Great Lakes other lakes as "the lower lakes", because they are farther south. Sailors of bulk freighters transferring cargoes from Lake Superior and northern Lake Michigan and Lake Huron to ports on Lake Erie or Ontario commonly refer to the latter as the lower lakes and Lakes Michigan, Huron, and Superior as the upper lakes. This corresponds to thinking of Lakes Erie and Ontario as "down south" and the others as "up north". Vessels sailing north on Lake Michigan are considered "upbound" even though they are sailing toward its effluent current. Lakes Huron and Michigan are sometimes considered a single lake, called
Great Lakes Megalopolis Micropolitan Statistical Areas (independent of the Combined Statistical Areas), as defined by the Office of Management and Budget. The following sortable table lists the 27 statistical areas of the United States located on the Great Lakes with the following information: The following four sortable tables list the 27 census statistical areas of the United States located on the Great Lakes, by lake, with the following information: Great Lakes Megalopolis The Great Lakes Megalopolis consists of the group of metropolitan areas in North America largely in the Great Lakes region and along the Saint Lawrence Seaway. To its south and west,