WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Clyde at Blairston in Scotland, United Kingdom, built from official government gauge data.
Clyde at Blairston is a gauged river in Scotland.
The record high is 3.52 m (11.55 ft), reached in December 1994. The record low is 0 m (0 ft), reached in September 1976. Those two marks show the range this reach has already handled at the gauge, from a dry late-summer low to a December flood peak.
The seasonal pattern is clear. January is the highest typical month at 0.74 m (2.43 ft), while July is the lowest typical month at 0.27 m (0.88 ft). The typical annual swing is 47.1 cm (18.5 in). For people who draw water, launch boats, or fish from the bank, that means the channel does not sit at one level for long; the winter months sit higher, while the warm season often runs lower.
The station has 50 years on record, so these monthly patterns are not a short sample. December 1994 also shows that the reach can still jump far above its usual winter level when conditions line up.
This station drains 1704 km2 (658 sq mi) above the gauge. In a rain-driven coastal-plain and piedmont setting, the main rhythm is winter and spring rainfall, with lower water more common through the warm season. Hurricane-season tropical rain can also push records quickly. For shoreline users, that means late-year and early-year rises deserve attention, and summer low water can linger.
Because the gauge is on the river itself, the catchment above the station is the area that feeds this reading. That is the water behind the numbers here, not a broader named basin.
The hero number on this page compares today’s reading with the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation alone, because the same level can mean different things in January and July.
For this station, the comparison is based on a long SEPA record. A value above the calendar-day median points to water that is running higher than usual for the date; a value below it points to a lower-than-usual day. That is the cleaner cue for cottagers, anglers, and anyone watching intakes or access points.
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.
Field notes and explainers from the Nibi desk - how to read a staff gauge, what a 100-year flood actually means, how snowpack becomes summer water.
For five years, spring 2019 was the mark every Lake Muskoka decision answered to. In April 2026 the lake went two centimeters higher - and the official books have not caught up yet.
Inside the freshet cycle that puts Manitoba shorelines at risk each year - and why 2026 broke the script.
The science of snow water equivalent and why it drives the season ahead.
What the numbers on the measuring stick actually tell you.
Why Central and South Texas rivers go from gravel beds to fifty-year records in an afternoon - including July 2026 on the Nueces.
One percent, every year, forever - unwrapping hydrology's most misunderstood phrase, and how it differs from our own percentiles.