Drought in Keweenaw County, MI: 2.3 years in 10 since 2000

2.3 years in 10

Keweenaw County, MI: 6 of 26 full years had 13+ weeks in drought. About as drought-prone as a typical US county.

20002025

Drought years: 2006 (18 wk), 2007 (36 wk), 2008 (13 wk), 2010 (23 wk), 2011 (25 wk) and 2012 (23 wk). Not a single drought week in 2001, 2002, 2004, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2025.

Keep a lawn, but switch to drought-tolerant grass

Dry years come often enough to kill a thirsty lawn every few summers. Keep the lawn, reseed with a drought-tolerant mix, and put the beds on drip.

If you reseed, use a drought-tolerant mix and do it well clear of Nov, the month drought is most common here. Put beds on drip before the next dry year.

Against the rest of MI

12th most drought-prone of 83 MI counties; the MI middle is 1.5 in 10. Closest on the list: Iron County (2.3 in 10) and Jackson County (2.3 in 10). Driest in MI: Gogebic County (3.5 in 10). Least drought: Newaygo County (0.8 in 10).

When in the year it hits

Most often in Nov (18% of weeks), then Aug (16%) and Sep (16%). Least in May (9%). May to September averages 13%.

13 Jan
9 Feb
12 Mar
13 Apr
9 May
11 Jun
12 Jul
16 Aug
16 Sep
14 Oct
18 Nov
13 Dec

The worst year: 2007

2007: 36 weeks in drought, peaking at D3 extreme. Across 1,401 weekly maps: 13% of all weeks at D1 or worse, 4.1% at D2, 0.4% at D3, never any D4. Longest unbroken spell: 38 weeks, Aug 16, 2011 to May 1, 2012.

Lately

Last drought year: 2012, 23 weeks. 2016-2025: 0 in 10, against 3.8 in 10 for 2000-2015, wetter lately. So far in 2026: 0 of 44 weeks in drought, through Nov 3, 2026.