Rising levels of Lake Michigan over the past two years are proving to be a double-edged sword — boaters are encountering deeper marinas and cleaner water, but beaches are shrinking due to erosion.
The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore announced last week that two beach access stairways were closed at the Lakeview picnic area in Beverly Shores because with the water rising about two feet in the past year and recent storms, little beach remained. Instead, there is a steep dropoff into large boulders that bolster that area of the shoreline. The Lakeview picnic area and parking spaces are safe for visitors and another a stairway is located 50 yards west.
"We've had a lot of erosion along the entire lakefront," said Bruce Rowe, agency spokesman. "The beaches are all open within the National Lakeshore, but it's definitely narrower than people have been used to in recent years.
"I was at Central Avenue beach last week and it was markedly narrower — maybe 10 to 20 yards have been eroded back."
Data collected by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which tracks water levels across the Great Lakes, indicates that a record was set between January 2013 and November 2014 on Lakes Michigan, Superior and Huron. Water levels rose more than in any other two-year period — about 3.2 feet on Lakes Michigan and Huron — and they were expected to remain high into this summer.
The surge follows a 15-year period of below-average water levels on those three lakes, but researchers are unsure how long the water levels will continue to rise.
Rowe said the lake goes through cycles. In the mid-1980s, high water levels led to concerns that erosion would make some roads unstable.
"Lake Front Drive was closed off at the time, and we were fearful of it being eroded away," Rowe said. "That didn't happen, but we do have periods of high and low lake levels."
Rowe said wind direction and wave speed can help rebuild the beach as well.
"Hopefully, even though the lake is higher, the gentle waves build up the beaches a little as the sandbars are gently moved in," Rowe said. "But if there's big north wind, it kicks it all out into the lake."
Seasonal precipitation is a major cause of higher levels, with data suggesting rainfall and snowfall was up about 10 percent above average in 2013 and 2014. Scientists from NOAA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are examining the impact of climate change by looking at evaporation, seasonal ice-over and long-term heat storage on the lakes.
Hammond Port Authority Director Milan Kruszynski said the lake has risen by about 27 inches in the past two years — 18 inches in 2014 and 9 inches so far this year.
"It's good for boating and the marinas," he said. "A lot more water keeps the lake cleaner. The water has been phenomenally crystal clear and we're able to see about 40 feet in some spots."
But that comes at a cost to those staying on land.
"It did take away a lot of our beach — about 30 feet," Kruszynski said, "which is a lot because our beach area is pretty narrow to begin with. We used to be able to walk between the marina and the (two) beaches. Now, we can't do that without going into the water.
"It will definitely have an impact on our beach visitors, so people might find it a bit more crowded than usual."