WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
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Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Cocopah Diversion from West Main Canal near Somerton in AZ, United States, built from official government gauge data.
The Cocopah Diversion from West Main Canal near Somerton is in the Lower Colorado watershed, Arizona.
The record spans 20 years. The highest level in that record was 3.31 ft (1.01 m) in May 2011. The lowest was 0.28 ft (0.09 m) in December 2011. For people watching a headgate, intake, or bankfull condition, that range shows how far the diversion can move within the local record.
The seasonal pattern is tight. December is the highest typical month at 1.1 ft (0.33 m), and January is the lowest typical month at 1.01 ft (0.31 m). The typical annual swing is 1 in (2.6 cm). That is a small spread on paper, but it still matters if you are checking depth for operation or field access.
No fastest 24-hour rise is listed in the facts, so I cannot say how quickly this water can climb.
This is an arid Southwest waterway, so the season matters more than the calendar alone. Summer storm periods can bring sudden changes, while winter conditions and high-country snowmelt support the larger river system feeding this region. Many channels run dry between events.
For this diversion, that wider pattern means the record is best read as a narrow operating range rather than a broad seasonal flood signal. Even small shifts can matter when water is being taken off a canal or passed through a structure. The monthly difference here is slight, but it is still the kind of change that can affect freeboard, gate settings, and field checks.
The hero number on this page is today's reading compared with the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation because it tells you whether the water is sitting above or below its usual level for this date.
This station is operated by the USGS. With 20 years on record, the comparison is grounded in the station’s own history, not a regional average.
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 in a growing number of countries. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 17,900 gauged lakes and rivers in a growing number of countries, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, the Environment Agency for England, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Natural Resources Wales, the Office of Public Works in Ireland (waterlevel.ie), the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE), the State of Queensland's water monitoring network, and on the Great Lakes the Canadian Hydrographic Service and NOAA. 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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