Lake Superior water levels are higher than normal

According to the International Lake Superior Board of Control, Lake Superior’s August 2022 water level was 3.9 inches higher than the season long-term average (1918-2021) and 4.3 inches higher
than the level in 2021.

Lake Michigan-Huron is 8.3 inches above average and 9.5 inches below last August’s average.

Great Lake water levels through September show that all of the Great Lakes except Lake Superior are below levels from last year. However, Lake Superior is up six inches from last year over the same period.

According to the Army Corps of Engineers, as of September 23, Lake Superior’s average elevation above sea level is 602.59 feet, six inches higher than last September.

The International Lake Superior Board of Control manages the St. Mary’s River and regulates the outflow from Lake Superior into Lake Michigan-Huron. That said, rainfall and air temperature play the most significant role in establishing monthly depths in Lake Superior.

Lake Superior has more than 400 islands, the largest of which is Isle Royale at 207 square miles in size. From east to west Lake Superior is 350 miles long and has 2,800 miles of shoreline. Lake Superior contains enough water to fill the other Great Lakes four times and Lake Erie an extra three times.

Lake Superior contains 10 percent of all earth’s fresh surface water.

The circle drive around Lake Superior is about 1,300 miles. Water clarity, the ability to see into the depths underwater is 27 feet, making Lake Superior the cleanest and clearest of all of the Great Lakes.