The giant battery on the lakeshore: Ludington's Pumped Storage Plant

Drive a few miles south of Ludington along the lakeshore and you’ll spot something strange on the bluff above Lake Michigan: a huge, flat-topped reservoir holding billions of gallons of water, sitting hundreds of feet above the lake. That’s the Ludington Pumped Storage Plant, and locals have always just called it “the Project.”

It works like an enormous battery. When power is cheap and demand is low, usually overnight, giant pumps push Lake Michigan water uphill into the reservoir. Then, when everyone flips on their air conditioners and the grid needs a boost, that water comes roaring back down through the same machines, now spinning as turbines, and pours back into the lake — making electricity on the way. At full tilt it can power well over a million homes for several hours.

When it was finished in the early 1970s, it was the largest plant of its kind in the world, and it’s still one of the biggest in the country. It sits right on the line between Pere Marquette and Summit townships, and it’s one of Mason County’s largest taxpayers, which helps fund the local schools. In summer you can drive up to an observation deck for a wide view over the reservoir, the beach, and the lake beyond.