07/02/2026
Some antecedent precipitation facts for the Wolf River watershed. In general, the last 5 years have been wet for the section of watershed that can infiltrate and support grounwater discharge to the river. While the northern part of Langlade county and Forest county have been normal to dry. This presumably resulted in relatively more groundwater vs surface water inputs, relative to "normal". This, overall is likely, in my opinion and that of the DNR fisheries, as to why the trout populatiins in the Wolf waterses has been outstanding the last 5 years. In concert with that, hard work by dedicate TU folks have done outstanding stream restoration work, improving cold flows!
So, this year is interesting in that we have a surplus of precipitation this calendar year, but we had a very, very dry May. This resulted in low soil moisture and low and clear streams for a while. The latest precipitation has put us in a near "normal" 3-month moisture condition as of late. Right now, things are reasonably normal. Strems in the area are at a healthy level and the phreatic zone and water tables have been healthy due to the 5 year surplus of precipitation. Let's hope this trend continues.
Anyway, I was thinking "hydrologically" while researching precipitation for a site evaluation for work...
Hope this was interesting and educational.
Regards,
Travis A. Stuck
