Wisconsin River Report - March 18, 2004

Wisconsin River Report

March 18, 2004

Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company

2301 North Third Street

Wausau, WI 54403

For more information contact Sam Morgan

Phone: 715.848.2976, ex 301

Email: morgan@wvic.com

Winter Retains Its Grip on Northern Wisconsin

Almost daily snowstorms and below normal temperatures have kept northern Wisconsin a winter wonderland well into March according to Wisconsin Valley Improvement Company of Wausau. While the snow has almost completely disappeared in the basin south of Stevens Point, current snow depths in Vilas County still range from 19 inches at Land O’ Lakes to as much as 29 inches in Presque Isle. Snow depths average 21 inches in Oneida County, 20 inches in Lincoln County, and 13 inches in Marathon County.

The water content of the snowpack is close to 8 inches at Phelps in northern Vilas County and averages 7 inches over the Vilas-Oneida County area. Normal snow water content prior to spring runoff is about 4 inches in the northern basin. The snow water content in Lincoln and Marathon Counties also averages close to 7 inches, with the spring normal being about 3 inches. With more than twice the normal amount of water in the snowpack, residents who live near streams and rivers should be on the lookout for high water levels over the next few weeks if a rapid snowmelt occurs or if spring rains accompany the snowmelt.

Despite the heavy snow cover, the flow of the Wisconsin River remains 20-30% below normal because of dry conditions last summer and fall. Water is still being released from WVIC’s reservoir system to augment the low natural river flow. Reservoir storage is now at 27% of capacity. Water levels in WVIC’s five large reservoirs are holding steady or dropping, and range from about 8 feet below maximum at the Rice Reservoir near Tomahawk to over 16 feet below maximum at the Big Eau Pleine Reservoir near Mosinee.

Air temperatures were below normal throughout the basin this past week. At the Willow Reservoir near Hazelhurst the weekly average temperature of 20 degrees was 4 degrees below the March normal. The weekly average temperature at Wausau of 24 degrees was 6 degrees below normal, and at Prairie du Chien in the southern basin the weekly average temperature of 32 degrees was 3 degrees below normal.

Reservoir Water Levels			River Flow			Precipitation
Location	Feet Below Max	Weekly Change (Ft.)	Location	Weekly Average (cfs)	Monthly Normal (cfs)	Location	This Week (In.)	Annual Total (In.)	+/- Annual Normal
Rainbow	8.6	+0.4	Eagle River	419	484	Upper Basin	0.53	5.22	+2.26
Willow	10.0	-0.1	Tomahawk	1,674		Central Basin	0.36	3.25	+0.29
Rice	7.7	-0.3	Merrill	1,638	2,168	Temperature
Spirit	9.1	+0.6	Rothschild	2,087	4,160	Location	Ave.	Normal	+/-
Eau Pleine	16.5	-0.9	St. Point	2,954		Willow Reservoir	20	24	-4
Reservoir Storage			Wis. Rapids	3,069	4,196	Wausau	24	30	-6
Northern	28%	+1%	Petenwell	3,228	5,400	Prairie du Chien	32	35	-3
Overall	27%	+1%	Muscoda	9,317	11,840

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