United Irrigation District Canal near Hill Spring Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for United Irrigation District Canal near Hill Spring in AB, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
- Location AB, Canada
- Watershed central oldman belly
- Primary gauge 05AD013 (Water Survey of Canada)
About United Irrigation District Canal near Hill Spring
United Irrigation District Canal near Hill Spring is in the Central Oldman - Belly watershed in Alberta.
What the record shows
This station has 49 years of record, and the range is wide enough to matter for anyone watching bank edges, intakes, or ditch crossings.
The record high is 2.36 m (7.73 ft), set in May 2025. The record low is 0.89 m (2.93 ft), set in October 2021. Between those two points, the canal can look and behave very differently.
The usual seasonal shape is also clear. The highest month is July, at 2.03 m (6.66 ft), and the lowest month is October, at 1.47 m (4.83 ft). The typical annual swing is 55.7 cm (21.9 in), which is enough to change how much water sits against a bank, headgate, or crossing over the course of a year.
The fastest 24-hour rise on record was 44.9 cm (17.7 in) in July 2024. For a local user, that is the number that hints at how quickly conditions can change after a short-lived event. The fastest 24-hour drop was 39.2 cm (15.4 in) in June 2014, which shows the canal can also fall quickly.
The watershed
This is foothills and prairie country, where the broad seasonal pattern usually matters more than any single day. The regional note points to late-spring snowmelt peaks and summer convective storms as the main rhythm. That fits a channel where midseason levels can stay elevated and short, sharp rises can still arrive in summer.
For daily use, that means two things. First, the July high and the October low set the typical operating window. Second, the 24-hour rise number shows there is limited warning time when water comes up fast.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is most useful when read beside the median for the same calendar day, not as a stand-alone elevation. A single level only tells you where the water sits right now. The calendar-day median tells you whether this reading is typical for this date at this station.
This station has more than 49 years of record, so that comparison is grounded in a long local history. For this site, the operating agency is Water Survey of Canada.
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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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
