Bear River near Manitowish Waters water level

Name: Bear River near Manitowish Waters water level (U.S. Geological Survey)
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
License: https://www.usgs.gov/information-policies-and-instructions/copyrights-and-credits

River gauge, Bear River, Wisconsin, United States

Directions

Very low for mid-October

Water level

2.47ft Steady over the last 24 hours

Measured Oct 20, 2026, 12:15 PM CDT (51 min ago)

Flow: 7.8 cfs

History

7 days

Water level

What this means

The Bear River near Manitowish Waters is running far below normal at 2.47 ft.

The level has held steady over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. In the last month it has stayed between 2.47 ft and 2.69 ft.

Fall is often low-water season on rivers, and it usually takes a few days of steady rain to change that.

Compared with 5 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Highest on record: 5.53 ftOctober 5, 2019

Floating and fishing near Bear River near Manitowish Waters

Low water exposes gravel bars that make good wading access, but some boat ramps may be left high and dry.

What happens at each level

11.00 ft: River inundates the road at River Road bridge.
7.50 ft: River reaches bankfull stage. No impacts known.
2.47 ft: Right now

Impact statements from the U.S. National Weather Service.

Highest crests on record

Rank	Level	Date
1	5.53 ft	October 5, 2019
2	5.47 ft	October 12, 2018
3	5.39 ft	April 12, 2014
4	5.34 ft	September 26, 2010
5	5.30 ft	April 12, 2022
6	5.17 ft	June 19, 2017
7	5.15 ft	May 1, 2013
8	4.93 ft	June 27, 2024
9	4.72 ft	January 1, 2006
10	4.71 ft	March 18, 2016

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 0.07 in. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

19 Mon 64° 32° – Wind 9 mph

20 Tue 62° 36° – Wind 9 mph

21 Wed 65° 42° – Wind 7 mph

22 Thu 68° 49° – Wind 4 mph

23 Fri 68° 50° – Wind 11 mph

24 Sat 68° 55° 0.04 in Wind 17 mph

25 Sun 59° 39° – Wind 17 mph

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:24 AM Sunset 06:07 PM Daylight 10 hr, 42 min Waxing gibbous 70%

Map

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Wisconsin River @ Rainbow Lake near Lake TomahawkRiver gauge, Wisconsin River @ Rainbow Lake	1.01 ft	Below flood stage	±0	26 mi
Cisco Lake near WatersmeetLake, Cisco Lake	4.16 ft	Very high	+0.01 ft	29 mi
Cisco Branch Ontonagon River at Cisco Lake OutletRiver gauge, Cisco Branch Ontonagon River	0.5 cfs	Very low	±0	29 mi
Black River near BessemerRiver gauge, Black River	2.07 ft	Below flood stage	+0.05 ft	32 mi
Tyler Forks River at Stricker Road near MellenRiver gauge, Tyler Forks River	3.50 ft	Below flood stage	−0.01 ft	38 mi
South Fork Flambeau River near PhillipsRiver gauge, South Fork Flambeau River	177 cfs	Low	−17.0 cfs	39 mi
Lac Vieux Desert near Land O'lakesLake, Lac Vieux Desert	80.35 ft	Normal	−0.01 ft	40 mi
Spirit River at Spirit FallsRiver gauge, Spirit River	1.46 ft	Below flood stage	−0.06 ft	41 mi

Questions and answers

Is gage height the same as water depth?

No. Gage height is measured from a fixed reference point chosen by the agency, so a reading of 10 ft does not mean the river is 10 ft deep.

What is the water level of Bear River near Manitowish Waters today?

On Oct 20, 2026, 12:15 PM CDT, the water level was 2.47 ft. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Bear River near Manitowish Waters rising or falling?

Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is the level of Bear River near Manitowish Waters normal?

Very low for mid-October. Compared with 5 years of daily readings for this time of year.

What is the highest water level ever recorded at Bear River near Manitowish Waters?

The highest level on record is 5.53 ft on October 5, 2019.

How often is this data updated?

The U.S. Geological Survey publishes a new reading every 15 minutes. This page refreshes within minutes of each update.

Where does this data come from?

The values come directly from the U.S. Geological Survey, the official operator of this gauge, and are in the public domain. We do not estimate or model live values.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: U.S. Geological Survey
Station code: usgs:05357335 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 46.04884, -89.98460 (WGS84)
Vertical datum: NAVD88
Update interval: every 15 minutes
Licence: Public domain. Data: U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), provisional data subject to revision

Published series

Parameter	Last value	Time (UTC)	Quality
Water level	2.47 ft	2026-10-20 17:15	Provisional
Flow	7.8 cfs	2026-10-20 17:15	Provisional

Download

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How to cite

U.S. Geological Survey: Bear River near Manitowish Waters (usgs:05357335). Accessed October 20, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-states/wisconsin/bear-river-near-manitowish-waters

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