You probably noticed it this summer. Lakes are a few feet lower than normal, and our rivers are running a little slower. The dock my family put out in May is now nearly completely out of the water, sitting on exposed sand. It feels like we misjudged the whole season. Boat launches that were fine in May and June are now gravel ramps leading to mud. Rivers that should be flowing strong are almost stagnant.
About two-thirds of lower Michigan is either abnormally dry or in drought conditions as of the last few weeks. Parts of mid-Michigan are even seeing severe drought, the worst the state has seen since 2012, and it’s hard to get a boat in the water.
Then there’s wildfire risk. Both the DNR and National Weather Service are warning about heightened fire danger due to dry vegetation and low humidity.
Duck hunting is taking a big hit. Managed waterfowl areas, like Maple River State Game Area, which should be flooded by opening day, have mud flats instead of water this year. The DNR can’t pump from rivers that are barely flowing. Ducks keep flying south to find actual water, which means fewer birds in Michigan and worse hunting for everyone.
The irony of the situation isn’t lost on anyone. We joke about lake-effect snow burying us every winter, but now our lakes are so low you can walk out to spots that used to require a boat.
It’s especially frustrating after those record-high water levels we dealt with in 2019 and 2020, when docks were underwater and shorelines were disappearing. Now we’ve swung completely the other direction.
So what happened? Well, it didn’t happen overnight. It’s been building since last year, with many areas about 2 to 4inches below normal precipitation dating back to January. Winter precipitation was below normal across Michigan (we’ve had a handful of mild winters lately), and less snowfall during winter helped set the stage for the drought conditions we are currently seeing.
How bad is it? We’ve seen only about two-thirds of its normal precipitation since January, with Grand Rapids, Detroit, Lansing, and Traverse City recording big precipitation shortfalls. Some areas like Saginaw are down by 4.7 inches, and Midland is down 5.4 inches.
Realistically, there’s not much we can do. Outdoorsmen are adapting where they can—scouting new water sources, going deeper into wetlands, adjusting hunting spots—but you can’t make it rain (outside of on the basketball court), and the DNR can’t fill wetlands without water to pump.
Michigan’s just going to have to wait this one out and hope next spring brings what this year didn’t: water.
Tom Zandstra is a passionate outdoorsman and CEO of The Fair Chase. Follow him on X @TheFairChase1.
