# Great lakes levels



## Retiredducker (Oct 11, 2011)

Is this rain enough to have any measurable affect on lake levels?


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## T.J. (Mar 1, 2009)

Doubtful

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## waxico (Jan 21, 2008)

The rain runoff will help until mid May from where we are now.
The trend I'm seeing is almost weekly waves of moisture from the Southwest.
If things go on like this for another 30 days I think we'll be looking better.

Of even greater significance is the fact we have had zero snow melt runoff from da UP and northern lower. As far as the eye could see from Boyne Mountain the woods and fields were STILL snow covered.
I mean it's still white. We got 1"-2"more on Saturday. And the UP got more too


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## field-n-feathers (Oct 20, 2008)

I can't speak for the Great Lakes levels, but I know the smaller marshes are really filling in again. Last year was the first time in over 20 years that one of my marshes was dried up. As of today, I'd say the water in it is close to long term low-average level. 

I hope it continues.


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## craigrh13 (Oct 24, 2011)

waxico said:


> The rain runoff will help until mid May from where we are now.
> The trend I'm seeing is almost weekly waves of moisture from the Southwest.
> If things go on like this for another 30 days I think we'll be looking better.
> 
> ...


I hope that snow disappears quick from the Boyne area!! I was hoping to start finding mushrooms up that way next weekend!!


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

craigrh13 said:


> I hope that snow disappears quick from the Boyne area!! I was hoping to start finding mushrooms up that way next weekend!!


And it's turkey season next week for christs sake Waxi! Put those dang skis up and get out the turkey gun


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## limige (Sep 2, 2005)

Yeah what kind of bs is that anyhow. We were planning to hunt alpena. They only have one hunt period april 22-may5. So the first availible weekend is the opener for walleye. Thats bogus. Why dont they open the time frame. For weekend warriors a two week season is horribly short.

Now the rivers will be blown out so i guess it wont matter much


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## craigrh13 (Oct 24, 2011)

limige said:


> Yeah what kind of bs is that anyhow. We were planning to hunt alpena. They only have one hunt period april 22-may5. So the first availible weekend is the opener for walleye. Thats bogus. Why dont they open the time frame. For weekend warriors a two week season is horribly short.
> 
> Now the rivers will be blown out so i guess it wont matter much


As far as wallaye goes, the word on the street is right now is some of the best time to get em' on the Maumee River. Pounding them in all the high water spots.


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## Retiredducker (Oct 11, 2011)

Water too low...water too high...what we have suffered long term from is established high water marks by drain commissioners and lake associations. In my area we have lost complete islands, points are about washed out, marshes washing away...all so homeowners can boat right up to their docks and to mitigate shallow areas so they can tube, ski, etc. No thought to the environment at all...now the damn swans are uprooting the shoreline...the quality of habitat is greatly reduced..from a waterfowler's stanpoint it sucks big time.


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## waxico (Jan 21, 2008)

I drew the first hunt for Charlevoix county and hope to bag a gobbler and snowboard the same day.


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

waxico said:


> I drew the first hunt for Charlevoix county and hope to bag a gobbler and snowboard the same day.


Ya know after I posted I got thinking about that...I've shot lots of Toms, and a few in snow showers/flurries, but never with actual snow on the ground. That would be a first.

Where I hunt in the central lower the main problem is flooding. Some of the roads are impassable in Clinton, Gratiot and Montcalm, which is my area for hunting, and there are some pretty severe washouts. I'm going to check out the farm Saturday morning, but I'm expecting water everywhere, so I may wait until later in the week to go


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## FPFowler (Mar 2, 2012)

Retiredducker said:


> Is this rain enough to have any measurable affect on lake levels?


I would guess probably not a whole lot. You sure would never know that we have been completely drown with rain the last two weeks by looking out on the inner bay right now with this gale.... That is unless you go inland and see water close to the roads in every drain, ditch, creek, river, etc.... Mother natutre is doing her own dredging wherever there is drainage out onto the mud flat today!


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## lab1 (Aug 31, 2004)

Driving along the shoreline, there is very little noticable difference. It will take a steady amount of rainfall thru the summer to help the great lakes imo. As for waterfowl, the flooding will destroy some of the early nesting. Hopefully the second nesting will be productive.


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## adam bomb (Feb 27, 2006)

Will be short lived at best. Record low water levels and 94000+ square miles of Great Lakes for it to spread out over I doubt the impact will be much. Was by State Park today and even with all the rain and two rivers pouring in the south end of the bay there was still a good 50 yds of beach with the SW wind blowing. I feel it'd be out much much further if the rivers weren't raging right now. Beach was WAY out when i ice fished. Kawkawlin River by Castaways looked to be at levels of around 20 yrs ago(normal). Just 2 weeks ago the water was 6' from touching the seawall. Gonna be a long summer and fall boating around the shorelines and marshes. Mud motors air boats and muck boots will be in high demand up here...that and maybe a clothes pin for the stinking ass mud


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## Tron322 (Oct 29, 2011)

I know it won't make a dent unless the precipitation keeps up all summer but bill stefans blog on WOODTV 8 said Lake MI and Huron is up 3" in the last 7 days just from the rain, they predict the rivers emptying will help a little too, but if we go dry again like the last few summers it won't matter, which is too bad I would love my potholes filling back in around Allegan and Barry coutnies for puddle ducks!


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## LoBrass (Oct 16, 2007)

Every little bit indeed does help, at least a little.

My pond was down nearly 6' last summer and has filled to within 6" of full pool. Last spring it was out of it's banks in the spring till mid-May.

This rain and the snow still sitting up north will have a positive impact. What we really need is for a cooler and wetter summer and next winter we need ice cover on ALL the Great Lakes.

But, it is what it is. Better get acclimated to lower GL water levels.


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

The water levels of Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are 4 and 10 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 5, 7, and 5 inches, respectively, lower than at this time last year. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are both forecasted to rise 3 inches. The water level of Lake St. Clair is expected to remain near its current level while Lakes Erie and Ontario are projected to rise 2 and 4 inches, respectively, over the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information.




You can follow weekly on Friday @ this site.

http://www.lre.usace.army.mil/Missi...evelForecast/WeeklyGreatLakesWaterLevels.aspx


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## The Doob (Mar 4, 2007)

Well, you have to add an inch before you can add a foot - so thankfully we are trending in the right direction.

I don't think we would want to see the amount of percipitation necessary to raise the lake 12 inches in one season. :yikes:


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## Quackaddicted (Mar 13, 2011)

Takes ~1,210,000,000 gallons of water to cover 1 sq. mile with 12" of water. Lakes Michigan/Huron are ~25,000 sq. miles. Do the math!


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

Quackaddicted said:


> Takes ~1,210,000,000 gallons of water to cover 1 sq. mile with 12" of water. Lakes Michigan/Huron are ~25,000 sq. miles. Do the math!


Gee Mr. Wizard, now can you tell us why the sky is blue? :evilsmile Your point is well taken Bud. Even makes it harder to believe the lakes have dropped as much as they have in the last 15-20 years.


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## waxico (Jan 21, 2008)

The sky is blue because all the other light wavelengths are filtered out.

Did you whack a gobbler yet? 5 of my friends already have.


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## wavie (Feb 2, 2004)

Nice to hear Duluth MN and area got 50 inches of snow in the month of April alone. According to article most was not lake effect. Every little bit helps to fill those semi permanent ponds for brood rearing.

Turkeys have to wait until mid May.


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

waxico said:


> The sky is blue because all the other light wavelengths are filtered out.
> 
> Did you whack a gobbler yet? 5 of my friends already have.


Not yet, but working on it. Birds aren't real active where I hunt, but I'm hoping this warmer weather gets 'em going.


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## JonBoy220 (Oct 31, 2012)

Quackaddicted said:


> Takes ~1,210,000,000 gallons of water to cover 1 sq. mile with 12" of water. Lakes Michigan/Huron are ~25,000 sq. miles. Do the math!


Sounds like it'd be time to think about building an ark!


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## TNL (Jan 6, 2005)

The heavy rain over the past week has boosted the water level of Lake Michigan/Huron by a whopping 3 inches in just the past week.* Since each inch represents 390 billion gallons of water, that&#8217;s an increase of 1.17 trillion gallons of water on Lake Michigan in just 7 days!* 

Most of this increase is rain that fell into the lake (some runoff increase, lower evaporation with the wet weather and there was still a little ice in the Great Lakes &#8211; Green Bay is just breaking up now).** 

Lake Michigan is now 10&#8243; below the water level of one year ago, 24&#8243; below the April average and 6&#8243; above the low water mark of April 1964.* With high to record water levels on rivers in Lower Michigan, the water level should see a nice increase in the next two weeks.

Lake Superior is up one inch in the past month, 4&#8243; below the level of one year ago and 13&#8243; below the April 
average.* However, with the cold spring, much of the snow along the Lake Superior shore hasn&#8217;t melted yet.** Here&#8217;s snow depth reports from Thurs. AM:* 45&#8243; Hoist Basin (to melt all that snow by May 1, they&#8217;d have to melt off 3.5&#8243; per day each day the rest of this month!), 41&#8243; Big Bay, 32&#8243; Marquette Co. Airport and 10 miles south of Grand Marais, 29&#8243; Twin Lakes (see link &#8211; plenty of ice left on the lake) and 2 mi ESE of Houghton, 24&#8243; Munising, 16&#8243; Newberry, 12&#8243; Ironwood and 11&#8243; S. Ste Marie.* ALSO, there getting ANOTHER SNOWSTORM in the U.P.* 
Winter Storm Warnings are out from Marquette Co. west into Minnesota for 6&#8243; or more of snow.* They even say:* &#8220;LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS UP TO 17 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE NEAR LAKE SUPERIOR&#8221;.* Wow!* How&#8217;s that for the
3rd week of April!

Lake St. Clair is up 9&#8243; in the last month.

Lakes Erie and Ontario are each up 7&#8243; in the last month. It&#8217;s seldom you see increases like that in just a month&#8217;s time.* Lake Erie is still 5&#8243; below the average April level and Lake Ontario is 4&#8243; below the April average.* I think those deficits get erased in the next few weeks.

*Excerpt from meteorologist Bill Steffens blog.*


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## Blacklab77 (Jun 21, 2006)

I see the math and I saw HOG WASH! I live on the bay and we got water level marks we use to find out if we can get in and out of the canal with a boat. Actual yard sticks we placed. As saturday we were up about 3/4" from when I looked April 1st. Now will I take the 3/4" Hell yes. Do I hope we go up over the next 3 weeks yes. But the 3" stuff is hogwash from a guy who lives along the bay and is looking at it daily!


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

From the 26 April USACE Site

The water levels of the Great Lakes have risen significantly over the past month. *Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are 2 and 7 inches*, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 6, 8, and 3 inches, respectively, lower than at this time last year. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are both forecasted to rise 3 inches. The water levels of lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are expected to rise 1, 2, and 3 inches, respectively, over the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

the International Joint Commission just issued their final report Upper Great Lakes study. If you skip to the part about Lakes Michigan & Huron, their conclusion is that erosion in the St. Clair River is not a huge factor. They conclude changes in water coming into the great lakes system is the main culprit. They also suggest structures called "sills" could be built in the river at Port Huron and may help. Everyone has an opinion I guess....here's a link.

http://www.iugls.org/Final_Reports


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

The water levels of the Great Lakes rose significantly over the past month. Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are 1 and 6 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 5, 7, and 2 inches, respectively, lower than at this time last year. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are both forecasted to rise 3 inches. The water levels of lakes St. Clair and Erie are each expected to rise 1 inch over the next month, while Lake Ontario is predicted incline 4 inches. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information.

Note: The portion of the Great Lakes I kayaked last week must not have read this info because it looked pretty low to me!


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

All of the Great Lakes are in their seasonal rise. The water level of Lake Superior is near its level of a year ago, while Lake Michigan-Huron is 6 inches lower than at this time last year. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 7, 7, and 3 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are forecasted to rise 4 and 3 inches, respectively. The water levels of lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are projected to rise 3, 2, and 4 inches, respectively, in the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

All of the Great Lakes are in their seasonal rise. The water level of Lake Superior is 2 inches above its level of a year ago, while Lake Michigan-Huron is 5 inches lower than at this time last year. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 6, 7, and 2 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are forecasted to rise 4 and 3 inches, respectively. The water levels of lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are projected to rise 3, 1, and 3 inches, respectively, in the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information.


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

The water level of Lake Superior is 6 inches above its level of a year ago, while Lake Michigan-Huron is 4 inches lower than at this time last year. Lakes St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario are 6, 7, and 1 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are forecasted to rise 4 and 2 inches, respectively. The water levels of lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are projected to rise 1, 1, and 3 inches, respectively, in the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information.


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

The water level of Lake Superior is 4 inches above its level of a year ago, while Lake Michigan-Huron is 2 inches lower than at this time last year. Lakes St. Clair and Erie are 4 and 5 inches, respectively, lower than their levels of a year ago while Lake Ontario is 2 inches above last years level. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are forecasted to rise 3 and 2 inches, respectively. The water levels of lakes St. Clair, Erie and Ontario are projected to rise 2, 1, and 3 inches, respectively, in the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information.


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## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

The water level of Lake Superior is 4 inches above its level of a year ago. Lake Michigan-Huron is around the same level from this time last year, while Lake St. Clair is 2 inches lower than its level of a year ago. Lake Erie is near the same level from this time last year while Lake Ontario is 7 inches above last years level. Over the next month, Lakes Superior and Michigan-Huron are forecasted to rise 3 and 2 inches, respectively. The water level of Lake St. Clair is expected to rise 1 inch, while Lakes Erie and Ontario are each projected to fall 1 inch in the next thirty days. See our Daily Levels web page for more water level information


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## Shiawassee_Kid (Nov 28, 2000)

seen a paper published like a week or 2 ago that stated the summer shift should put huron up 24" by end of july.

obviously im very skeptical but i think they were using like 2005 or something as comparison.

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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

Shiawassee_Kid said:


> seen a paper published like a week or 2 ago that stated the summer shift should put huron up 24" by end of july.
> 
> obviously im very skeptical but i think they were using like 2005 or something as comparison.
> 
> posted using Outdoor Hub Campfire


what you smokin' kid? It could rain an inch per day from now until July and Huron wouldn't go up 24". We'll be dang lucky if it holds it's own between now and fall, because we typically lose water to evaporation come that time of year.


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## Shiawassee_Kid (Nov 28, 2000)

just ducky said:


> what you smokin' kid? It could rain an inch per day from now until July and Huron wouldn't go up 24". We'll be dang lucky if it holds it's own between now and fall, because we typically lose water to evaporation come that time of year.


lemme see if i can find it. its from corps of engineers.

it took into the summer rise and fall of the lake. and they showed a statistical shift and by the peak of the high in july it will be 24" up in average level than 5 or so years ago. A lot of this was due to predicted snow run off, heavy rains that east and west side received...etc...

and also remember that most of the UP had near record snowfall totals so that will be an extra boost this season.

can't remember where i read it so i'm diggin right now.


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## Shiawassee_Kid (Nov 28, 2000)

hah. i knew i read it somewhere.

http://www.mlive.com/weather/index.ssf/2013/06/lake_michigan_and_lake_huron_w_1.html

they are saying 20" from lowest point in febuary to july. says we are 6" away from estimate now.










by the looks of it JD, i'm smokin FACTS.


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## wartfroggy (Jan 25, 2007)

Shiawassee_Kid said:


> by the looks of it JD, i'm smokin FACTS.


 Don't confuse him with facts.


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## just ducky (Aug 23, 2002)

Shiawassee_Kid said:


> hah. i knew i read it somewhere.
> 
> http://www.mlive.com/weather/index.ssf/2013/06/lake_michigan_and_lake_huron_w_1.html
> 
> ...


bwaaaaahhhhaa....ain't no facts. Those predictions are no better than the so-called "meteorologist" that predict our weather. 

_*What would it take to bring it back to normal levels?

"The Army Corps of Engineers says that it would take several seasons with a wet, cool weather pattern like the one we've been in since January."*_Call me a skeptic, but I"ll believe this when I see it.


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