WHAT'S HAPPENING NOW
—— ft above typical
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Live lake level, flow, historical records and forecast for Upper Campbell Lake in Comox Land District, BC, Canada, built from official government gauge data.
Upper Campbell Lake sits in the East Central Vancouver Island watershed in British Columbia.
The lake’s typical high point comes in July at 218.26 m (716.07 ft), and its typical low point comes in March at 215.82 m (708.08 ft). That gives a typical annual swing of 2.43 m (8 ft), which is the range a dock, intake, or landing should be ready to handle over the course of the year.
For people using the lake, that seasonal shape matters more than any single reading. Summer levels sit near the upper end of the usual range here, while late-winter and early-spring levels are lower.
The record high is 221.23 m (725.83 ft), set in December 2014. The record low is 209.48 m (687.27 ft), set in April 2008. Those two marks show the full spread this station has seen over 17 years of record.
The fastest 24-hour rise was 1.18 m (3.9 ft) in November 2009. That is the kind of move that gives only a short window for checking shore access, protecting gear, or adjusting anything set close to the waterline.
The fastest 24-hour drop was 43.6 cm (17.2 in) in November 2016. A fall that quick can leave a shallow margin at ramps and intakes even when the lake still looks high at a glance.
The hero number on this page is today’s lake level compared with the median for this calendar day across the station’s 17 years of record. That is more useful than raw elevation alone because it shows whether the lake is running ordinary for this date, or sitting high or low for the season.
This station, 08HD031 at Strathcona Dam, publishes absolute lake level readings and is part of the Water Survey of Canada network. For someone checking the lake for access, moorage, or shoreline work, the daily median gives the clearest quick read on how current conditions stack up against the usual pattern for this time of 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 in a growing number of countries. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 17,900 gauged lakes and rivers in a growing number of countries, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, the Environment Agency for England, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Natural Resources Wales, the Office of Public Works in Ireland (waterlevel.ie), the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE), the State of Queensland's water monitoring network, and on the Great Lakes the Canadian Hydrographic Service and NOAA. 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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