The TRUTH about Fish Lake & what happened here #wisconsin

Some adventures can be bittersweet. Bitter in the sense you feel immense sadness for the ones whose lives have been turned upside down by the events that took place where you're going. And yet at the same time sweet because of the thrill you get when exploring somewhere new. Oh it's like hotter than balls out there. Perfect day to go paddleboarding I guess. Even though it's easy to be super pumped about spending a beautiful day paddleboarding, let's not forget the real reason why I'm here. Hey sightseers, Sightseeing Sally here. You might think I'm just going out for a routine paddleboard expedition, but I'm not. I'm actually checking out this. An area subject to controversy and flooding. I'm on Fish Lake in the town of Roxbury and this is what's happened here. Where backyard barbecues used to be the norm on Saturday afternoons is now part of the lake. In all my years growing up in Wisconsin I've become accustomed to flooding occurring after heavy rains, but it's my understanding that this is something entirely different. You see Fish Lake happens to be the middle lake in a chain of three lakes. It is also a very rare deep water seepage lake and the problems here are anything but typical. The story of what happened here is best told from the beginning. Much like what we saw at the Salton Sea, it appears the problems plaguing Fish Lake go back for decades. Back in the early 80s flooding became a seasonal problem in the basements and septic systems of some of the locals. By the 90s the flooding was so bad many locals proposed pumping water from the lake telling the DNR quote to get their water off our land. However pumping water from Fish Lake proved to be more complicated than originally thought. Years of manure runoff had contaminated neighboring lakes Mud Lake and Crystal Lake. Pumping water from any three of the lakes could create more problems downstream. Eventually studies were done and permits were approved to allow pumping water from the lakes. Despite this however the levels at Fish Lake continued to rise and in the eyes of those who suffered losses here much too little has been done too late. What happened here is certainly a tragedy and is something that could happen just about anywhere people build along the water. If you look there you can see the remains of a window air conditioning unit growing algae from being submerged in the water. Not all property owners have watched their homes succumb to the lake. About half accepted buyouts from FEMA and Dane County. When you get up close to the houses you can smell the mold and the mildew that's wreaking havoc inside. Much like the places we saw down in Pitcher Oklahoma and the Salton Sea it's obvious there's no intention of saving these homes. The direct tv satellite dish that'll never direct any more tv. Some cedar trees that have died from being submerged in the water. The last lonely flagpole. Imagine watching the rising lake levels and realizing there's no stopping the inevitable. Because Fish Lake is a seepage lake there is no natural outlet for drainage. As a result yearly precipitation amounts directly impact the lake's water levels. As long as this area continues to get a lot of rain and snow so too the lake levels will rise. How long before the rising lake waters engulf these homes is anybody's best guess. All told the stage of Fish Lake has risen over nine feet since 1966. As you can see they've got this whole area marked off. Obviously there are underwater hazards and you just don't know what you could run into over here. The remains of an old camper. Another old camper that's been submerged underwater. If I had to guess the water level here has got to be around 12 to 15 feet deep. Considering only a few years ago this was still dry land it's amazing how deep the water is now. What's left of the local park. At one time this is where visitors could access the 62 feet deep lake. If you listen closely you can hear birds splashing in the water. Proof that no matter what man does mother nature will always reign supreme. While there are those who remain undaunted by the rising waters at Fish Lake to date no lasting solution has been found. For now we can only hope mother nature doesn't take any more ground. If you enjoyed the vid make sure you give a big old thumbs up. They are free. As always love to hear from you. Leave a comment in the comment section below and don't forget share it on your social media. It only takes a couple of seconds to click on that link, copy it and share it. Until next time this is Sightseeing Sally. Special thanks goes out to all our fellow Sightseers here on Patreon and PayPal. Without you these videos wouldn't be possible.