San Juan River at Pagosa Springs Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for San Juan River at Pagosa Springs in CO, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location CO, United States
- Watershed upper san juan
- Primary gauge 09342500 (USGS)
About San Juan River at Pagosa Springs
San Juan River at Pagosa Springs sits in the Upper San Juan watershed in Colorado.
What the record shows
The record at this station runs for 50 years.
The highest level in that record is 11.61 ft (3.54 m), set in October 2025. The lowest is 3.01 ft (0.92 m), set in September 2021. That spread matters for anyone taking water from the river or working along the bank: the river can move between those extremes over the life of the gauge, and the seasonal pattern also needs room.
Typical levels peak in May at 6.19 ft (1.89 m) and drop to 3.5 ft (1.07 m) in January. The typical annual swing is 32.3 in (82 cm). For a dock, intake, or crossing, that is the range the river asks you to live with most years.
No fastest 24-hour rise is listed here, so there is nothing to add on warning time from that metric.
The watershed
The drainage area above this station is 281 sq mi (728 km2). That is the area feeding this gauge, not the whole watershed name on the page.
The regional pattern here is the usual mountain one: a May-June peak from snowmelt, then lower water through July-August with the chance of sharp local rises from thunderstorms, followed by low-flow winter. On the ground, that means spring is the season to watch for the highest sustained water, while summer storms can change conditions fast even when the river has been falling.
Reading the hero number
This page’s hero number is today’s reading, set against the median for this calendar day across the station record. That comparison is better than raw elevation because it shows whether the river is running high or low for the season, not just where it sits on the staff plate.
The station is operated by the USGS. With 50 years on record, the calendar-day median gives a steadier read on what is normal right now than a single level by itself.
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
Field notes and explainers from the Nibi desk - how to read a staff gauge, what a 100-year flood actually means, how snowpack becomes summer water.
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Inside the freshet cycle that puts Manitoba shorelines at risk each year - and why 2026 broke the script.
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
