Elk River (Michigan)

{{Other places|Elk River (disambiguation)}}

{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}

{{Infobox river

| name = Elk River

| image = Elk_River.jpg

| image_size = 250px

| image_caption = Elk River

| source1_location = Elk Lake

| source1_coordinates= {{coord|44.88555|-85.40388|region:US-MI}}

| source1_coord_ref ={{cite gnis|625460|Elk River}}

| mouth_location = Grand Traverse Bay, Lake Michigan

| mouth_coordinates = {{coord|44.90166|-85.41368|region:US-MI|display=inline,title}}

| length_mi = 1.5

| source1_elevation =

| mouth_elevation =

| discharge1_avg =

| basin_size =

}}

File:Elk Rapids River from US31.jpg]]

The Elk River is a short river in the Lake Michigan drainage basin of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is only {{convert|1.5|mi}} in lengthU.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. [http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/ The National Map] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120329155652/http://viewer.nationalmap.gov/viewer/ |date=2012-03-29 }}, accessed November 21, 2011 and flows from Elk Lake into Grand Traverse Bay of Lake Michigan. It forms a waterway and harbor for the municipality of Elk Rapids.{{cite book

| year = 2002

| title = Michigan Atlas and Gazetteer (10th ed.)

| publisher = DeLorme

| location = Yarmouth, Maine

| id =

}}

Elk Lake is {{convert|192|ft}} deep and is a former arm of Lake Michigan. When the larger lake's level dropped, a belt of sediment separated Elk Lake from Grand Traverse Bay, and a short, whitewater river, Elk River, formed to provide drainage for the smaller lake.

The Indians named the river Meguzee, in honor of the Anishinaabe name for the bald eagle. In the early 19th century, Euro-American settlers arrived. In 1858, someone discovered a pair of elk antlers in the rapids; the rapids, river, and lake were renamed after the animal."The Village & Township of Elk Rapids", Elk Rapids, Mich., accessed August 9, 2007.[http://www.elkrapids.com/]

The rapids are quiet now, as a hydroelectric dam has been built. Boats must portage the dam, using adjacent boat ramps. Below the dam, the river opens out into Grand Traverse Bay and forms the harbor of Elk Rapids.