Folks in eastern Iowa have tried to get the water out of flooded dorms and courthouses but the story is a little different in Spencer and other parts of northwest Iowa.

Local residents have watched the Little Sioux River give back the grassy area at the often-flooded West Leach Park in Spencer.

There's a good reason for that: State Climatologist Harry Hillaker estimates Spencer has received 13.32 inches of precipitation in the first six months of the year. The normal for the first six months is 13.74.

You read those numbers correctly -- Spencer is actually slightly drier compared to the six-month average for the city.

"Each month has been very close to normal," Hillaker said of the city totals. "Usually things are more variable."

Conditions were a bit wetter in Emmetsburg, where the Palo Alto County city recorded 16.25 inches through June. The normal is 14.92. Hillaker said the month of June is almost entirely responsible for Emmetsburg's surplus.

"The further northwest you get, roughly speaking, the drier things have been," Hillaker said. "The wettest part of the state --which probably would come as no surprise given the worst flooding -- is the area centered on roughly Waterloo to Dubuque. In that part of the state, it was pretty common to find cities that were maybe 14 to 15 inches greater than the normal so far this year."

The state's average rainfall, of 24.3 inches in first six months of 2008, made it the wettest first half among 136 years of records. The previous record was 1951 when Iowa received 23.55 inches.

The notorious widespread flooding of 1993 is No. 5 on the list for Iowa's wettest first six months of the year.

"Things really got going in July and August and the second half of the year was wetter than the first half," Hillaker said of 1993.

At 48.22 inches, 1993 is the wettest year ever when the entire calendar year is taken into consideration.

"Even though we're at a wetter pace now, we'd be kind of hard-pressed to sustain the pace of 1993," he said.

Counting December, the state also has seen seven consecutive months of below average temperatures.

"It was an unusually cool first half of the year," Hillaker said. "It has been the coldest start to the year in Iowa since 1982…The significance of that means: There's basically been less evaporation going on than usual. You dry out a little bit slower than you would, otherwise."

The outlook for July calls for below normal temperatures in Iowa and near normal precipitation.

"Everyone knows intuitively that the rain and severe weather we have received so far this year is unprecedented, but these numbers show it with even more clarity," said Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Bill Northey. " Iowans have responded heroically to the challenges that have come upon our state, now let's hope the weather becomes more agreeable."

At 8.86 inches, June 2008 also was the second-wettest June among 136 years of records. Only June 1947 was wetter at 10.33 inches. Numerous locations across Iowa saw more than a foot of rain in the month -- Dorchester in far northeast Iowa saw 15.13 inches. Massena, in the southwest saw 15.05 inches of rain.

June's totals became the fifth top-four finish among the monthly rankings since last August:

* August 2007 was the wettest August on record;

* October 2007 ranked fourth wettest among Octobers;

* and December 2007 ranked second wettest among Decembers.

* April 2008 preliminarily ranks as the second-wettest April.