Georgian Bay Water Levels Rising

The Phillips Team, Cottage Real Estate

What in the world is going on? For the past number of years, we have been very concerned with the dropping water levels on Georgian Bay. In fact, two years ago at this time, Gary was up hunting and took some pictures that were shocking! The water was literally disappearing and our dock was perched upon rock where once there had been water! We were extremely concerned and engaged in understanding what was happening on the Bay. Last year, however the water started to rise, and as we can remember there was vast flooding in many areas of northern cottage country. This spring the water continued to rise and throughout the summer we were thrilled to see it lapping over our point and rising up to meet our fire pit. Although we watched as our beach disappeared, we were amazed at the quantity of water that was returning to the Bay. As “Stop the Drop” states in their October 2014 email, “It has been a huge relief for our members to see water levels return to where ‘they are supposed to be.”

It is reported that in October, the Bay was 10 cms above it’s long-term average for October and was continuing to rise this fall, when typically we see a decline in water levels by October/November. The water levels haven’t been this high in approximately 15 years, and it is anticipated that the Bay will continue to enjoy health water levels into 2015.

It is an interesting study, the rise and falls of the Georgian Bay water levels. The scientists continue to deliberate about the cause(s) of the significant fluctuation in water levels, while others continue to debate ways in which to intervene and/or adapt. There is “an emerging focus on building resilience by modifying the way shoreline communities interface with the lake” (Stop the Drop, October 2014). Stop the Drop reports that they are exploring the process in one Georgian Bay community of utilizing advanced visualization tools. Perhaps the logic is that if we can visualize what the changing shoreline will look like, we can begin to plan, modify and adapt the ways in which we interact with it. I’m not really sure what this would mean and how we would adapt and/or change, but I’m certainly interested in thinking about this and exploring new thoughts and ideas.

For myself, Gary and our family, our love of the Bay will continue to foster our willingness to adapt and to be resilient to our changing shoreline. Our relationship with the Bay is likened to our relationships with others, so to speak. We all change over time and so our relationships must adapt. The constant for us is that the Bay is always mysterious, magnificent and rugged, and she has demonstrated yet again, that her close relationship to Mother Nature keeps her as formidable as ever!

Check out these websites for information about the water levels on Georgian Bay and the Great Lakes:http://www.stopthedrop.ca
http://graham.umich.edu/water