Go With The Flow

Perhaps your dock or boat lift seemed to come up a little short this Spring. Maybe those chest waders filled with a little 50 degree Pickerel Lake water. If the water level seems high now, what is considered normal? The ordinary high water mark (OHWM) as established by the S.D. DENR for Pickerel Lake is 1845.6 feet above sea level. The outlet elevation is set at 1844.9, which is 0.7 feet lower than the OHWM. These set points can serve as a reference when discussing lake water levels. Now for some fun data. On 4/11/11, the DENR recorded a level of 1846.5 for Pickerel Lake. The “Flood of ’93” logged in at 1848.0. Some observers felt that after snowmelt this Spring, the peak water level was within 6-8 inches of the ’93 flood. Since no official peak measurement was taken, you can “wade in” with your own version. Where does this overflow end up? Waubay Lake! Although our current OHWM had not yet been established, the historic high was 1928 (1848.2) and the low was — you guessed it–1936 (1838.2). Remember the” dry spell” in 1976? (1843.1) Can you think of another index that flows in a similar pattern?