Mary Bedy Photography

Lake Huron Colors 5  I live in Michigan 18 miles south of the southern end of Lake Huron. I’ve visited areas bordered by each of the Great Lakes many times since I have lived in Michigan all my life. I live along the Saint Clair River that runs south from Lake Huron to Lake Saint Clair, a smaller lake, which leads through the Detroit River to Lake Erie, then East to Lake Ontario.  Lake Huron Wave Stage 4 053120 I know people who don’t travel much or who have never seen one of the Great Lakes do not always appreciate how large they are. When I take a trip to the northern tip of Michigan’s lower peninsula right to the Mackinac Bridge, the drive mostly on freeways, takes five hours. That’s five hours to drive the length of Lake Huron. And let’s be clear, you cannot see across to the other side of any of these lakes unless you are right at either end. You might as well be looking at the ocean.   Here are some facts for you. Lake Huron and Lake Michigan are actually considered one body of w

I have lived next to the Saint Clair River in Michigan for the last 27 years and I have been fascinated by the recent changes in water levels. This year, the water level here in town is only about a foot below the boardwalk. I have mentioned this in a previous blog post, but this level has alarmed me since for the previous 25 years, and until last year, the water level of the river was several feet lower. Not just inches lower, several feet lower. I started wondering what causes this fluctuation (aside from the larger concern of global warming) and being a “slightly informed” geology junkie, I jumped on a couple of websites to explore this phenomenon. One large factor that affects the water level in the lakes is apparently how much ice forms on the lakes in the winter, which cuts down on natural evaporation. This, along with precipitation and run-off from land, is one of the major contributing factors to the water level. I decided to peruse the NOAA website (National Oceanic