Nivelmap
EN

Culham Lock water level

River gauge, River Thames, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom

Directions

Right now

Normal for mid-October

Water level

0.15m Down 0.01 m over the last 24 hours

0 1 2 Highest onrecord 1.98 m Lowest on record -0.45 m

History

History
0.10.20.3mOct 11Oct 13Oct 15Oct 16Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.10.20.3mOct 11Oct 15Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.10.20.3mSep 18Sep 26Oct 3Oct 11Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.10.20.3mSep 18Oct 3Oct 18Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
-0.00.30.50.8mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range-0.00.30.50.8mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
-0.00.5mJanMarMayJulSepNov2026-0.00.5mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

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

What this means

The River Thames at Culham Lock is at 0.15 m, in the normal range for mid-October.

That puts it 0.02 m above the median of 0.14 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.06 m (+0.09 m).

It has dropped 0.01 m over the past 24 hours. In the last month it has stayed between 0.08 m and 0.22 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
0.14 m0.02 m above the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.08 m – 0.20 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.04 m – 0.30 m
Same day last year
0.06 m+0.09 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.08 m – 0.22 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.01 m – 0.76 m
Highest on record
1.98 mAugust 7, 2008
Lowest on record
−0.45 mMay 21, 2001

Fishing and paddling

Paddlers and anglers can expect the river much as they know it, though a heavy shower upstream can change that within hours.

Flood alerts and warnings come from the Environment Agency.

About the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames, or simply the Thames, known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At 215 miles (346 km), it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the River Severn.

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

18 Sun 12° 7° 1.7 mm, 61% Wind 22 km/h
19 Mon 14° 8° 4.8 mm, 98% Wind 19 km/h
20 Tue 12° 10° 8.8 mm, 83% Wind 9 km/h
21 Wed 11° 6° 12 mm, 56% Wind 31 km/h
22 Thu 12° 5° 1.8 mm, 74% Wind 16 km/h
23 Fri 12° 7° 27 mm, 86% Wind 41 km/h
24 Sat 13° 6° – Wind 23 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:35 AM Sunset 06:07 PM Daylight 10 hr, 33 min First quarter 51%

Map

Other gauges on the River Thames

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Sutton CourtenayRiver gauge, River Thames 2.07 m Normal −0.02 m 0.9 km
Abingdon LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.06 m Low ±0 2.2 km
Clifton LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.11 m Normal −0.02 m 3.9 km
Days LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.19 m Very high ±0 6.2 km
Sandford-on-ThamesRiver gauge, River Thames 0.08 m Normal −0.01 m 6.8 km
Iffley LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.07 m Low −0.01 m 9.0 km
Northmoor LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.13 m Normal +0.01 m 10 km
Osney LockRiver gauge, River Thames −0.01 m Normal −0.01 m 11 km
Benson LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.01 m Very low ±0 11 km
FarmoorRiver gauge, River Thames 0.76 m Very low +0.02 m 14 km
Pinkhill LockRiver gauge, River Thames 0.01 m Very low +0.01 m 14 km
Godstow LockRiver gauge, River Thames −0.17 m Very low −0.02 m 14 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
AbingdonRiver gauge, River Ock 0.09 m Low ±0 3.2 km
Abingdon PeachcroftRiver gauge, Radley Park Ditch 0.43 m Low ±0 3.6 km
AbingdonRiver gauge, River Stert 0.61 m Normal ±0 3.9 km
SteventonRiver gauge, Ginge Brook 0.47 m Very low +0.02 m 5.1 km
DorchesterRiver gauge, River Thame 0.25 m Very low ±0 7.2 km

Questions and answers

How does the River Thames at Culham Lock compare with last year?

It is 0.09 m higher than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.06 m.

What is a normal level for the River Thames at Culham Lock in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.14 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.08 m and 0.20 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 0.15 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Culham Lock today?

On 18 Oct 2026, 18:15 BST, the water level was 0.15 m. Down 0.01 m over the last 24 hours.

Is Culham Lock rising or falling?

Down 0.01 m over the last 24 hours. Steady over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Culham Lock normal?

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

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

The highest level on record is 1.98 m on August 7, 2008. The lowest is −0.45 m on May 21, 2001.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:1799TH (Agency page)
Coordinates
51.65060, -1.26713 (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 0.15 m 2026-10-18 17:15 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: Culham Lock (ea:1799TH). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/oxfordshire/culham-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.