Story originally printed in the La Crosse Tribune or online at www.lacrossetribune.com
Published - Sunday, April 29, 2007
Low water level in Lake Superior spells trouble for boaters
DULUTH, Minn. — The lowest water levels in Lake Superior in more than 80 years are causing trouble for boaters.
The levels are restricting access for big recreational boats — especially sailboats with 6- to 8-foot keels — from Grand Marais to the Twin Ports and on to Ashland and Bayfield, Wis.
“We’re getting them into the water, but I’m not sure they can all get into their slips,” said Joel Johnson, co-owner of Lakehead Boat Basin marina here. “It’s low. I’d say it’s 5 inches lower than last fall when we were taking them out.”
Officially, the lake is about 18 inches below normal, and more than a foot below the level at this time last spring. In March, the lake came within a few inches of reaching the all-time record low set in 1926.
As it does every April, the lake level is moving up. But it’s not going up as much as usual. It’s possible the lake could set monthly low records this summer if rainfall across the lake’s watershed doesn’t increase.
Johnson said he’s got 6 to 7 feet of clearance, enough for most sailboats. He said the marina may be forced to dredge some spots, but has to wait until June because of regulations aimed at protecting spawning fish.
On Park Point in Duluth, the problem is worse. Residents there are accustomed to tying up their boats at private docks on the bay side. But as the water drops, it also moves farther from shore, leaving some docks with just a few inches of water below them.
On the lake side of Park Point, low water has exposed wider sand beaches. On the bay side, in the Twin Ports harbor, sand bars and mud flats have been exposed for the first time in recent memory. It’s so shallow where the Duluth Rowing Club holds its races that their oars may hit bottom.
Meanwhile, the lakers and salties are leaving the Twin Ports with lighter loads, as well. That means more trips, more fuel and more boats to haul the same loads. For every inch below full draft that the lake drops, the boats lose between 50 tons and 270 tons of capacity, depending on the size of the vessel.
Fred Shusterich, president of Midwest Energy in Superior, Wis., said 1,000-footers are leaving his dock with about 59,000 tons of coal, down even from last year’s low average of 62,000 tons and way down from high-water loads of 68,000 tons. Dredging channels would help, but those programs have diminished with funding cuts.
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