Ohio River at Portsmouth Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Ohio River at Portsmouth in OH, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location OH, United States
- Watershed little scioto tygarts
- Primary gauge 03217200 (USGS)
About Ohio River at Portsmouth
Ohio River at Portsmouth is a gauged river in the Little Scioto-Tygarts watershed, Ohio.
The watershed
This station watches the Ohio River at Portsmouth with 62,800 sq mi (162651 km2) above it. That is the drainage area feeding this gauge, not the full watershed name on its own. For people along the bank, that upstream area is why the river can change quickly once rain and snowmelt spread across a wide part of the basin.
What the numbers say
The highest level in the record is 55.68 ft (16.97 m), set in March 2021. The lowest is 13.3 ft (4.06 m), in October 2017. The seasonal pattern is clear: the typical high point is in March at 26.98 ft (8.22 m), while the typical low point is in September at 15.63 ft (4.76 m). That makes for a typical annual swing of 11.3 ft (3.46 m).
For docks, ramps, and low banks, that swing is the part to watch most closely. March is usually the time for higher water here, while late summer into early fall is when the river tends to run lower.
Reading the hero number
This gauge has 17 years on record, so the best quick check is how today compares with the median for this calendar day across the station’s history. A single water level can look high or low on its own, but the calendar-day median shows whether the river is running above or below its usual range for this date.
That is the reading used on the page because it is more useful than raw elevation alone. It puts today’s water level in context for the Ohio River at Portsmouth, and the station is published by the U.S. Geological Survey.
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
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.
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How every number is computed - About the platform
