The Great Lakes are free of ice for the first time in 2014

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Great Lakes are free of ice for the first time in 2014, according to the NOAA.

Ice on Lake Superior persisted until early June, thanks to an unusually cold winter and spring. Some tourists took advantage of the bizarre situation, posing on ice floes in their swimwear, as air temperatures reached into the 80s.

Water temperatures are considerably more temperate near Chicago in Lake Michigan, but are still hovering in the 60s, which feels very cold for swimmers. Meteorologist Phil Schwarz says lake shore temperatures may not reach into the 70s until the end of June.