photos of waves generated by sandy breaking along chicago`s harbor walls

[madrchsod]

[Warren DeMontague]

1. Wow.

I can honestly say I don't think I've ever seen Lake Michigan do that, before.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

2. mama's not happy to be fooled.

The last time I saw such waves in Chicago, it was midwinter, and one hellacious storm came through. We had ice buildup of 20-30 feet from Monroe Harbor to Evanston.

And then that spring the thaws came. Ice bridges formed, snow/ice cliffs collapsed, it was fucking BEAUTIFUL.

[hedgehog]

3. I think the Great Lakes tend to "slosh" more when the wind rises

than the oceans - Maybe Chicago, Cleveland, Buffalo et al can give the coastal cities pointers for dealing with high water during storms.

[Kolesar]

5. SIECHES ON THE GREAT LAKES

http://www.geo.msu.edu/geogmich/seiches.htm

The water levels of the Great Lakes are a greatly talked about subject among many. The Great Lakes are accustom to three major types of water level fluctuation; seasonal, long-term, and short-term. Seasonal fluctuations are generally expressed for one year and consist of the changing four seasons. Long-term levels occur over a certain period of time usually ranging from a few to many consecutive years in time. Seasonal and long-term changes generally show the amount of water in the Great Lakes through the hydrologic cycle. Seasonal and long-term fluctuations of lake levels are mostly talked about among boaters, fishermen, marina owners, plus many others that are associated with the Great Lakes in one way or another. Short-term fluctuations are rarely talked about and range from minutes to hours to days (Gauthier and Manninen,1999; US Army Corps of Engineers and Great Lakes Commission, 1999).

Short-term fluctuations that often occur on the Great Lakes are wind set-up or storm surge, and a phenomenon known as a seiche. A storm surge or wind set-up consists of high sustained winds from one direction that push the water level up at one end of the lake and make the level drop by a corresponding amount at the opposite end. ...more...

[hedgehog]

8. The water in Lake Erie actually piles up at buffalo under a strong west wind - very,very strange!

The levels are controlled artificially to some extent: here on Lake Ontario the levels can be raised or lowered to some degree by what is allowed to come in through the Erie Canal system (controlled by the NYS Thruway Authority - don't ask!) and allowed out at the locks on the St. Lawrence. There are constant arguments as to what the levels should be and/or whether they should be allowed to fluctuate at all!

[Scuba]

10. Erie's lack of depth (max around 20' as I recall) for it's surface size means big rollers ....

.... from even light winds. Erie must have been awesome at the peak.

[Kolesar]

11. There is a contentious proposal to control the level of Lake Huron by building a dike

Levels have trended quite low for a few decades. There is contention that the levels will become a political decision. People on Georgian Bay want Lake Huron higher. People in Chicago want Lake Michigan lower.

I didn't realize that the NY State Barge Canal used water from Lake Ontario.

[hedgehog]

14. Actually, it's the other way around - the Erie Canal feeds into Lake Erie at Buffalo

and the Barge Canal feeds into Lake Ontario at Oswego. The canals are still active, although commercial shipping on the Oswego River section is now rare.

The Thruway Authority prepared for Sandy by drawing down the level of the Mohawk River to prevent flooding from the expected rainfall.

[Kolesar]

19. I thought the whole route was renamed the Barge Canal, but what do I know?

In grade school, we sang the Erie Canal song: "I've got a mule, her name is Sal, fifteen miles on the Erie Canal"
**
We drove the NY Thruway the day after Hurricane Irene last year. The shoulder was washed out. The trusses above the canal locks were all stuffed with river debris. It was sad.

[hedgehog]

21. You are correct - it is the Barge Canal, but I always call it the Erie -

the section I can see from my house is the Oswego River, which connects to the Erie but technically is part of the Barge Canal System.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

9. in the 1950s, on a perfectly clear day, a seiche killed a bunch of

people on the beach or shore. a 10 foot wall of water came and swept away people who had no clue that something would happen.

A storm on the other side of the lake caused a huge low pressure system, and the water simply had to go somewhere.
Like Chicago.

[CaliforniaPeggy]

4. Greatest Page for these incredible pictures! Wow.

I wonder what the structure is in the last picture.......a light house, perhaps?

[Evasporque]

6. harbor wall gap marker....they are large iron poles painted with a red or green strip...

[CaliforniaPeggy]

7. Thank you! That makes sense.

[Kolesar]

12. Red, right, returning

is the mnemonic for mariners sailing the channel

[PatSeg]

13. Incredible photos!

[malaise]

15. Wow!

Unbelievable

[MineralMan]

16. And, as always, some moron is standing right there.

That way, when a wave hits him, some first responders will have work. It's the Moron Job Creation Initiative.

[hedgehog]

17. Oswego State University is literally on the shore of Lake Ontario -

they must do a better job educating the students now, but over the years some have been knocked into the lake by waves.

[Mnemosyne]

18. Wow! K&R nt

[ellisonz]

20. Those lakes are no joke