Little Churchill River above Recluse Lake Water Level

Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Little Churchill River above Recluse Lake in MB, Canada, built from official government gauge data.

About Little Churchill River above Recluse Lake

What the record shows

The Little Churchill River in Manitoba is tracked at the station above Recluse Lake.

The station record runs for more than 58 years. The highest level in that record is 31.33 m (102.8 ft) in May 2017, and the lowest is 28.45 m (93.33 ft) in September 2003. That spread is what people along the shore and at any intake have to plan around: the river can sit in a fairly tight band for much of the year, then move far enough to change bank exposure and access.

The seasonal pattern is clear. The typical high comes in May at 29.38 m (96.38 ft), and the typical low comes in April at 28.79 m (94.44 ft). The typical annual swing is 59.1 cm (23.3 in). For cottage owners, that is the range to think about for docks, moorings, and pump setups; for anglers, it marks when nearshore water levels are most likely to shift.

The watershed

The catchment above this station is 6150 km2 (2375 sq mi). That is the area feeding the gauge, not the whole Little Churchill watershed. On the Prairies, spring snowmelt is the main seasonal pulse, and summer recession is the usual pattern after that. On this river, the spring high and the lower late-spring and early-summer levels fit that wider regional rhythm.

Reading the hero number

The number on the page should be read against the median for this calendar day at this station, not against the absolute elevation alone. A level can look high or low in isolation and still be close to normal for the date; the day-of-year comparison tells you whether the river is acting like it usually does right now.

With more than 58 years on record, that calendar-day context is the better guide for day-to-day decisions on the water.

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

Verify your email to receive alerts and history exports.
Favorites
Loading…
Notifications
No active alerts
Set an alert on any lake to get notified when levels change.
The Nibi Dispatch
Water moves. Stay ahead of it.
One email a week — freshet watches, record levels, new regions. Nothing else.
Map
Nibi MetricsNibi Metrics

Sign in

Alerts & notifications Get notified when your favorite lakes go outside normal range
Loading…
Your account Email, subscription, and account actions
Loading…
DEV ZONE

Nibi Metrics - live water levels, flow, and forecasts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK

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.

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.

Water Stories

Field notes and explainers from the Nibi desk - how to read a staff gauge, what a 100-year flood actually means, how snowpack becomes summer water.

The flood of record that was overtaken

For five years, spring 2019 was the mark every Lake Muskoka decision answered to. In April 2026 the lake went two centimeters higher - and the official books have not caught up yet.

Why the Assiniboine floods every spring

Inside the freshet cycle that puts Manitoba shorelines at risk each year - and why 2026 broke the script.

How snowpack becomes summer water

The science of snow water equivalent and why it drives the season ahead.

Reading a staff gauge like a hydrologist

What the numbers on the measuring stick actually tell you.

Flash Flood Alley: how Texas rivers rise in hours

Why Central and South Texas rivers go from gravel beds to fifty-year records in an afternoon - including July 2026 on the Nueces.

What a "100-year flood" actually means

One percent, every year, forever - unwrapping hydrology's most misunderstood phrase, and how it differs from our own percentiles.

How every number is computed - About the platform