River Smite at Colston Bassett Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for River Smite at Colston Bassett in England, United Kingdom, built from official government gauge data.
- Location England, United Kingdom
- Primary gauge ea-4155 (Environment Agency)
About River Smite at Colston Bassett
River Smite is a gauged river in England.
The watershed
This station has 25 years on record, so the seasonal pattern is worth reading with some confidence. In temperate hydrology, winter and spring are often the higher part of the year, then summer settles into lower water. On this gauge, the highest typical month is January at 0.64 m (2.09 ft), and the lowest typical month is August at 0.5 m (1.64 ft).
For anyone drawing water, launching, or fishing by the bank, that 13.6 cm (5.4 in) swing is the practical point: it is not a huge range, but it is enough to change edge depth, bank access, and the margin under a moored boat.
What the numbers say
The record high is 1.9 m (6.23 ft), set in October 2023. The record low is 0.4 m (1.32 ft), set in December 2025. Those two marks bracket what this river has shown at the station, from very full conditions to the shallow end of the local record.
The seasonal figures sit between those extremes. January tends to run above August, but not by a wide margin, so the river’s day-to-day changes matter as much as the calendar. For anglers, that means the level can be low enough in late summer to concentrate fish in deeper runs. For cottagers and other waterfront users, it means the same landing or intake can work in one season and feel tight in another.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is the current reading set against the median for the same calendar day across the station’s record. That comparison is more useful than raw elevation because it tells you whether today is typical for now, not just how high the gauge stands in isolation.
This station is run by the Environment Agency, and the comparison draws on more than 25 years of local record. That gives the number its value: it places today’s water level in the river’s own seasonal context, which is what matters when deciding whether conditions are ordinary, low, or sitting above the usual range for the date.
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.
Water Stories
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The science of snow water equivalent and why it drives the season ahead.
What the numbers on the measuring stick actually tell you.
Why Central and South Texas rivers go from gravel beds to fifty-year records in an afternoon - including July 2026 on the Nueces.
One percent, every year, forever - unwrapping hydrology's most misunderstood phrase, and how it differs from our own percentiles.
How every number is computed - About the platform
