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South House water level

River gauge, River Piddle, Dorset, United Kingdom

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Right now

Low for mid-October

Water level

0.09m Steady over the last 24 hours

0.0 0.5 1.0 Highest onrecord 1.04 m Lowest on record 0.05 m

History

History
0.080.100.130.15mOct 16Oct 16Oct 17Oct 18Oct 18Bottom of normal range0.080.100.130.15mOct 16Oct 17Oct 18Bottom of normal range
0.20.40.6mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.20.40.6mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.20.40.6mJanMarMayJulSepNov20260.20.40.6mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

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

What this means

Low water at South House: the gauge reads 0.09 m, below normal for mid-October.

That puts it 0.01 m below the median of 0.10 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.09 m as well.

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 0.08 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
0.10 m0.01 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.09 m – 0.16 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.08 m – 0.63 m
Same day last year
0.09 m0.00 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.08 m – 0.10 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.09 m – 0.71 m
Highest on record
1.04 mDecember 12, 2000
Lowest on record
0.05 mOctober 12, 2003

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 Piddle

River Piddle

The River Piddle or Trent or North River is a small rural Dorset river which rises in the Dorset Downs and flows into Poole Harbour near Wareham.

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: 3.2 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

18 Sun 12° 5° – Wind 23 km/h
19 Mon 13° 7° 3.4 mm, 84% Wind 19 km/h
20 Tue 12° 6° 3.9 mm, 85% Wind 12 km/h
21 Wed 12° 3° 1.5 mm, 47% Wind 33 km/h
22 Thu 14° 6° 5.1 mm, 83% Wind 16 km/h
23 Fri 9° 5° 24 mm, 84% Wind 38 km/h
24 Sat 10° 5° 2.7 mm, 64% Wind 30 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:38 AM Sunset 06:13 PM Daylight 10 hr, 36 min First quarter 51%

Map

Other gauges on the River Piddle

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Little PuddleRiver gauge, River Piddle 0.06 m Very low ±0 2.8 km
Puddletown Riverside CourtRiver gauge, River Piddle 0.06 m Normal ±0 6.6 km
Puddletown North BrookRiver gauge, River Piddle 0.12 m Normal ±0 6.6 km
BriantspuddleRiver gauge, River Piddle 0.17 m Low ±0 13 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Piddletrenthide FasRiver gauge 0.17 m Normal +0.01 m 0.7 km
Doles AshGroundwater well 113.75 m Low −0.01 m 2.1 km
Ridge WayGroundwater well 56.85 m Very low ±0 4.6 km
Dickley DownGroundwater well 151.68 m Lowest on record −0.02 m 6.2 km
Dewlish Woodsdown CrossRiver gauge, Piddle Brook 0.05 m Normal ±0 6.9 km
Sydling St NicholasRiver gauge, Sydling Water 0.06 m Very low ±0 7.5 km
StinsfordRiver gauge, River Frome 0.03 m Lowest on record ±0 8.4 km

Questions and answers

How does the River Piddle at South House compare with last year?

It is about the same as on this day last year, when the reading was 0.09 m.

What is a normal level for the River Piddle at South House in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.10 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.09 m and 0.16 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 0.09 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of South House today?

On 18 Oct 2026, 17:00 BST, the water level was 0.09 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is South House rising or falling?

Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is the level of South House 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 South House?

The highest level on record is 1.04 m on December 12, 2000. The lowest is 0.05 m on October 12, 2003.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:44221 (Agency page)
Coordinates
50.79060, -2.41643 (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 0.09 m 2026-10-18 16:00 Provisional

Download

Embed this gauge

Add a live card for this gauge to your website. It updates on its own and links back here.

How to cite

Environment Agency: South House (ea:44221). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/dorset/south-house

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.