Salisbury Bourne water level
River gauge, River Bourne, Wiltshire, United Kingdom
Right now
Low for mid-October
Water level
History
20252026
What this means
At 0.69 m, the River Bourne at Salisbury Bourne is below normal for mid-October.
That puts it 0.08 m below the median of 0.77 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.73 m (−0.04 m).
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 0.69 m and 0.72 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
- 0.77 m0.08 m below the median for this date
- Normal for this date
- 0.67 m – 0.89 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
- Normal range
- 0.65 m – 1.22 m
- Same day last year
- 0.73 m−0.04 m
- Lowest and highest in 30 days
- 0.69 m – 0.72 m
- Lowest and highest in 12 months
- 0.69 m – 1.63 m
- Highest on record
- 1.83 mJanuary 7, 2024
- Lowest on record
- 0.57 mOctober 7, 2005
On the river at Salisbury Bourne
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.
About the River Bourne
The River Bourne is a river in the English county of Wiltshire, a tributary of the Salisbury Avon. It flows in a generally southerly direction for about 48 km. In its upper reaches the river is a winterbourne, often dry in summer.
Text and image from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA.
Weather at the gauge
Rain in the last 3 days: 2.1 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.
Forecast: Open-Meteo
Map
Other gauges on the River Bourne
| Gauge | Level | Compared with normal | 24 hours | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| IdmistonRiver gauge, River Bourne | −0.21 m | Lowest on record | ±0 | 9.2 km |
| Shipton BellingerRiver gauge, River Bourne | −0.06 m | Lowest on record | ±0 | 18 km |
| Tidworth Manor BridgeRiver gauge, River Bourne | 0.00 m | Normal | ±0 | 22 km |
Nearby gauges
| Gauge | Level | Compared with normal | 24 hours | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Salisbury Harnham BridgeRiver gauge, River Avon | 0.27 m | Low | −0.01 m | 1.0 km |
| Salisbury Ashley RoadRiver gauge, River Avon | 0.15 m | Normal | ±0 | 2.3 km |
| Nunton BridgeRiver gauge, River Ebble | 0.43 m | Low | ±0 | 3.0 km |
| ClarendonGroundwater well | 56.00 m | Normal | ±0 | 4.0 km |
| OdstockGroundwater well | 48.24 m | Normal | −0.05 m | 5.3 km |
| WiltonRiver gauge, River Nadder | 0.09 m | Low | ±0 | 6.0 km |
| WindwhistleGroundwater well | 0.38 m | Normal | −0.01 m | 7.3 km |
| Downton Iron BridgeRiver gauge, River Avon | 0.04 m | Normal | ±0 | 8.0 km |
Questions and answers
How does the River Bourne at Salisbury Bourne compare with last year?
It is 0.04 m lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.73 m.
What is a normal level for the River Bourne at Salisbury Bourne in mid-October?
The median for mid-October is 0.77 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.67 m and 0.89 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 0.69 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.
What is the water level of Salisbury Bourne today?
On 18 Oct 2026, 17:30 BST, the water level was 0.69 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.
Is Salisbury Bourne rising or falling?
Steady over the last 24 hours. Steady over the last 7 days.
Is the level of Salisbury Bourne 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 Salisbury Bourne?
The highest level on record is 1.83 m on January 7, 2024. The lowest is 0.57 m on October 7, 2005.
For specialists
Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
- Operator
- Environment Agency
- Station code
ea:43159(Agency page)- Coordinates
51.06283, -1.77975(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
| Parameter | Last value | Time (UTC) | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water level | 0.69 m | 2026-10-18 16:30 | Provisional |
Download
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How to cite
Environment Agency: Salisbury Bourne (ea:43159). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/wiltshire/salisbury-bourne
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.
Readings are provisional, can be delayed or wrong and are not a flood warning. Read the disclaimer