WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Almond (Lothian) at Almondell in Scotland, United Kingdom, built from official government gauge data.
Almond (Lothian) at Almondell is a gauged river in Scotland.
Winter is when the Almond usually runs highest. January is the highest month in the record here, with a typical level of 0.5 m (1.62 ft). By June, the river عادة settles lower, with a typical level of 0.27 m (0.87 ft). That seasonal pattern matters for anyone watching a bank, a low crossing, or an intake: the same reach can look quite different between winter and early summer.
The typical annual swing is 23 cm (9.1 in). That is not a large range for a river, but it is enough to change how close the water sits to the edge of a dock or a pump setup from one season to the next.
The regional pattern fits a rain-driven river: winter and spring rains do most of the work, while long warm-season low-flow stretches can hold levels down. In this kind of regime, a wet spell in the cool season usually shows up quickly in the gauge.
The highest level in the station record is 1.75 m (5.75 ft), reached in December 1994. The lowest is 0.16 m (0.52 ft), reached in June 1992.
Those two marks give a sense of the reach this river has shown over more than 34 years of record. For local users, that means the channel has already proven it can sit very low in early summer and still reach a much higher winter or storm level. In a coastal-plain or piedmont rainfall regime, hurricane-season or other heavy rain events can reset the high-water mark fast, so past records are worth keeping in mind.
The hero number on this page compares today’s reading with the median for this calendar day across the station’s record. That is more useful than raw elevation because it tells you whether the river is running high or low for the date, not just where the gauge happens to sit.
At this station, SEPA is the operating agency, and the comparison draws on a record of more than 34 years. For a river with a clear seasonal cycle, that date-based context is what helps cottagers, anglers, and flood-watchers judge whether today is ordinary for the season or not.
Readings come from official government gauges and are rolled into daily records: the daily mean, high and low for every day on record. Each calendar day gets its own baseline from the full history, so the level you see is compared against what this specific date usually looks like rather than an annual average.
Real-time water levels, forecasts, and alerts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 13,000 gauged lakes and rivers across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, and the Environment Agency for England. Every number on the platform is measured, not modelled - taken from a government gauge on the water itself and compared against that location's own historical record for this exact date.
The level right now, in feet or metres, updated as the source agency publishes new readings - for many stations that is every five to fifteen minutes. How today compares to typical: every location carries its own typical-for-this-date band built from its historical record, so a reading is never just a number - it is above, below, or near what this water usually does on this calendar day. Which way it is moving: a measured RISING, FALLING, or STEADY verdict computed from the gauge's own recent readings, with the rate of change - the difference between a flood ending and one beginning. What comes next: level forecasts up to 72 hours ahead, driven by the gauge's recent behaviour, upstream water, and quantitative precipitation forecasts, alongside live radar, lightning, and weather for the surrounding region.
Set a threshold on any location - a level, a distance above typical, or a rate of climb - and Nibi emails or notifies you the moment the gauge crosses it. Cottagers use it for spring freshet, anglers for river conditions, marinas and municipalities for operations. The scanning runs around the clock against the same measured data shown on every page.
Nibi means water in Anishinaabemowin. The platform began at a family cottage on Lake Muskoka, Ontario, where the spring melt floods the shoreline most years and the only forecast was standing on the dock, looking, and guessing. It grew into an independent, member-funded platform run by Muskoka Research Inc. - no investors, no data resale, and a privacy policy shorter than most cookie banners. The core data is free for everyone, forever; paid plans add automation like multi-location alerts, deep history, and reports.
Nibi spans the continent: every Canadian province and territory with active federal gauges - from Vancouver Island rivers to the Muskoka lakes, prairie reservoirs, and Quebec's hydrometric network - and the United States from Maine to the Texas Hill Country, the Ohio Valley, and the Pacific Northwest. Coverage grows where the water news is: when a basin floods, its gauges join the platform with their full historical records attached. Many stations report every five to fifteen minutes; most report at least hourly; every page states exactly when its gauge last spoke.
The core promise is simple: the water data is free, for everyone, forever. Live levels, maps, radar, and recent history never sit behind a paywall. Paid plans fund the platform by adding automation - multi-location alerts, decades of history, longer forecasts, and PDF reports - so the people who need more carry the cost for everyone who just needs to check the lake before driving up. There are no investors and no advertising deals shaping what the data says.
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