WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Nass River above Shumal Creek in BC, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
The Nass River above Shumal Creek sits in the Lower Nass watershed, BC.
This station has 96 years on record. The highest level in that record was 7.8 m (25.6 ft) in June 2021. The lowest was 0.56 m (1.84 ft) in December 2016.
The seasonal pattern is clear. The highest typical month is June at 4.82 m (15.82 ft), while the lowest typical month is February at 2.05 m (6.74 ft). That leaves a typical annual swing of 2.77 m (9.1 ft).
For anyone with a dock, pump intake, or crossing nearby, that swing matters more than a single day’s number. June is the month to watch for higher water. February is the month when the river usually sits lowest.
The drainage area above this station is 18340 km2 (7081 sq mi). That is the area feeding the gauge upstream of this point, not the whole Lower Nass.
In mountain hydrology, freshet usually builds from snowpack and often peaks from May to July. Some river systems stay high later into summer if glacier melt is part of the picture. Others respond faster to rain in the cool season. For this station, the record and the monthly pattern give the local reference points to compare against when spring runoff begins or when late-season water stays up.
The number shown here is best read against the median for this calendar day, not as a raw elevation. A daily median tells you whether the river is running high or low for this date, which is more useful than the absolute level alone when you are checking access, bank exposure, or intake depth.
Water Survey of Canada is the operating agency behind WSC sources. With 96 years on record, this station gives a long baseline for judging today’s reading against past conditions.
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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