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Cold Harbour water level

River gauge, Hinksey Stream, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

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Right now

Very low for mid-October

Water level

0.81m Steady over the last 24 hours

1 2 Highest onrecord 2.74 m Lowest on record 0.58 m

History

History
0.80.91.0mOct 12Oct 14Oct 15Oct 17Oct 19Bottom of normal range0.80.91.0mOct 12Oct 15Oct 19Bottom of normal range
0.80.91.0mSep 19Sep 26Oct 4Oct 11Oct 19Bottom of normal range0.80.91.0mSep 19Oct 4Oct 19Bottom of normal range
1.01.52.0mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range1.01.52.0mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
1.01.52.0mJanMarMayJulSepNov20261.01.52.0mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

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

What this means

At 0.81 m, the Hinksey Stream at Cold Harbour is far below normal for mid-October.

That puts it 0.07 m below the median of 0.88 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.83 m (−0.02 m). The lowest reading on record is 0.58 m (June 14, 2003).

The level has held steady over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. Over the past 30 days it has moved between 0.79 m and 0.89 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
0.88 m0.07 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.82 m – 1.02 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.84 m – 2.30 m
Same day last year
0.83 m−0.02 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.79 m – 0.89 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.75 m – 2.09 m
Highest on record
2.74 mJanuary 5, 2003
Lowest on record
0.58 mJune 14, 2003

On the river at Cold Harbour

Low, clear water makes fish wary, and anglers often do better early and late in the day. For canoeists, shallow riffles mean scraped hulls and the odd portage.

Flood warnings for the area come from the Environment Agency.

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 1.2 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

18 Sun 13° 6° 0.7 mm, 61% Wind 21 km/h
19 Mon 14° 8° 6.1 mm, 85% Wind 14 km/h
20 Tue 13° 8° 11 mm, 71% Wind 9 km/h
21 Wed 14° 6° 4.2 mm, 47% Wind 24 km/h
22 Thu 14° 5° 0.3 mm, 51% Wind 16 km/h
23 Fri 10° 7° 29 mm, 77% Wind 32 km/h
24 Sat 10° 3° – Wind 25 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:36 AM Sunset 06:05 PM Daylight 10 hr, 29 min First quarter 57%

Map

Other gauges on the Hinksey Stream

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Hinksey LakeRiver gauge, Hinksey Stream 0.15 m Lowest on record +0.01 m 1.2 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Iffley LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.08 m Low +0.01 m 0.8 km
Oxford Botanical GardensRiver gauge, River Cherwell 4.64 m Lowest on record ±0 2.2 km
Osney LockRiver gauge, River Thames −0.01 m Normal ±0 2.5 km
Sandford-on-ThamesRiver gauge, River Thames 0.06 m Normal −0.01 m 2.8 km
Kings MillRiver gauge, River Cherwell 1.59 m Very low ±0 2.9 km
New BotleyRiver gauge, Bulstake Stream 0.78 m Very low ±0 3.2 km
Minns EstateRiver gauge, Seacourt Stream 1.07 m Normal ±0 3.6 km
Abingdon PeachcroftRiver gauge, Radley Park Ditch 0.43 m Low ±0 5.4 km

Questions and answers

How does the Hinksey Stream at Cold Harbour compare with last year?

It is 0.02 m lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.83 m.

What is a normal level for the Hinksey Stream at Cold Harbour in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.88 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.82 m and 1.02 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 0.81 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Cold Harbour today?

On 19 Oct 2026, 09:00 BST, the water level was 0.81 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Cold Harbour rising or falling?

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

Is the level of Cold Harbour normal?

Very 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 Cold Harbour?

The highest level on record is 2.74 m on January 5, 2003. The lowest is 0.58 m on June 14, 2003.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:1675TH (Agency page)
Coordinates
51.73097, -1.25135 (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 0.81 m 2026-10-19 08:00 Provisional

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How to cite

Environment Agency: Cold Harbour (ea:1675TH). Accessed October 19, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/oxfordshire/cold-harbour

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.