WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Swill Brook at Oaksey in England, United Kingdom, built from official government gauge data.
Swill Brook at Oaksey is a gauged river in England.
The record spans more than 42 years.
The highest level on record is 1.85 m (6.07 ft), set in December 1989. The lowest is -0.41 m (-1.35 ft), set in December 2011. That range matters for anyone checking a crossing, a bank, or a low pipe: this reach has seen water stand well above and below its usual mark.
Seasonally, the highest month is January, with a typical level of 0.71 m (2.33 ft). The lowest month is September, with a typical level of 0 m (0 ft). The typical annual swing is 70.9 cm (27.9 in), which is the kind of change a small river can put into a dock, culvert, or intake over the year.
With no watershed name on the station, the page has to stay with this reach and its rhythm. In temperate hydrology, that usually means a higher winter or spring stage and lower water in late summer and early autumn. Here, the record fits that pattern: January sits at the top of the monthly profile, and September sits at the bottom.
For anglers, that means access and depth can change through the year without the river becoming a different place. For cottagers and landowners, the yearly swing is large enough to watch any fixed structure closely. For anyone timing work near the banks, the record high in December 1989 and the record low in December 2011 show that the brook can sit at very different levels in the same season from one year to another.
The hero number on this page compares today’s reading with the median for this calendar day across the station’s record. That is more useful than raw elevation alone because it tells you whether the brook is running typical for the date, or above or below its usual level for this time of year.
This station is operated by the Environment Agency, and the comparison rests on the full record behind it, not on a single measurement in isolation.
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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