WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Lost Creek near Anaconda MT in MT, United States, built from official government gauge data.
Lost Creek in the Upper Clark Fork watershed, Montana, is monitored at a USGS station near Anaconda.
The gauge drains 26.5 sq mi (68.6 km2) upstream of the station, so the numbers here describe Lost Creek above that point, not the whole Upper Clark Fork.
For this reach, the record high is 5.07 ft (1.55 m) in June 2018 and the record low is 1.92 ft (0.59 m) in September 2009. The seasonal high is usually in June at 3.44 ft (1.05 m), and the seasonal low is usually in September at 2.26 ft (0.69 m). The typical annual swing is 14.2 in (36 cm).
For someone watching a bank, pump, or crossing, that seasonal range is the usual space this creek asks for between early summer and early fall. The record range shows that it can move well outside the typical band.
The pattern fits a mountain-stream signal: higher water in June, lower water in September. The regional note points to spring snowmelt and summer storms as the main reasons for that timing, and the long winter low-flow season is part of the same rhythm.
The record high in June 2018 is well above the usual June level, so a wet spring can push this creek past its normal seasonal top. The record low in September 2009 is close to the usual late-summer low, which tells you September is already the lean part of the year.
No fastest 24-hour rise is listed in the facts, so there is nothing to say about warning time from that metric.
The hero number on this page is today’s reading compared with the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation because it shows whether the creek is running high or low for this date, not just where it sits on the staff.
This station has more than 22 years on record, and the USGS is the agency behind the data.
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.
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