Camp Arcadia - Beach Erosion Committee

Introduction

Camp Arcadia was built on the shore of Lake Michigan over 80 years ago, and ever since we have  been dealing with the beach.  We have had big beaches

... small beaches

…high water & big storms.

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Brief Overview of Past Solutions

If you take a walk along our beach today you will find various structures each in some state of disrepair.  As you can see from the aerial photograph above we have a jetty system – wooden walls that jut out into the lake.  We also have old, deteriorating cement piers protruding into the lake in front of the Assembly.  The wooden walls and cement piers trap sand on the sides of them as the waves go by. 

We also have sea walls that are made of wood, steel and cement that run parallel to the shoreline.  These structures trap sand behind them and the areas in front of them, towards the lake, often develop significant drop offs.  A good example of this is the area on the lakeside of the swing set.  During high water periods the water goes directly to the sea wall and there is no beach.

There is also a revetment in front of the Assembly – this is a combination of rocks and cement that are used to armor the beach and keep the lake from threatening the Assembly building.  This revetment has rendered this area of the beach less accessible and less convenient for our guests.

You will also find remnants of corrugated steel walls that were used in addition to the wooden jetties.  Most of these have been removed or worn away, but they are still visible just above the sand in some places.

The Cottage Colony installed rock revetment, but before that they even used old cars and farm equipment to trap the sand and prevent the lake from washing away the cottages.

By looking at the pictures and drawing on your own experiences at Camp, you know that there is usually more sand to the south of the jetties and cement piers than to the north.  This is due to the net littoral transport of sand along the shoreline.   This means that where Camp is located along the Lake Michigan shoreline, the waves travel from the south to the north more often, therefore causing the perpendicular structures such as jetties and piers to trap more sand on their south side than their north side.

This concept is helpful when looking at how the channel into Lake Arcadia (about a half mile south of Camp) affects our beach.  Beach erosion professionals claim that channels like this one can negatively affect beaches around them.  In the history section of this website you will find a lot of information how and why the channel was created.  While we cannot do anything about the existence of the channel, it is helpful to understand its effects on our beach when we look to evaluate solutions to our beach situation. 

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More History

Find out more information about the history of the surrounding area the LCA Board motions on the History page.

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Why an Issue Now

In the early 2000s we have had relatively large beaches.  With the lake at low water levels as it is now, why is the LCA paying attention to beach erosion?

1. First, the jetties in front of the Camp buildings are deteriorating. Boards are coming loose and rusty nails are becoming exposed to bare feet. The jetties are now dangerous and need repair.

2. Water level is relatively low, which makes installation of beach erosion interventions easier.

3. Also because the lake levels are low, there is less demand for this type of work. Lower demand normally means lower prices are available.

4. LCA is in a solid financial position and better able to cope with the cost of beach erosion protection.

5.   Although the lake level is low now, historically Lake Michigan has risen and fallen with unpredictability.  We are not yet to the lowest recorded levels.  If conditions change to cause a rise in the level of Lake Michigan, we will need an upgraded beach preservation and building pretection system.

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Project Objectives

The LCA Board of Directors has established the Beach Erosion Control Committee to research and develop a long-range, effective beach erosion solution that protects Camp Arcadia’s buildings and provides a usable, safe shoreline, while respecting our neighboring shorelines.  This effort is to focus on two objectives:

1. Protect buildings

2. Preserve and enhance the beach for guest use (more sand, remove obstacles)

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