The Wolf River is a long tributary of the Fox River in northeastern Wisconsin in the Great Lakes region of the United States. The river is one of the two National Scenic Rivers in Wisconsin, along with the St. Croix River. The scenic portion is long. The river and its parent the Fox River and associated lakes are known for their sturgeon which spawn every spring upstream on the lower river until blocked by the Shawano Dam. The river flows through mostly undeveloped forestland southerly from central Forest County in the north to Lake Poygan (west of Lake Winnebago) in the south. The lake is part of the Winnebago Pool of lakes fed by both the Fox and Wolf Rivers. The Fox-Wolf basin is usually considered to be a single unified basin and the rivers themselves may be referred to as the Fox-Wolf River system. The river is known in the Menominee language as Mahwāēw-Sēpēw, "wolf river". Course The Wolf River rises in the southern Headwaters Wilderness of the Nicolet unit of Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest, with the northernmost fork stemming from the confluence of Wildcat Creek and Pine Creek at Pine Lake in west central Forest County. The river flows south through Langlade and Menominee counties, where whitewater rafting is well known. Menominee County is mostly within the boundaries of the federally recognized Menominee Indian Reservation. Next the Wolf River flows through Shawano County, where it collects the Red River, passes by the city of Shawano. It then flows through Waupaca and Outagamie counties and back into Waupaca County, where it collects the Embarrass River and the Little Wolf at the city of New London. The Wolf River then collects the Waupaca River, then flows through Partridge Lake. The river then flows through Winnebago County and into Lake Poygan and Lake Winneconne. It finally goes through the village of Winneconne to empties into Lake Butte des Morts on the Fox River. Hydrology Principal tributaries of the river include Wildcat Creek and Pine Creek (headwaters), Pine River, Rat River, Waupaca River, Little Wolf River, Embarrass River, Shioc River, Red River, Evergreen River, Lily River, Hunting River. The river drains into the Fox River at Lake Butte des Morts then via the Fox River into Lake Winnebago and thence into lower Green Bay of Lake Michigan. Lake Michigan drains northerly via the Straits of Mackinac into Lake Huron then south and east