WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Medicine Bow R ab East Fork Med Bow near Elk Mountain in WY, United States, built from official government gauge data.
The Medicine Bow River above the East Fork Medicine Bow near Elk Mountain sits in the Medicine Bow watershed in Wyoming.
This USGS station has more than 15 years on record. The highest reading in that record was 6.62 ft (2.02 m) in June 2011, and the lowest was 3.27 ft (1 m) in September 2012.
The seasonal pattern is clear. The typical high point is June at 5.1 ft (1.56 m), and the typical low point is September at 3.57 ft (1.09 m). The usual annual swing is 18.4 in (46.8 cm).
For someone fishing or watching access, that range matters more than a single day’s number. A June rise can change depth and current speed, while late summer tends to be the shallowest part of the year. The record low and record high show the river can sit well outside its usual band.
The station drains 46.1 sq mi (119 km2) upstream of the gauge. That is the area feeding this reading, not the full watershed name on the map.
In this part of Wyoming, the broad seasonal rhythm is the one to watch: snowmelt usually feeds the May-June peak, summer thunderstorms can bring sharp local rises, and winter tends to hold lower flows. That means the river can change on both the seasonal scale and the storm scale. For crossings, intakes, and bank access, the river’s main test is how quickly it moves from the summer low toward a June high.
The hero number on this page is best read as today’s reading compared with the median for this calendar day across the USGS record. That is more useful than raw elevation because the same number can mean different things in June and in September.
With more than 15 years of record behind it, the comparison tells you whether the river is running below, near, or above its usual level for this date.
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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