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—— ft above typical
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Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Kawaikoi Stream near Waimea, Kauai in HI, United States, built from official government gauge data.
Kawaikoi Stream near Waimea, Kauai is a USGS river in the Kauai watershed, Hawaii.
March is the typical high month here at 2.48 ft (0.76 m), while September is the typical low month at 2.04 ft (0.62 m). That annual swing is 5.3 in (13.5 cm), so day-to-day stage changes are usually modest compared with the jumps that come with short, rain-fed basins on this island.
For anyone watching an intake, ford, or bank, the seasonal pattern matters more than a single reading. Late winter and early spring tend to sit higher than late summer, but the range is still small enough that a wet spell can matter quickly.
The record high is 8.35 ft (2.54 m), set in December 2014. The record low is 1.79 ft (0.55 m), set in November 2012.
With 50 years on record, those endpoints give a practical frame for what this stream can do. The high record is well above the usual seasonal band, so when the stream leaves its normal range, it can do so by a lot. The low record shows that the stream can also run well below its typical March and September levels.
The number on this page is the current stage compared with the median for this calendar day, which is the better yardstick for a stream like this than raw elevation alone. A stage can look ordinary in feet and still be high for the date, or look low and still be normal for the season.
USGS uses more than 50 years of record here, so the daily median reflects a long local history instead of a single reading. For people tracking fishing access, crossing conditions, or short-term flood watch, that context is what makes the number useful.
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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