As of March 8, Lake Erie water levels are 1 inch below average, but about 4 inches higher than this time last year. Based on this information and other atmospheric indicators, hydrologists say that although the lake will be about 4 inches below its mid-summer average in July, it will be 7 inches above last July’s level.

This is good news for boaters who are increasingly dependent on charts and buoys when navigating Lake Erie’s relatively shallow reef and harbor areas. It is also good news for nature enthusiasts who are finding resurgent bird and plant life in the lake’s shoreline mud flats.

Lake Erie waters began dropping in 1998, falling to below average in 1999 and remaining there ever since. However, the ups and downs of water levels are a normal part of Lake Erie’s life cycle, ODNR experts say.

"Lake Erie is a constantly changing body of water," said Dave Cashell, state hydrologist at ODNR. "In mid-1930s, the lake was 31 inches lower than it is today. In the mid-1950s and again in 1986, it was 35 inches higher than today."

Officials first began measuring water levels in the Great Lakes in the mid-1800s. The present system of gauges began operating in 1918. Hydrologists have learned that lake levels fluctuate with the seasons and can vary dramatically over longer periods of time.

Long-term averages have varied more than 6 feet over the period of time records have been kept. Water levels were slightly above long-term averages during the mid-to-late 1800s and generally below the long-term averages from about 1890 through 1967. From 1968 to 1999, levels were again generally above long-term averages.

The lake also rises and falls about 15 inches with the seasons - losing water in the fall and winter through evaporation and gaining water back during spring snowmelt and summer rains.

About 80 percent of Lake Erie’s water flows in from the Upper Great Lakes through the Detroit River. Another 10 percent comes from tributary streams, with the remaining 10 percent coming from precipitation falling directly on the lake’s surface. The Detroit River inflow is directly dependent on rain and snowfall around Lakes Superior, Huron and Michigan. Unusually warm winters and dry summers in the late 1990s brought little precipitation and virtually no ice cover to the Upper Lakes, causing water levels to drop in those bodies of water, and subsequently, in Lake Erie. Last winter’s sparse precipitation was insufficient to relieve those conditions.

According to the ODNR Division of Watercraft, most Lake Erie boat launches will be fully operable this spring and summer. Boaters should check for the best launch areas when planning a lake outing. ODNR always advises boaters to use charts when navigating unfamiliar waters. Boaters should be especially cautious around the islands in the western basin and when nearing shore. Navigation charts for Lake Erie are available at marinas, bait shops and other outlets on the north coast.