113
 
 
20
16
 
 
74
 
 
18
16
 
 
118
 
 
16
15
 
 
118
 
 
9
6
 
 
104
 
 
6
2
 
 
64
 
 
−1
−4
Average max. and min. temperatures in °C
Precipitation totals in mm
Source: [3]
Imperial conversion
JFMAMJJASOND
 
 
2.5
 
 
14
5
 
 
2
 
 
9
0
 
 
2.2
 
 
25
18
 
 
3.1
 
 
39
30
 
 
2.5
 
 
52
43
 
 
3.6
 
 
54
52
 
 
4.4
 
 
68
61
 
 
2.9
 
 
64
61
 
 
4.6
 
 
61
59
 
 
4.6
 
 
48
43
 
 
4.1
 
 
43
36
 
 
2.5
 
 
30
25
Average max. and min. temperatures in °F
Precipitation totals in inches

References

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  1. ^ U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Big Bay de Noc
  2. ^ a b Michigan Atlas and Gazetteer (10th ed.). Yarmouth, Maine: DeLorme. 2002. p. 90.
  3. ^ "NASA Earth Observations Data Set Index". NASA. Archived from the original on 6 August 2013. Retrieved 30 January 2016.
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