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Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Fri May 05, 2017 12:06 am
by captainmaniac
It's going to be an interesting season... highest water levels in Lake Ontario in decades.

Water levels in Lake Ontario usually don't peak until some time in June, but at this point we are 4-6" away from the fuel dock at my marina being awash. The dock is usually (even at high water) 1.5 - 2' above water level. The fun part : over the next four days they are calling for 2-3" of more rain!
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Last fall the marina (really City) pulled out all fixed docks, half of which would be under water at this point. New floating docks are going in. My launch was supposed to be 2 weeks ago but only 20%-30% of the floating docks are in place so far (not including mine) - and no power or water on them yet...., so deferred launch. Glad I did! There is nothing safe out there to tie to! With the right (wrong) conditions, some boats could actually be thrown on top of the pier.

I have seen similar levels with some of the old fixed docks under water before (very late 70's or maybe early 80's), but nothing to this degree.

aaaarrrrgggghhh.... having trouble getting pictures to attach right!

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Fri May 05, 2017 12:10 am
by zedtwentyate
I was just speaking to a friend who keeps their boat in Sodus Bay on the south shore near Oswego. They said the entire bay is a no wake zone right now and there's a state of emergency. Crazy!

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Fri May 05, 2017 12:24 am
by captainmaniac
There are about 700 people who live on Toronto Island (or the Toronto Islands if you want to get picky, as people live on Wards Island, Iroquois Island, etc... but commonly known as Toronto Island). The city of Toronto is looking at evacuating them due to water levels broaching the shore!

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Fri May 05, 2017 6:43 am
by prowlersfish
Not sounding too good .

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Fri May 05, 2017 2:17 pm
by gitchisum
Wow

What is interesting to me is the lake is still 6" below today's all time high, which was set in 1973. Another 6" of water looks like it would be a complete mess!


How do you turn Niagara Falls off for a while?

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Sat May 06, 2017 10:21 am
by P-Dogg
gitchisum wrote:
How do you turn Niagara Falls off for a while?
Alright -- Who's going to tell him? Not it! :D

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Sat May 06, 2017 10:51 am
by gitchisum
Way to burst my bubble P-Dogg :mrgreen:

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Sat May 06, 2017 12:18 pm
by mikeandanne
Hey Cap, I remember pulling up to that gas dock in your first pic and it was a step up from the boat, levels are really climbing and there is a way to go yet.

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Fri May 26, 2017 8:28 pm
by captainmaniac
And it continues.... "Lake Ontario's water levels are at their highest ever — breaking a record that had stood since 1952 — according to data from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. " Usually the levels peak in June, but (from something I just read) last year it peaked in May and the year before it peaked in July... so nobody knows when to really expect peak. Hope Jimbo gets out of the boathouse soon or he may not for a while!

Here's a shot of the police dock as of this past weekend - you can see the difference. And we have had a couple inches of rain since then!
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Will check it out again tomorrow.

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Sat May 27, 2017 8:56 pm
by jimbo36
captainmaniac wrote:And it continues.... "Lake Ontario's water levels are at their highest ever — breaking a record that had stood since 1952 — according to data from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. " Usually the levels peak in June, but (from something I just read) last year it peaked in May and the year before it peaked in July... so nobody knows when to really expect peak. Hope Jimbo gets out of the boathouse soon or he may not for a while!

Here's a shot of the police dock as of this past weekend - you can see the difference. And we have had a couple inches of rain since then!
IMG_0205.JPG
Will check it out again tomorrow.
Hey Captain, We were 1/4" off the ceiling last Thursday with a strong easterly, Dropped down a couple of inches since. I installed anchors with "D" hooks today into the concrete foundation and strapped the bow down hoping another rise in water level will raise the stern and prevent the windshield crushing. Getting out is only a secondary concern at this point. :?

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Sat May 27, 2017 10:50 pm
by captainmaniac
jimbo36 wrote:Hey Captain, We were 1/4" off the ceiling last Thursday with a strong easterly, Dropped down a couple of inches since. I installed anchors with "D" hooks today into the concrete foundation and strapped the bow down hoping another rise in water level will raise the stern and prevent the windshield crushing. Getting out is only a secondary concern at this point. :?
Maybe 40 fat friends and a bit of extra bilge water is moving its way up the list of options... You are in Belleville, aren't you? I didn't think any of the marinas there had covered slips... or is the boat house at home? How deep is the water there? Just have a few more crazy thoughts bouncing around in my head...

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Sat May 27, 2017 11:09 pm
by captainmaniac
I was down there again today and not much difference from last weekend. I think part of it was last weekend the wind was fairly strong and out of the east, so that helped pile things up at our end of the lake. Today there was virtually no wind, so new water because of recent rains and continued dumping of Lake Erie into Lake Ontario was balanced out with the lack of the surge.

Just for a comparison, here is a shot of the old travel lift area today:
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Here is a shot of the same area on launch day 2015:
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You can see the difference in water level when you look at how high the 'causeway' for the travel lift is above the water, or the dock to the right, a portion of which is submerged today!

This shot is of the main asphalt pier that used to have our washroom/shower/laundry facilities, and BBQ / picnic area... the building used to be where the cement blocks and blue bin can be seen, and the white things sticking up in a line to the right are posts with power and water outlets for the slips that used to be there:
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The barge on the left is up against the pier... believe it or not...

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Thu Jun 15, 2017 11:35 pm
by captainmaniac
Today on the WeatherNetwork... "Largest Lake Ontario water discharge ever is underway"

With the greatest rate of discharge ever, the expectation is that after a week of running at that flow rate, Lake Ontario water levels will fall by 1cm. For our American folks... there are 2.5cm in 1 inch.... So if they keep this up, we can lower the lake by a foot in about 30 weeks.... Know it will come down sooner (with evaporation etc) but still.... this is a total mess.

Many of my typical boating destinations are closed due to water levels, so this summer is going to suck.

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/ ... sday/83198

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Tue Jun 20, 2017 3:10 am
by Carrizales
captainmaniac wrote: Thu Jun 15, 2017 11:35 pm Today on the WeatherNetwork... "Largest Lake Ontario water discharge ever is underway"

With the greatest rate of discharge ever, the expectation is that after a week of running at that flow rate, Lake Ontario water levels will fall by 1cm. For our American folks... there are 2.5cm in 1 inch.... So if they keep this up, we can lower the lake by a foot in about 30 weeks.... Know it will come down sooner (with evaporation etc) but still.... this is a total mess.

Many of my typical boating destinations are closed due to water levels, so this summer is going to suck.

https://www.theweathernetwork.com/news/ ... sday/83198
What are the water levels like at the moment?

Re: Great Lakes water levels

Posted: Tue Jun 20, 2017 12:53 pm
by captainmaniac
We have gone down perhaps a couple of inches. Will take a closer look this weekend... hoping to finally launch on Thursday!