On lakes Huron and Michigan, the level is up 7 inches and should be more than a foot deeper than last year when the boating season starts next month. Lake Erie is 8 inches deeper than last spring and Superior is 1 inch deeper. Both are predicted to gain another 4 inches of depth by May. Lake Ontario also is up 7 inches and is expected to gain another 6.

While the water is deeper, it?s not a cause for all-out celebration because levels still will remain below average, leaving shoreline residents to face areas of slightly sloping lake bottoms revealed over the last four years in bays like Saginaw and Grand Traverse.

?We would need about 3 feet on Huron and Michigan to get what people are used to,? said Tom Allenson, a biologist with the Army Corps of Engineers.

Greg Waszak, store manager at Land?s End Marina in Harrison Township, said boater enthusiasm is rising right along with the water levels.

?It?s great to be looking at more water,? he said. ?People are bundling up and going out earlier than normal. It?s cool, but it?s not that bad. It?s always good to be on the water.?

The rebound began last fall with a wet season and moderate temperatures that caused a low evaporation rate. Then came not only more snow, but the right kind of snow.