WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Tulameen River at Princeton in BC, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
The Tulameen River at Princeton sits in the Similkameen watershed in British Columbia.
The station record covers more than 74 years.
The highest reading in that record was 3.5 m (11.48 ft) in November 2021. The lowest was 0.1 m (0.32 ft) in August 2023. That is a wide spread for one site, and it tells you the river can move from a shallow late-summer stage to a much higher autumn level within the same record.
The usual seasonal shape is clear. May is the highest month on the record, at 1.45 m (4.75 ft), and September is the lowest month, at 0.38 m (1.25 ft). The typical annual swing is 1.07 m (3.5 ft). For anyone using a dock, crossing, or intake, that is the range to plan around: spring brings the higher water, and late summer sits much lower.
The fastest 24-hour rise is not listed here, so there is no number to use for warning time.
This is a mountain-fed river, so the seasonal pattern fits a snowmelt river with a May peak. The record still shows the river reaching its highest month in May and staying lower into September. For people living along the channel or fishing it, that means conditions can change a lot between spring runoff and late-summer low water, even without a big storm.
Because the river can swing by 1.07 m (3.5 ft) over a typical year, fixed infrastructure near the bank needs some margin. Boats, intakes, and low crossings are the things most likely to feel that range first.
The hero number on this page is best read against the median for this calendar day, not just the raw elevation. A single stage value by itself does not say whether the river is running high for today, low for today, or close to normal. The day-median puts the reading in seasonal context.
This station is operated under the Water Survey of Canada network. With more than 74 years on record, the comparison to the calendar-day median is more useful than a one-day snapshot, because it reflects what this river usually does at this point in the year.
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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