Water Levels Near record Lows on Lake MI

[sbw1]

So far the amount of snow in our area won't be much help to the Great Lakes or the Mississippi. We don't get much early like we used to, let's see what the next 3 months brings. With little to no ice the lakes are evaporating like crazy this winter so far.

I just read something on the Internet that said the Mississippi is back to its seasonal average due to rain in the mid west. Rain helps as much as snow. Cold is good as it freezes lakes and reduces evaporation. It will be June before we see how things turn out for the boating season. We are currently i" below the 1964 all time low for Lake Michigan. I'm going to do a good job of cleaning up my beach this spring. May never see this part of our lake again.

 

[sbw1]

Or you may see a lot more. Last I checked, the forecast is for the drought conditions to continue. I hope they are wrong...

Long term forecasts are not accurate enough to worry about. I still remember 1986 when I built the "mother of all seawalls and docks" to deal with rising water levels. Then the water rose about 3 feet in the month of October. I'm installing a ladder on my dock this spring to get down to my boat. We have been on the down cycle for Lake Michigan for many years and this cycle was not unexpected. It will come back. If not this year then sometime in the future.

 

[Woody]

I just read something on the Internet that said the Mississippi is back to its seasonal average due to rain in the mid west. Rain helps as much as snow. Cold is good as it freezes lakes and reduces evaporation. It will be June before we see how things turn out for the boating season. We are currently i" below the 1964 all time low for Lake Michigan. I'm going to do a good job of cleaning up my beach this spring. May never see this part of our lake again.

They been whittling on bedrock in one stretch south of St Louis to keep it open. Some areas apparently are a little worse off than others.

 

[Molson]

Here is Picnic Island store (Honey Harbour Ontario, Georgian Bay) in 1986:

http://honeyharbour.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Picnic-Island-Store.jpg

Here it is recently:

http://honeyharbour.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/DSC01738.jpg

 

[skylark]

Here is Picnic Island store (Honey Harbour Ontario, Georgian Bay) in 1986:

http://honeyharbour.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Picnic-Island-Store.jpg

Here it is recently:

http://honeyharbour.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/DSC01738.jpg

Nice!

great place to fuel up!

hey Molson what marina are you in? I'm at Wye Heritage

 

[Molson]

Might not be a great place to get fuel this year!

I'm at Bay Moorings in Penetang.

 

[KC_Sundancer]

Might not be a great place to get fuel this year!

Might be a good place for fuel on your ATV :smt101

Not looking good for a water level increase. So far this winter very little snow and no ice to stop the evaporation up here on the big lake. The bay's are not even froze. I'm hoping in the next few weeks the cold and extra heavy snow starts. Better late than never :thumbsup:

 

[skylark]

Might not be a great place to get fuel this year!

I fueled up there mid October, I think we have dropped 4" since then? that pic is from the back is it not?

 

[Banagy]

The pictures would look the same from the Saginaw Bay area. We need a lot of snow and heavy spring rains.

 

[alwhite00]

The pictures would look the same from the Saginaw Bay area. We need a lot of snow and heavy spring rains.

We were out at caseville in late october and the beach was almost to the end of the breakwall, sad.

LK

 

[Molson]

I fueled up there mid October, I think we have dropped 4" since then? that pic is from the back is it not?

Yeah, its the back side where the rentals are usually kept. From what I have been told, Big Dog Channel is closed to navigation and Freddies Channels is pretty close to being closed too.

 

[Woody]

I was thinking of towing the boat over to Lake Huron and spending part of next summer there. I don't think I'm going to go into new territory if the water is that low and charts are off by a few feet. I'll wait for more water.