GREAT OUTDOORS: Boaters should be mindful of dropping lake levels

According to the International Joint Commission, Lake Erie is at its lowest water level since 2014. A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers chart from June 6 indicates that the lake is seven inches lower than last year and 27 inches below the record high set on June 25, 2019. But to put the lake level into proper perspective, it is not considered "low" but still four inches higher than the average from 1918 to 2023. Just think of how much damage people will do to their motors' lower units if or when it goes back down to near the lows seen in February 1934 when it was 40 inches lower than it is now. River and harbor entrances in some locations that allowed boating outside the dredged channels in recent years are now too shallow to get through without churning or tapping mud. On the way out of the Sandusky Bay marina where I depart for catfishing trips, I have seen brown mud trails from the pontoon boats even while traveling at idle speed, even though this is the time of the year when the lake is at its seasonal peak. After the first respectable period of ice cover in three years, which at times covered 90 percent of the lake, it could have been worse if evaporation had occurred longer this past winter. Multi-year cyclesIn just the time frame of the official record that began in 1918, the lake appears to go in roughly 10-to-15-year cycles from 3 feet above to 3 feet below average. Extended lows occurred in the mid-1920s to mid-1960s and extended highs have been seen from the late 1960s to the mid-1990s, and again after 2015 to the present season. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers charts show that the lake normally begins dropping after peaking in June, then progressively declines to its seasonal low each winter, typically in December or January. Hourly changesMariners must be extra mindful of those days when strong southwest or northeast winds can temporarily push the lake toward those directions in a phenomenon called a seiche. After this occurs, the lake rocks back and forth, creating alternating low and high-water oscillations lasting hours. Depending upon wind strength, a combination of lower water levels and a seiche is a 1-2 punch that can expose the lake's bottom. Calmer winds or it switching from another direction allows the lake to return to its state of equilibrium. Some boaters and anglers have gotten spoiled by being able to navigate over shallow rockpiles, such as Toussaint and Crib Reefs, Gull Island Shoal off Kelleys and Lutes's (Lucy's) Point off the east end of Middle Bass. However, the connecting cobblestone bars from Oak Point State Park on South Bass to Gibraltar Island, Sugar to Middle Bass Islands, East Point of South Bass to Buckeye Island and Mouse Island to Catawba Point (to name a few) will once again eat propellers if not avoided. Boats with deeper keels will run aground between South Bass and Starve Island, Peach Point off South Bass Island, West Reef, Johnson Island and at many other locations. The pinging of aluminum, stainless steel or brass tapping on rocks is a percussion solo that nobody other than a propeller repair shop enjoys hearing. Operators need to review charts that show the depths of where you intend to navigate. Listen to the latest marine forecast before any trips out and remain alert for boating hazards. All passengers should wear approved life jackets while underway in case a grounding occurs and unexpectedly throws occupants out of a vessel.