WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Crabtree Creek at Anderson Drive at Raleigh in NC, United States, built from official government gauge data.
Crabtree Creek is a gauged river in the Upper Neuse watershed, North Carolina.
The gauge drains 111 sq mi (288 km2) upstream of Anderson Drive in Raleigh. That is the area feeding this station, not the watershed as a whole. The record here runs for more than 36 years, which is enough to show a clear seasonal pattern and a few large outliers.
The highest recorded level is 19.23 ft (5.86 m), in September 1999. The lowest recorded level is 1.39 ft (0.42 m), in October 1992. That span matters for anyone using bridges, banks, or nearby access points: this creek can sit near its low end for part of the year, then move far beyond the usual range in a major event.
The seasonal high is in March at 3.37 ft (1.03 m). The seasonal low is in October at 2.74 ft (0.83 m). The typical annual swing is 7.6 in (19.2 cm). For a dock, bank crossing, or intake, that seasonal range is modest compared with the record extremes, so the everyday question is less about dramatic level change and more about when a storm pushes the creek outside its normal band.
The hero number on this page is today’s reading, set beside the median for this calendar day across the station record. That comparison is more useful than raw elevation because it shows whether the creek is running above or below its usual place for this date.
On a day-to-day basis, that is the number to watch. A value near the median suggests conditions are close to what this station normally sees for the season. A value well above or below it tells you the creek is leaning wet or dry relative to its own history, which is what matters for access, field work, and fishing plans.
The record is from the U.S. Geological Survey, and the station has more than 36 years on record.
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.
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