Muskegon River

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Muskegon River
River
MuskegonRiverNearNewaygo.JPG
Muskegon River near Newaygo, MI in September 2012
Country United States
State Michigan
Cities Evart, Big Rapids, Croton, Newaygo, Muskegon
Source Houghton Lake [1]
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Mouth Muskegon Lake
 - location Muskegon, MI
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Length 216 mi (348 km)
Basin 2,350 sq mi (6,086 km2)
Map of the Muskegon River

Muskegon River is a river in the western portion of the lower peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. The river has its headwaters in Houghton Lake in Roscommon County, flowing out of the North Bay into neighboring Missaukee County. From there it flows mostly southwest to Muskegon, Michigan, where it empties into Muskegon Lake. Muskegon Lake is connected to Lake Michigan via a mile-long channel. The river has several major branches, such as the Hersey River, Cedar Creek and Little Muskegon River. The main stream is 216 miles (348 km) long[2] and drains an area of 2,350 square miles (6,100 km2).[3] In September 2002 an often cited article, National Geographic raised concerns about a controversial deal made with Nestle Waters North America giving them permission "to bottle up to 210 million gallons (about 800 million liters) a year from an aquifer north of Grand Rapids, Michigan that recharges the Muskegon River." [4]

History

Like many of its neighboring streams, the Muskegon was one of the favored logging rivers during the boom years of the 1880s-1890s, and a keen eye can still pick out remnants of stray logs left over from the spring logging runs which are embedded on the river bottom.

Wildlife

There is abundant wildlife, including otters, waterfowl, deer and eagles and, although development has been creeping in, the upper reaches are still fairly remote and natural with much of the surrounding land composed of state-owned tracts.

Recreation

Croton Dam Muskegon River DSCN1104.JPG
  • In recent years, the river has gained a certain measure of fame as a recreational fishery, boasting large migratory steelhead, brown trout and planted Pacific salmon.
  • People have also taken quite a liking to paddling down the river. It is Michigan's second largest river only to the Grand River. It is surprisingly quite slow, making it perfect for beginners learning in either a kayak or canoe.[5]
  • Being such a peaceful river, it promises ample opportunities for viewing wildlife. This factor attracts tourists from across the state, and the world.
  • Camping is another popular activity around the river, there are several shoreline parks, and campgrounds to camp at. There are also various inns and cabins down the river that can provide a night, week's or a month's accommodations.
  • Hunting is popular in the forests near by on public hunting land.

Dams

The three major dams of the Muskegon River (Rogers, Hardy and Croton) generate about 45,600 kilowatts, with about 30,000 of that from Hardy Dam. That is enough electricity to serve a community of nearly 23,000.[6]

Name Height Purpose(s) Capacity (MW) Year Owner name Reservoir name Coordinates Comments
Croton Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). Hydroelectric 8.85 1907 Consumers Energy Croton Dam Pond Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Hardy Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). Hydroelectric 30 1931 Consumers Energy Hardy Dam Pond Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Rogers Lua error in Module:Convert at line 1851: attempt to index local 'en_value' (a nil value). Hydroelectric 6.75 1906 Consumers Energy Rogers Dam Pond Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Total 45.6

References

  1. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map, accessed November 21, 2011
  3. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  4. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  5. Hillstrom, Kevin, and Laurie Hillstrom. Paddling Michigan. Guilford: Falcon Publishing, 2001. 98-100.
  6. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.