Project & Partnership Updates

Wake Boats Forum:

Come hear experts who represent both sides of the Wake Boat Issue. All Forest County residents and riparian owners are welcome.

Goal: To educate the Forest County public and riparian owners on the wake boat issue and to facilitate dialogue between organizations and governmental bodies. 

Date/Time: Saturday, October 10, 2026, 10 am – Noon 

Location: Argonne Town Hall (8842 Black Bear Ave, Argonne WI 54511)

Program: Last Wilderness Alliance and Wisconsin Watersports Coalition will present the reasons why Forest County towns should or should not enact ordinances regulating wake boats. There will be plenty of time at the end of the presentations for questions from the audience. 

For further information please email FCAL (Forest County Association of Lakes) at info@fcal-wis.org. 

Forest County Association of Lakes (FCAL):

Check out their website full of helpful resources and news: www.fcal-wis.org. As riparian landowners, you should be receiving FCAL’s 2026 newsletter. If you are not a member, you can join online. Please consider joining – your $25 membership fee goes a long way for the work FCAL does. Here are some upcoming events:

• June 19th - Board of Directors meeting: Held at the Hiles North Fire House include a presentation on I-LIDS, a trip to our boat landings to see the I-LIDS in operation, and representatives from the Town of Hiles boarder lakes (Sevenmile, Julia and Kentuck).

• Essay contest:  Every year FCAL works with local 5th and 6th grade students on their writing of a conservation themed essay. Students submit their essays for a contest. Winners earn a cash prize and get their photo and essays published in the local paper. They and their families are also invited to the FCAL Annual Banquet where they read their papers aloud. 

• Annual Meeting & Dinner, Saturday, October 24: Held at the Wolf River Rendezvous, 11624 US-E, Crandon, WI.

4:00 pm - Registration -- Cash Bar & Joviality Begin 

4:15 pm - Annual Meeting with/election of board members

5:00 pm – Presentation on Pollinators & Native Plants by Lindsay Peterson of Roots & Rivers Collaborative

6:00 pm – Dinner catered by Smokin’ J’s (ribs, mashed potatoes w/gravy, vegetable, salad, and dessert)

Cost of dinner is $30/person. Reservatons accepted through Octber 16 at the FCAL website <fcal-wis.org> or mail payment to     FCAL, Inc., PO Box 68, Pickerel, WI 54465.

Town of Hiles:

Sadly, Mark Ferris, a Town of Hiles board member, passed away earlier this year. At the May board meeting, Jerry Duhn was appointed to fulfill Mark’s term. Jerry has been involved in town affairs for many years through his work as secretary for the Pine Lake District. 

Roots & Rivers Collaborative (formerly known as WRISC):

Roots & Rivers Collaborative (formerly known as WRISC) renamed and rebranded itself officially on June 5 at their first annual Conservation Celebration. More information on their website: www.wrisc.org 

Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest (CNNF):

In addition to the Four-Mile Logging Project, the Forest Service has begun the North Branch Logging Project in our area. Our District Ranger, Chad Kirschbaum, is in the process of writing an update on these projects for us. Updates were provided at the BFLA Annual Meeting.

Forest County Land and Water Conservation Department:

This department, in conjunction with WRISC, recently finished their trade-up day, a day in which you could bring an invasive shrub to the Crandon Court House and receive a gift certificate for a native plant to replace the invasive one. Property owners on our two lakes who are interested in obtaining a 2027 Healthy Lakes Grant for shoreline restoration should contact Kayla Littleton at kayla.l@co.forest.wi.us 

Wisconsin Lakes & Rivers Conference: 

Next year’s conference is scheduled for April 14-16, 2027

Wisconsin Conservation Convention (WCC):

Spring meeting was held in Crandon. There were quite a few funding questions. The new regulation about the start of musky season seemed to be a large issue.

All Things Water:

Langlade County sponsored this event in May chocked full of information from shoreline protection to well testing, from wake boat information to wildlife protection, from the negative effects of PFAS to the dangers of neonicotinoids, etc. 

4th Annual Northwood Lights Out:

FCAL and Oneida & Vilas Counties celebrated the Night Sky on June 12-14 and August 14-16 by turning off outdoor lights, so people can see the beauty of our night skies. Fire Flies and other wildlife need a habitat that is not polluted by artificial light. A gentle reminder: throughout the year, we should a) reduce our outdoor (and indoor) lights; b) select lighting that is only as bright as we need, not as bright as we may want; c) use motion detecting lights instead of “dusk to dawn” lights; and, d) choose warm colors for our outdoor lights.

Northwoods Land Trust (NWLT):

Upcoming activities on the NWLT website.  

Trees for Tomorrow:

Upcoming activitieson the Trees for Tomorrow website.

Community-wide Garlic Mustard Pull:

Garlic Mustard is a terrestrial invasive species and our nemesis. Although edible by people, it is very toxic to our native plants and young seedling trees. Thus, it creates havoc on our forest floor. If left untreated it will choke out all native plant life and disrupt the natural forest succession. That is why Butternut Franklin Lakes Association (BFLA) has been battling it for decades and the Forest Service has been spraying since 2005. Actually, our Community-Wide Garlic Mustard Pull began in the late 1980’s with six property owners pulling this invasive weed. 

The 2026 Butternut Franklin Lakes Association Annual Community-Wide Garlic Mustard Pull helps the Forest Service contain the Garlic Mustard (GM) and keep it from spreading to your property. On Monday, June 8, many volunteers along with people from WRISC and the USFS helped with the pull.