quarter according to the method by U.S. Public Land Surveys; and a 

 description of the bench mark location. The datum for each profile is 

 referenced to the lake level as recorded at Holland, Michigan, on 

 3 August 1970. This level, 579.40 feet above mean sea level (MSL] , is 

 assumed to be the same at all locations. Azimuths of each profile are 

 given below: 



Profile Site 



Azimuth 



1 



288° 



2 



281° 



3 



250° 



4 



277° 



5 



265° 



6 



277° 



7 



252° 



8 



246" 



9 



245° 



10 



259° 



11 



270° 



12 



280° 



13 



277° 



14 



295° 



15 



305° 



16 



296° 



17 



317° 



II. WIND AND WAVE CLIMATE 



1 . Winds and Storms . 



Wind and precipitation are important meteorological variables affecting 

 the beaches of the Great Lakes. Winds generate the waves which break on 

 the beaches, while the precipitation and ensuing drainage affect the lake 

 level which determines the position on the beaches where the waves will 

 break. Figure 2 shows the number of 24-hour periods from 1960 to 1970, 

 when winds >^ 20 miles per hour occurred, as measured at the Muskegon 

 Weather Bureau Station and tabulated by Seibel (1972). During this time, 

 92 percent of the 24-hour periods of > 20-miles-per-hour winds occurred 

 from November through April, and were predominantly from the south, 

 southwest, west, and northwest. Winds from these directions generate 

 waves that are directed toward the east coast of Lake Michigan. For most 

 sites, the fetch of these winds is smallest when winds are westerly, and 

 larger for south, southwest, and northwest winds. 



Storm systems generally cross Lake Michigan in a west to east direction 

 and move onshore in the study area. While winter storms appear to be the 

 most severe, they have little affect on the beaches because of protection 

 afforded by lake ice. Spring and fall storms cause most changes to the 

 beaches although a storm in the summer of 1969 eroded a cliff about 12 feet 

 in 48 hours near Stevensville, Michigan (Fox and Davis, 1970b). 



