WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
Finding the top signal on the water…
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Umatilla River near Umatilla in OR, United States, built from official government gauge data.
The Umatilla River near Umatilla sits in the Umatilla watershed, Oregon.
This station has more than 50 years of record from the USGS.
The highest level in the file is 9.07 ft (2.76 m), set in February 2020. The lowest is 2.26 ft (0.69 m), set in July 2015. That spread matters for anyone watching banks, pumps, or a low crossing: this river has ranged from a little over 2 ft (0.69 m) to just over 9 ft (2.76 m) in the record.
The seasonal pattern is steady enough to plan around. April is typically the highest month at 3.92 ft (1.2 m), while July is typically the lowest month at 2.52 ft (0.77 m). The typical annual swing is 16.8 in (42.6 cm). For a dock, intake, or fishing spot, that is the range to keep in mind across the year.
No fastest 24-hour rise is listed here, so there is no station-specific warning-time number to quote from the record.
The gauge drains 2290 sq mi (5931 km2) upstream of the station. That area is the part of the watershed feeding this reading, not the whole Umatilla basin.
In this part of Oregon, the usual seasonal rhythm is a wetter winter and lower summer flow. For people living along the river, that means the winter and spring signal is about higher water on the channel, while July is the month to watch for the lower end of the range.
The hero number on this page is the current reading set against the median for this calendar day across the station record. That is more useful than raw elevation alone because it shows whether today is typical for this date, high for the season, or low for the season.
USGS uses that reference because the same water level means different things in different months. With more than 50 years on record, the date-based median gives a better local comparison for cottagers, anglers, and anyone checking the river for access or water supply.
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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