Wisconsin’s Wolf River ran last Sunday, July 27, at an incredible flow rate of nearly 3,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), which was the all-time high since USGS record-keeping began there. Normal flow for the Wolf ranges from 300 to about 1,000 cfs. Brian T., Derrick W. and I decided we had to get up there to experience it for ourselves. There we met up with Marty D., who lives nearby. Together the four of us paddled Section III (long) of the Wolf River, a 10-mile segment, at a very meaty 1800 cfs on Wednesday, July 29. A description of this section can be found here.
After we finished our run, I decided to drive over to Big Smokey Falls, a few miles downriver on the Wolf in what is called Section IV. Normally this section also serves up outstanding whitewater for kayakers and rafters. However on Wednesday the level was still deemed too dangerous at Big Smokey for rafting or kayaking by the Menominee Indian Tribe, who control access to Section IV. Here’s what the river looked like at Big Smokey Falls at 1800 cfs…
The video above shows the left channel of Big Smokey Falls under the footbridge. This part of the river is always considered unrunnable because of obstructions, even though some unfortunate rafters have gone through accidentally.
The video below shows the right channel of Big Smokey Falls where kayakers and rafters normally run. I have boofed this a number of times in the past, but not at this level.
