Where did all our water go? Have you looked at the lake lately?
Yes, it’s still there but it’s a lot lower than
anyone remembers seeing it.
My
daughter, who has a place in Grindstone, called me last weekend.
She was very alarmed and asked me to come out to her
property to view how low the water was. I have known about
the low water for the past few years and each time I looked
at the lake, I noted it getting lower. I didn’t pay real
close attention to the level lately, but when I arrived at
my daughter’s I sure did.
The
first thing I noted was a sand crane standing in the water
about 25 feet offshore from where the water’s
edge used to be. The bird was in water so shallow, it barely
covered
its feet. As I took a few pictures, I recalled just a few
years back when I pulled up to shore in my 22-foot boat
with a 225
HP motor and three grown people in the boat. I was able
to jump out of the boat and pull it up on the shore, then
let
the engine down to hold it. In the same area, boat hoists
sat along the shoreline with small boats lifted out of
the water.
Kids were running jet skis into shore without a problem.
As I looked out over the water now, I noted I could see land
up out of the water where the jet skis, paddleboats and kayaks
floated. The water depth is at least three feet lower then
it was just a few years ago. The spot I was standing on still
had the pipes for pole holders when we used to fish there.
Now it would be very difficult to cast out to the waters edge,
let alone find any fish.
I’ve heard every excuse offered by the Corp of Engineers
and other agencies about the water depths: most don’t
make any sense. Some say the low water is a result of the drought.
I suppose it may be a contributing factor, but I’m
sure that is not the whole answer. There have been dry
seasons in
the past without this low water result.
Today,
I had a person give his own opinion. He thought the problem
was Traverse City and Bad Axe taking the
water for
personal use rather than using well water. Although
I doubt that has anything to do with the issue, just in
case, Bad
Axe residents should cut back to one shower a week.
They should
also shower two at a time if possible and not for any
longer than five minutes. I suggest this routine begin
in the
winter months when it’s not so warm that you perspire a lot.
Another reason to start in the winter: a lot of us will be
gone south, so it won’t be troubling to as many
friends and neighbors.
But, seriously, I think someone has to own up to the cause
and take steps necessary to stop the reduction of lake water.
One person actually heard that while dredging the St. Clair
River, they dug too deep and the water is running out the bottom.
Going where? Are the salt mines filling up with water?
My
belief has always been after changing the flow of the Chicago
River to help keep the Mississippi
deep
enough for barge traffic,
our water levels began to recede. When I suggest
that is
the cause, I’m told the barges are very shallow draft, so
that can’t be true. I agree they are shallow
draft, but the large tugs required to push 10 or
more barges
at a time
have a very deep draft.
A few weeks ago, the evening news presented film about barges
stuck in the Mississippi River. Are they lowering the gates
and locks to increase the flow of water so the barges can move?
Could it be our highly taxed lakefront properties and the Great
Lakes shipping industry (which has had to reduce its loads)
are being sacrificed? Some say Canada is siphoning off more
water. But they use Great Lakes shipping also, so that is not
likely.
One final thought: Lake Michigan and Lake Huron, which are
at the same approximate level, are equally low. Lake Superior
at the top is still high and Lake Ontario at the lowest point
of the natural flow is very high. Just the lakes in the middle
are suffering the loss of water.
As I see it, someone knows the truth. Why will they not share
it with us?