Coquitlam Lake Water Level
Live lake level, flow, historical records and forecast for Coquitlam Lake in Canada, BC, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
- Location Canada, BC, Canada
- Watershed lower fraser coast
- Primary gauge 08MH149 (Water Survey of Canada)
About Coquitlam Lake
Coquitlam Lake sits in the Lower Fraser - Coast watershed in British Columbia.
What the record shows
The record at Coquitlam Lake spans more than 41 years. The high-water mark is 55.31 m (181.45 ft), reached in December 1995. The low-water mark is 37.68 m (123.63 ft), reached in March 1985.
The seasonal pattern is narrow but clear. June is the usual high point at 49.59 m (162.69 ft), and October is the usual low point at 45.94 m (150.72 ft). That puts the typical annual swing at 3.65 m (12 ft). For shoreline users, that is the range a dock, intake, or nearshore landing has to handle over the course of a year.
The sharpest 24-hour rise in the record was 2.55 m (8.4 ft) in November 1990. The fastest 24-hour drop was 59.5 cm (23.4 in) in November 1990. That kind of movement gives little warning time for gear left near the edge.
The watershed
This is a mountain watershed, so the record fits a snowpack-driven rhythm: levels are usually highest in late spring and early summer, then ease off into autumn. The monthly pattern at Coquitlam Lake follows that shape, with June above October in the record. For people using the lake, that means the highest shoreline stress usually comes near the start of summer, while the lower-water window is more likely in fall.
The broader Fraser-Coast setting can also respond quickly when weather turns wet. The lake’s own record shows that it can change fast enough to matter within a day, which is the number to keep in mind for moorings, pumps, and low docks.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is most useful when compared with the median for the same calendar day across the station record, not as a raw elevation by itself. Raw level tells you where the water stands; the day-of-year comparison tells you whether it is unusually high or low for this date.
That matters here because the lake’s normal range is only 3.65 m (12 ft), but the record also includes a 2.55 m (8.4 ft) one-day rise. A reading that looks ordinary in isolation can still sit well above or below the usual date-based pattern. With more than 41 years of record at station 08MH149, the calendar-day median gives the better local check for cottagers, anglers, and anyone watching access or shoreline exposure.
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 17,900+ lakes and rivers
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.
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.
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