Clark Fork near Plains MT Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Clark Fork near Plains MT in MT, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location MT, United States
- Watershed lower clark fork
- Primary gauge 12389000 (USGS)
About Clark Fork near Plains MT
Clark Fork near Plains MT sits in the Lower Clark Fork watershed, Montana.
What the record shows
The station record spans more than 50 years. The highest water in the file is 16.53 ft (5.04 m), set in June 2011. The lowest is 3.23 ft (0.98 m), set in August 2015.
The seasonal pattern is clear. June is the usual high month at 10.18 ft (3.1 m), while September is the usual low month at 4.02 ft (1.22 m). That leaves a typical annual swing of 6.2 ft (1.88 m).
For people using this reach, that spread is the main thing to watch. A dock, pump intake, or boat landing has to work across a range that is much wider in early summer than in late season. The record low shows that late-summer water can fall well below the June norm, while the record high shows the channel can rise far above it.
The watershed
This gauge drains 19,964 sq mi (51,707 km2) upstream of the station. That is the area feeding the reading here, not the full Lower Clark Fork basin.
The regional rhythm fits a mountain-and-plains river: spring melt and summer storms tend to lift levels, while winter brings low flows. On this reach, June is the month that usually carries the most water, and September the least. For anglers, that means changing depth and current through the season. For cottagers and irrigators, it means the margin at the shore or intake is not constant from one month to the next.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is most useful when you compare today’s reading with the median for this calendar day across the station’s record. That shows whether the river is running above or below its usual level for this date, which is more informative than raw elevation alone.
This station is operated by the USGS. With more than 50 years on record, the calendar-day median gives a solid local benchmark for what this reach usually does at this time of year.
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.
How Nibi Metrics works · Water stories
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.
Alerts that watch the water for you
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.
Where Nibi comes from
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.
Coverage
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.
Free forever, funded by members
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.
Water Stories
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How every number is computed - About the platform
