Cimarron River near Waynoka Water Level

Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Cimarron River near Waynoka in OK, United States, built from official government gauge data.

About Cimarron River near Waynoka

The watershed

The Cimarron River near Waynoka sits in the Lower Cimarron-Eagle Chief watershed in Oklahoma.

This is a USGS station with a contributing area above the gauge of 13399 sq mi (34703 km2). That area is the land upstream of this site, so it is the drainage feeding this reading, not the whole named watershed.

What the numbers say

The record high here is 10.85 ft (3.31 m) in October 2018, and the record low is 4.01 ft (1.22 m) in August 2012. That spread tells you the river can move a long way between quiet water and a much higher stage.

The seasonal pattern is modest by height but still matters. The typical high month is February at 5.91 ft (1.8 m), and the typical low month is September at 5.47 ft (1.67 m). The typical annual swing is 5.3 in (13.4 cm). For a dock, pump intake, or low crossing, that is the part of the record to watch first, because it shows the range the river usually works through in a year.

The station record covers 50 years, so the extremes above sit in a fairly long local history. The fastest 24-hour rise is not given in the facts, so there is nothing to add there.

Reading the hero number

The hero number on this page is today’s reading set against the median for this calendar day in the station record. That is the better number to watch because it shows whether the river is running above or below its usual level for this date, rather than just how high the water is in absolute terms.

For a USGS station with more than 50 years on record, that comparison gives useful context for day-to-day decisions. A level that looks ordinary by itself may still be high for this date, and a lower reading may still be normal if it sits close to the calendar-day median.

How this page is built

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.

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Nibi Metrics - live water levels, flow, and forecasts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK

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.

What you can see for any monitored lake or river

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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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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