Water depth at Trail Creek, Michigan City?

[dlandersson]

There are many folks on this list who are a lot smarter than I am.

Last fall, I was surprised by the shallow depth of the water (prop dug some mud!) in Trail Creek, Michigan City when I pulled my for the winter.

Can anyone recommend a link/several links that track the water depth on Trail Creek?

[MSN-Travelers]

I’m not sure there is a site that monitors and reports the water level for Trail Creek (Michigan City, IN). There are a number of sites that will report the current depth for Lake Michigan and with that information you should be able to figure out the relative depth on the Creek. I hate to use the word “assume” but I think you can assume the water level for Trail Creek is the generally the same as the water level for Lake Michigan.

The average surface height (above sea level) for Lake Michigan last year was 577.15 feet. Not sure when you launched or when you pulled the boat but the following might help you track water levels. If you launched in June, the average water level was 577.66 feet. The average level during the month of October was 576.57 feet and 576.34 for November. This tells us the water level was 1.32 feet (roughly 16”) shallower in November than it was in June.

Lake Michigan was, on average, 2 ½ inches lower during March 2013 than it was last November. You can get current lake level information at: http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/data/now/wlevels/dbd/ or at http://www.great-lakes.net/envt/water/l ... chwlc.html

Wind tends to move lake waters around quite a bit if it has been blowing for a couple days. I have seen lake levels a foot or more higher on the Wisconsin side of the lake after a couple days of 10-15 kt winds out of the east. If low water on Trail Creek is a problem, you might wait until the winds have been blowing out of the NW for a couple days to raise the lake level in your local area.

Good luck & keep the pointy end up!

[dlandersson]

Thank you for posting. The USGS does provide for real-time monitoring and daily/weekly updates of Trail Creek with LOTS of information. Right now gage height is around 4 feet. At least 4 boats have made the trip to base at the marina.

http://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv/?site_no=04095380

I’m not sure there is a site that monitors and reports the water level for Trail Creek (Michigan City, IN). There are a number of sites that will report the current depth for Lake Michigan and with that information you should be able to figure out the relative depth on the Creek. I hate to use the word “assume” but I think you can assume the water level for Trail Creek is the generally the same as the water level for Lake Michigan.

The average surface height (above sea level) for Lake Michigan last year was 577.15 feet. Not sure when you launched or when you pulled the boat but the following might help you track water levels. If you launched in June, the average water level was 577.66 feet. The average level during the month of October was 576.57 feet and 576.34 for November. This tells us the water level was 1.32 feet (roughly 16”) shallower in November than it was in June.

Lake Michigan was, on average, 2 ½ inches lower during March 2013 than it was last November. You can get current lake level information at: http://www.glerl.noaa.gov/data/now/wlevels/dbd/ or at http://www.great-lakes.net/envt/water/l ... chwlc.html

Wind tends to move lake waters around quite a bit if it has been blowing for a couple days. I have seen lake levels a foot or more higher on the Wisconsin side of the lake after a couple days of 10-15 kt winds out of the east. If low water on Trail Creek is a problem, you might wait until the winds have been blowing out of the NW for a couple days to raise the lake level in your local area.

Good luck & keep the pointy end up!