WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Rahway River near Springfield NJ in NJ, United States, built from official government gauge data.
Rahway River near Springfield sits in the Sandy Hook-Staten Island watershed, New Jersey.
The river’s highest recorded level is 7.41 ft (2.26 m), set in September 2021. Its lowest recorded level is 1.19 ft (0.36 m), set in December 2017. With 50 years on record, that spread gives a useful picture of how much this reach can move between calm water and a flood response.
The seasonal pattern is modest in the typical year. March is the highest month at 1.49 ft (0.45 m), while September is the lowest month at 1.31 ft (0.4 m). The typical annual swing is 2.2 in (5.5 cm). For people with docks, pumps, or a low intake, that means the ordinary year is fairly steady, but the record range is much wider than the seasonal average.
The station drains 25.5 sq mi (66 km2) upstream of this gauge. That is the contributing area above the station, not the whole watershed named for the river.
In this part of the Mid-Atlantic, winter-spring rain floods are the main seasonal pressure, and tropical systems or their remnants can drive the biggest events. Summer low flows are part of the rhythm too. That regional pattern fits the record here: the river can spend long stretches near its seasonal range, then jump well beyond it when a large runoff event arrives.
The hero number on this page is best read against the median for this calendar day at the station, not as a stand-alone elevation. That comparison tells you whether the river is running above or below its usual level for the date, which matters more than the absolute height for day-to-day use.
This gauge is operated by the U.S. Geological Survey. With more than 50 years on record, the station gives enough history to judge whether today’s reading is routine for the season or part of a larger rise.
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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