Inland Waterway (Michigan)
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The Inland Waterway or Inland Water Route is a series of
river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...
s and
lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
s in the U.S. state of
Michigan Michigan () is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest, upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the List of U.S. states and ...
. With only a short portage, it forms a
navigable A body of water, such as a river, canal or lake, is navigable if it is deep, wide and calm enough for a water vessel (e.g. boats) to pass safely. Such a navigable water is called a ''waterway'', and is preferably with few obstructions against di ...
route for small craft connecting Lake Huron and Crooked Lake, across the
Northern Michigan Northern Michigan, also known as Northern Lower Michigan (known colloquially to residents of more southerly parts of the state and summer residents from cities such as Detroit as " Up North"), is a region of the U.S. state of Michigan. A popul ...
region. Despite Little Traverse Bay being only 2 miles west of Crooked Lake, the waterway does not connect to it, making Lake Michigan inaccessible through this route. The route is in Emmet and Cheboygan counties and consists of Crooked Lake, Crooked River, Burt Lake, Indian River,
Mullett Lake Mullett Lake is a lake in Cheboygan County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The lake is named after John Mullett, who, together with William A. Burt, made a federal survey of the area from 1840 to 1843. A neighboring lake was named after Burt. Hist ...
, and the
Cheboygan River The Cheboygan River ( ) is a short but significant river in the Lake Huron drainage basin of the U.S. state of Michigan. in length,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed Novemb ...
. The route passes through or near the communities of Conway,
Oden is a type of nabemono (Japanese one-pot dishes), consisting of several ingredients such as boiled eggs, daikon, konjac, and processed fishcakes stewed in a light, soy-flavored dashi broth. Oden was originally what is now commonly ca ...
, Ponshewaing, Alanson, Indian River, Topinabee, and Cheboygan.


History


Early history

The Inland Waterway was originally used by Native Americans to avoid the strong waves around Waugoshance Point on Lake Michigan. Consequently, 50 Native American encampments have been discovered along the shores of the Inland Water Route. One such encampment, located in Ponshewaing, has artifacts dating back over 3,000 years.


Settlement in 1800s

The
Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad The Grand Rapids and Indiana Railroad at its height provided passenger and freight railroad services between Cincinnati, Ohio, and the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, USA. The company was formed on January 18, 1854. Beginnings After grappl ...
reached Petoskey in 1873. This opened up the surrounding area to tourism, settlers, and lumbermen. This eventually led to various people proposing different ideas for the water way. One such plan was the transportation of mail along the waterway. This involved the dredging of Crooked River. Freight was eventually transported along the route. With the advent of the railroad as a cheaper means with which to move goods, the Inland Waterway fell into decline.


The Inland Waterway today

Today the region surrounding the route is still a tourist destination. The historical society for the region was founded in 2004 and is known as The Inland Water Route Historical Society. It also is home to a museum in Alanson. There are four state campgrounds and several private ones along the route as well as hotels for accommodations. Several marinas are available for supplies and fuel. The waterway is maintained to a depth of . There are two locks (at Cheboygan and Alanson) and a swinging bridge along the route. The locks can handle boats in length and of beam. The lowest non-movable bridge on the route has a height of .Lock schedule
/ref> The locks are in operation from mid-April to late October. The shortest crossings of Burt Lake and Mullett Lake cover and , respectively, and each take a boat as much as a mile offshore.


Images

File:Indian River from North Central State Trail Cheboygan County Michigan.jpg, Indian River File:Cheboygan River in Cheboygan.jpg, Cheboygan River File:Swing Bridge-Alanson.jpg, Alanson swing bridge File:Burt Lake 1.jpg, Burt Lake


See also

*
Elk River Chain of Lakes Watershed The Elk River Chain of Lakes Watershed is a waterway consisting of 14 lakes and connecting rivers in the northwestern section of the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan, which empty into Lake Michigan. The watershed includes in Ant ...


References

*Inland Water Route Historical Society
Inland Waterway
Michigan Historical Marker in Burt Lake State Park


External links


Inland Waterway
Michigan Interactive Fishweb

Indian River Tourist Bureau
Northern Michigan's Inland Waterway
Indian River Chamber of Commerce {{Northern Michigan Bodies of water of Michigan Water trails
Inland Water Route The Inland Waterway or Inland Water Route is a series of rivers and lakes in the U.S. state of Michigan. With only a short portage, it forms a navigable route for small craft connecting Lake Huron and Crooked Lake, across the Northern Michigan ...
Inland Water Route The Inland Waterway or Inland Water Route is a series of rivers and lakes in the U.S. state of Michigan. With only a short portage, it forms a navigable route for small craft connecting Lake Huron and Crooked Lake, across the Northern Michigan ...
Michigan State Historic Sites