Man that water is high - Grand Haven

Stee6043

Well-Known Member
Jun 1, 2015
6,706
West Michigan
Boat Info
1997 Sundancer 400
Engines
7.4L Gassers
I took the fam out on the dinghy this past Saturday to cruise the other marinas in the area, see how everyone is fairing on launching boats. The water is high....wicked high...as I'm sure everyone knows by now.

Going under US31 is easily 6" tighter. I definitely won't make it with the stern light up on my dainty 10' Zodiac. I bet folks with center-console style dinks are going to have some problems this year. Bass boats? Yikes...

 
We live on the Columbia River and, thanks to a 140% snow pack in Montana and a rapid temperature rise, the river is about 5'-6' higher than normal and running about 4+kts.
 
Was out on Friday in Saugatuck for the maiden voyage and saw many docks that were under water on the Kalamazoo river. They are normally low and they were close to the water last fall, but I have NEVER seen them under water. Like 10" under water.
 
It will need to go up more than 8" to reach the highs we saw in 1986. The area lakes looks good at these levels.
 
I am either going to have to add a step to my dock or start doing my Dodgeball stretches before I get in the boat. The water is way up! The private beaches up and down the lake have eroded badly
 
My sig pic is crews nest on Put-In-bay Memorial Day weekend... The weekend before the street was flooded.

I am glad I am not in the prop repair business
 
Unless you own a fixed or stationary dock....:(
Ours is fixed. We built it to accommodate 1986 lake levels and it has functioned well since then. Marine contractors are well aware of fluctuations in water levels and are only too happy to build docks that are right for time they are built knowing they will be called back to raise docks that are too low. We are using our steps this year and last to make it easier to get on and off the boat. When the water goes back down we will take them off and pu them back into storage. A few years back we used our ladder to get on and off. That was a first for our slip. With a properly installed fixed dock, fluctuations are not a problem. We prefer high water to low water.
 

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