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Blakes Lock water level

River gauge, River Kennet, Berkshire, United Kingdom

Directions

Right now

Low for mid-October

Water level

0.07m Steady over the last 24 hours

-0.5 0.0 0.5 Highest onrecord 0.80 m Lowest on record -0.50 m

History

History
-0.00.10.2mOct 11Oct 12Oct 14Oct 16Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range-0.00.10.2mOct 11Oct 14Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
-0.00.10.2mSep 18Sep 25Oct 3Oct 10Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range-0.00.10.2mSep 18Oct 3Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
-0.00.10.2mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range-0.00.10.2mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
-0.00.10.2mJanMarMayJulSepNov2026-0.00.10.2mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

Water level Normal range (10–90 %) Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range

What this means

Low water at Blakes Lock: the gauge reads 0.07 m, below normal for mid-October.

That puts it 0.06 m below the median of 0.13 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.05 m (+0.02 m).

The level has held steady over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. The 30-day range is 0.04 m – 0.10 m.

Autumn rain usually starts to lift rivers again after the summer low.

Compared with 21 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Median for this date
0.13 m0.06 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.05 m – 0.18 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.00 m – 0.20 m
Same day last year
0.05 m+0.02 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.04 m – 0.10 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
−0.01 m – 0.17 m
Highest on record
0.80 mDecember 14, 2000
Lowest on record
−0.50 mSeptember 12, 1997

For anglers and canoeists

Low rivers are hard going for paddlers, with exposed gravel and weirs that are awkward to shoot. Salmon and sea trout usually wait for the next spate to run.

Many angling and canoe clubs check gauges like this one before heading out.

About the River Kennet

River Kennet

The Kennet is a chalk river and a tributary of the River Thames in Southern England. Most of the river is straddled by the North Wessex Downs National Landscape. The lower reaches have been made navigable as the Kennet Navigation, which – together with the Avon Navigation, the Kennet and Avon Canal and the Thames – links the cities of Bristol and London.

Read more on Wikipedia

Text and image from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA.

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 2.2 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

18 Sun 13° 7° 1.9 mm, 74% Wind 22 km/h
19 Mon 15° 9° 0.5 mm, 90% Wind 18 km/h
20 Tue 12° 9° 11 mm, 67% Wind 9 km/h
21 Wed 14° 6° 4.2 mm, 44% Wind 27 km/h
22 Thu 14° 5° 1.5 mm, 61% Wind 16 km/h
23 Fri 10° 6° 36 mm, 77% Wind 35 km/h
24 Sat 10° 3° – Wind 25 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:33 AM Sunset 06:06 PM Daylight 10 hr, 33 min First quarter 45%

Map

Other gauges on the River Kennet

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Reading Calcot BridgeRiver gauge, River Kennet 1.81 m Low −0.01 m 7.0 km
NewburyRiver gauge, River Kennet 1.00 m Normal ±0 26 km
Knighton SideRiver gauge, River Kennet −0.16 m Lowest on record −0.01 m 43 km
MarlboroughRiver gauge, River Kennet 0.04 m Low ±0 54 km
Winterborne MonktonRiver gauge, River Kennet −0.12 m Normal ±0 63 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Caversham LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.13 m Low ±0 0.8 km
ReadingRiver gauge, River Thames 6.69 m Normal ±0 1.1 km
Sonning LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.24 m Very high ±0 3.2 km
TwyfordRiver gauge, River Loddon 0.99 m Normal +0.02 m 6.0 km
Arborfield BridgeRiver gauge, River Loddon 0.13 m Very low −0.02 m 6.0 km
Mapledurham LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.07 m Normal ±0 6.8 km
Shiplake LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.04 m Low +0.01 m 6.9 km
Sheepbridge Weir Mill StreamRiver gauge, River Loddon 0.16 m Low −0.01 m 8.3 km

Questions and answers

How does the River Kennet at Blakes Lock compare with last year?

It is 0.02 m higher than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.05 m.

What is a normal level for the River Kennet at Blakes Lock in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.13 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.05 m and 0.18 m, based on 21 years of records.

Is the river level the same as the depth of the water?

No. The reading is measured from a fixed zero mark at the gauge, so 0.07 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Blakes Lock today?

On 18 Oct 2026, 02:15 BST, the water level was 0.07 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Blakes Lock rising or falling?

Steady over the last 24 hours. Steady over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Blakes Lock normal?

Low for mid-October. Compared with 21 years of daily readings for this time of year.

What is the highest water level ever recorded at Blakes Lock?

The highest level on record is 0.80 m on December 14, 2000. The lowest is −0.50 m on September 12, 1997.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:2298TH (Agency page)
Coordinates
51.45617, -0.95461 (WGS84)
Vertical datum
station datum
Update interval
every 15 minutes
Licence
Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Environment Agency data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0

Published series

ParameterLast valueTime (UTC)Quality
Water level 0.07 m 2026-10-18 01:15 Provisional

Download

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How to cite

Environment Agency: Blakes Lock (ea:2298TH). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/berkshire/blakes-lock

How we check values

Each reading is stored as published. We hold back values that jump faster than physically plausible and show the measurement time with every value.