WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Hillsborough R below Crystal Spr near Zephyrhills FL in FL, United States, built from official government gauge data.
The Hillsborough River below Crystal Springs near Zephyrhills sits in the Hillsborough watershed in Florida.
The seasonal pattern here is modest but clear. September is the typical high month at 50.3 ft (15.33 m), while May is the typical low month at 48.93 ft (14.92 m). That makes the usual annual swing 16.4 in (41.6 cm), so docks, pumps, and low bank access do not face a wide range from month to month.
For people using the river, that means late-summer and early-fall water is usually the higher part of the year, and spring is usually the lower part. In this part of Florida, summer through early fall is also the season when storm-driven rises matter most, while winter and spring tend to bring the lower flows.
The record high is 57.7 ft (17.59 m), reached in October 2024. The record low is 47.85 ft (14.59 m), reached in June 2002. Those two marks show that the river can move well outside its usual band when conditions line up for extremes.
The record spread is important for anyone watching an intake, dock, or bank crossing, because it tells you the range the water has already reached at this station. A faster 24-hour rise is not available in the facts for this page, so there is nothing specific to add on warning time.
The number shown on the page is best read against the median for this calendar day, not as a raw elevation by itself. That comparison shows whether today is running above or below the station’s normal day-for-day level, which is more useful than a single height without context.
This station is a USGS site, and it has more than 43 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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