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Real-Time Water Levels

Live water level readings from 13 Environment Canada hydrometric stations along the Trent-Severn Waterway. Updated every 15 minutes from the Water Survey of Canada.

13 Stations
12 Online
5 Normal (±5 cm)
2 Above Avg
5 Below Avg
+22.4 cm Max Deviation
Last updated: 2026-10-07 12:35:05 ET — Data refreshes every 15 minutes from ECCC
Source: Environment and Climate Change Canada
Units:

⚊⚊⚊ The Dashed Line

The dashed gold line on each chart is the historical monthly average for that station — the typical gauge reading for the current calendar month, computed from multiple years of Environment Canada data.

This is not chart datum and not a Parks Canada target level. It is simply what this gauge normally reads during this month. When the solid line runs above it, the pool is higher than typical. Below it, lower than typical.

▲▼ Deviation — The Number That Matters

The "+/− cm" badge is the difference between the current reading and the monthly baseline. While absolute gauge values can't be compared to your charts, the change from normal directly affects your navigation:

  • Normal (±5 cm) — Typical for this time of year
  • Above (>+5 cm) — More depth, but less bridge clearance
  • Below (<−5 cm) — Reduced depths; use caution in shallow areas

Example: −10 cm deviation ≈ 4 inches less water than normal. If a chart shows 6 ft, actual depth may be closer to 5′8″.

⚓ What This Means for Cruisers

Water levels are managed by Parks Canada through dams, weirs, and seasonal "rule curves." The key implications:

  • Depth: Below-average levels reduce depths at channel edges, anchorages, and marina approaches by roughly the deviation amount.
  • Bridge clearance: Above-average levels reduce air gap under fixed bridges. A +15 cm reading ≈ 6″ less clearance. Check the Bridge Directory.
  • Seasonal cycle: Pools peak in June-July, decline through fall, and are drawn down over winter. The baseline already accounts for this — a "normal" October reading is naturally lower than June.
⚠ Gauge Datum ≠ Chart Datum: ECCC gauges measure above an arbitrary local benchmark ("assumed datum") that has no published relationship to CHS chart datum. You cannot calculate chart depth from a gauge reading. However, the deviation from average is a reliable proxy — if the gauge shows −10 cm from its historical average, depths are approximately 10 cm less than what you'd find on a typical day. That relative change is the practical signal for passage planning.
⛵ Open Water — Lake Simcoe wind & waves

Lake Simcoe

Atherley Narrows to the Trent Canal

ECCC Buoy 45151 · 44.500°N 79.370°W · 22 m depth

13.6kt WSW 240°
Seas 0.5 m1.6 ft Period 3 s Water 16.3°C61.3°F ⏱ Oct 7, 2026 12:00 pm ET
Below warning thresholds Wind and sea state are under Environment Canada's small-craft criteria. Conditions on Simcoe build quickly — check again before you leave the dock.

This is not a water level gauge. Buoy 45151 reports wind, waves and temperature only — it publishes no level at all, and nothing here can be compared to the gauge readings below. Lake Simcoe has no ECCC hydrometric station, so no level data exists for this crossing.

Quinte & Lower Trent 2 stations

Trenton

Bay of Quinte to Lock 1

ECCC Station 02HK010 — Trent River at Trenton

8.99 m 29′5.8″ ft
▲ +22.4 cm +8.8 in
⚓ Lock 1 — Trenton ⏱ 12:40 PM ET Avg: 8.76 mAvg: 28.8 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (8.76 m28.8 ft) — not chart datum

Lower Glen Ross

Lock 6 to Lock 8 Pool

ECCC Station 02HK019 — Trent River at Lower Glen Ross

4.52 m 14′10.1″ ft
• +0.2 cm +0.1 in
⚓ Lock 7 — Glen Ross ⏱ 12:45 PM ET Avg: 4.52 mAvg: 14.8 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (4.52 m14.8 ft) — not chart datum
Campbellford & Rice Lake 2 stations

Upper Glen Ross

Lock 8 to Lock 11 Pool

ECCC Station 02HK018 — Trent River at Upper Glen Ross

4.44 m 14′6.6″ ft
• -1.9 cm -0.7 in
⚓ Lock 8 — Glen Ross ⏱ 12:45 PM ET Avg: 4.45 mAvg: 14.6 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (4.45 m14.6 ft) — not chart datum

Crowe River

Crowe River Tributary

ECCC Station 02HK003 — Crowe River at Marmora

10.12 m 33′2.5″ ft
▼ -6.8 cm -2.7 in
⚓ Lock 12 — Ranney Falls ⏱ 12:25 PM ET Avg: 10.19 mAvg: 33.4 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (10.19 m33.4 ft) — not chart datum
Peterborough 2 stations

Otonabee / Peterborough

Rice Lake to Lock 20 Pool

ECCC Station 02HJ010 — Otonabee River near Robinsons Island

7.24 m 23′9.1″ ft
▼ -8.5 cm -3.3 in
⚓ Lock 20 — Ashburnham ⏱ 1:25 PM ET Avg: 7.33 mAvg: 24.0 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (7.33 m24.0 ft) — not chart datum

Indian River

Indian River to Rice Lake

ECCC Station 02HJ009 — Indian River above Hope Mill Dam

9.71 m 31′10.2″ ft
• +2.3 cm +0.9 in
⚓ Lock 18 — Hastings ⏱ 1:20 PM ET Avg: 9.69 mAvg: 31.8 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (9.69 m31.8 ft) — not chart datum
Kawartha Lakes 3 stations

Sturgeon Lake

Sturgeon Lake / Fenelon Falls Pool

ECCC Station 02HH006 — Sturgeon Lake at Fenelon Falls

7.02 m 23′0.2″ ft
▼ -12.0 cm -4.7 in
⚓ Lock 34 — Fenelon Falls ⏱ 12:45 PM ET Avg: 7.14 mAvg: 23.4 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (7.14 m23.4 ft) — not chart datum

Gull River

Gull River to Balsam Lake

ECCC Station 02HF002 — Gull River at Norland

3.79 m 12′5.3″ ft
• +2.2 cm +0.9 in
⚓ Lock 35 — Rosedale ⏱ 1:20 PM ET Avg: 3.77 mAvg: 12.4 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (3.77 m12.4 ft) — not chart datum

Burnt River

Burnt River to Balsam Lake

ECCC Station 02HF003 — Burnt River near Burnt River

2.98 m 9′9.2″ ft
▼ -19.1 cm -7.5 in
⚓ Lock 35 — Rosedale ⏱ 12:45 PM ET Avg: 3.17 mAvg: 10.4 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (3.17 m10.4 ft) — not chart datum
Kirkfield & Upper Trent 1 station

Head River

Head River to Lake Simcoe

ECCC Station 02EC022 — Head River near Sebright

8.92 m 29′3.1″ ft
▼ -5.2 cm -2.0 in
⚓ Lock 37 — Gamebridge ⏱ 1:05 PM ET Avg: 8.97 mAvg: 29.4 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (8.97 m29.4 ft) — not chart datum
Severn River & Georgian Bay 3 stations

Severn / Couchiching

Lake Couchiching Outflow

ECCC Station 02EC023 — Severn River near Mill Island

6.89 m 22′7.4″ ft
• +1.1 cm +0.4 in
⚓ Lock 42 — Couchiching ⏱ 12:45 PM ET Avg: 6.88 mAvg: 22.6 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (6.88 m22.6 ft) — not chart datum

Wasdell Falls

Sparrow Lake to Big Chute Pool

ECCC Station 02EC014 — Severn River above Wasdell Falls

7.13 m 23′4.8″ ft
▲ +9.4 cm +3.7 in
⚓ Lock 43 — Port Severn ⏱ 12:50 PM ET Avg: 7.04 mAvg: 23.1 ft
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
--- Dashed line = typical October level at this gauge (7.04 m23.1 ft) — not chart datum

Swift Rapids

Big Chute to Georgian Bay

ECCC Station 02EC003 — Severn River at Swift Rapids

-- No data
⚓ Lock 44 — Big Chute
Open in Google Maps →
30-Day Water Level
Loading chart data...
⚓ About This Data — Technical Description & Sources

Data Source

Water level readings on this page are sourced from Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), specifically the Water Survey of Canada hydrometric monitoring network. This is the same official federal dataset used by Parks Canada for water management decisions on the Trent-Severn Waterway.

The data is accessed through the ECCC GeoAPI, an OGC-compliant open data service provided by the Government of Canada under the Open Government Licence — Canada.

Stations Monitored

We monitor 13 active ECCC hydrometric stations positioned along the Trent-Severn Waterway corridor, from Trenton (Lock 1) to Swift Rapids near Georgian Bay (Lock 44). Each station measures water level in metres above an assumed local datum.

Station ID Name Segment Nearest Lock KM Marker Coordinates
02HK010 Trent River at Trenton Lower Trent Lock 1 — Trenton 0 44.124, -77.592
02HK019 Trent River at Lower Glen Ross Lower Trent Lock 7 — Glen Ross 52 44.267, -77.594
02HK018 Trent River at Upper Glen Ross Campbellford Lock 8 — Glen Ross 53 44.265, -77.599
02HK003 Crowe River at Marmora Campbellford Lock 12 — Ranney Falls 70 44.482, -77.685
02HJ010 Otonabee River near Robinsons Island Peterborough Lock 20 — Ashburnham 120 44.259, -78.334
02HJ009 Indian River above Hope Mill Dam Peterborough Lock 18 — Hastings 100 44.284, -78.172
02HH006 Sturgeon Lake at Fenelon Falls Kawartha Lakes Lock 34 — Fenelon Falls 165 44.525, -78.729
02HF002 Gull River at Norland Kawartha Lakes Lock 35 — Rosedale 180 44.732, -78.818
02HF003 Burnt River near Burnt River Kawartha Lakes Lock 35 — Rosedale 178 44.710, -78.678
02EC022 Head River near Sebright Kirkfield Lock 37 — Gamebridge 220 44.726, -79.070
02EC023 Severn River near Mill Island Severn River Lock 42 — Couchiching 260 44.752, -79.332
02EC014 Severn River above Wasdell Falls Severn River Lock 43 — Port Severn 270 44.775, -79.297
02EC003 Severn River at Swift Rapids Severn River Lock 44 — Big Chute 310 44.857, -79.542

How Water Level Readings Work

Each ECCC station uses an automated gauge (typically a pressure transducer or float-type recorder) that measures the water surface elevation above a fixed local benchmark called an "assumed datum." Per ECCC: "An assumed datum is an arbitrary local coordinate system. The gauge reading does not reflect the depth of the water, nor its height above sea level."

This means the absolute metre values are station-specific reference numbers — not depths, not elevations. A reading of 7.10 m at Sturgeon Lake and 4.55 m at Glen Ross represent heights above two completely different local benchmarks. You cannot compare them to each other, and you cannot subtract them from charted depths.

Readings are transmitted via satellite or landline every 5 minutes. Our system fetches the latest reading for each station every 15 minutes.

Coverage Gaps

The ECCC network does not have active real-time gauges on every TSW lake. Notably, there are no active gauges directly on Rice Lake, Balsam Lake, Lake Simcoe, Lake Couchiching, or Sparrow Lake. The stations shown are the nearest monitoring points — river gauges downstream or on tributaries that reflect conditions in those pools.

Parks Canada operates its own separate gauge network with stations on many of these lakes, but that data is not available via API and updates only once per 24 hours. You can view Parks Canada water levels at pc.gc.ca/apps/WaterLevels.

Update Frequency & Data Freshness

  • Station sensors: Record every 5 minutes
  • ECCC API: Updated continuously as readings arrive via satellite/landline
  • This page: Syncs every 15 minutes via automated background process
  • 30-day charts: Loaded on-demand from the ECCC real-time API when you view the page
  • Baseline averages: Recalculated daily from ECCC HYDAT monthly mean archive
⚠ Navigation Disclaimer

Water level data on this page is provided for informational and passage-planning purposes only. It is not a substitute for official navigation publications, current CHS charts, Notices to Mariners, or direct communication with Parks Canada lock staff. Water conditions can change rapidly due to weather, dam operations, and other factors. Readings may be delayed, intermittent, or temporarily inaccurate due to equipment issues. Always verify conditions locally before making navigation decisions. This website is not affiliated with Environment and Climate Change Canada, Parks Canada, or the Government of Canada.

⚓ Continue Planning Your Passage Cross-reference water levels with lock status, bridge clearances, and anchorage depths.
Browse All 44 Locks → Bridge Directory Anchorage Directory