Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay water level

Name: Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay water level (Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada)
Creator: Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada
License: https://open.canada.ca/en/open-government-licence-canada

Lake, Rainy Lake, Ontario, Canada

Directions

Normal for mid-October

Water level

8.49m Up 0.04 m over the last 24 hours

Measured Oct 19, 2026, 03:50 PM CDT (1 hour ago)

History

What this means

The water level at Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay reads 8.49 m, about where it usually sits at this time of year.

The median for mid-October is 8.44 m, based on 11 years of readings, so the water level is 0.04 m above typical. On the same day last year the reading was 8.42 m, a difference of +0.06 m.

It is on the way up, by 0.04 m over the past 24 hours. The 30-day range is 8.45 m – 8.59 m.

Lakes and reservoirs often sit lower in fall after a summer of evaporation and use, and recover with winter rain and spring snowmelt.

Compared with 11 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Median for this date: 8.44 m0.04 m above the median for this date
Normal for this date: 8.35 m – 8.65 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (11 years of records)
Same day last year: 8.42 m+0.06 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days: 8.45 m – 8.59 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months: 8.18 m – 8.59 m

Boating and fishing at Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay

A lake in its usual range is what most ramps, docks and swimming areas are built for.

Conditions at the shore change with the level, so check with the agency that runs the lake before a trip.

Weather at the gauge

No rain in the last 3 days.

19 Mon 13° -2° – Wind 10 km/h

20 Tue 15° 1° – Wind 15 km/h

21 Wed 17° 6° – Wind 11 km/h

22 Thu 20° 7° – Wind 10 km/h

23 Fri 21° 11° 0.4 mm, 48% Wind 17 km/h

24 Sat 20° 9° 1.3 mm, 48% Wind 23 km/h

25 Sun 9° 1° – Wind 30 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:41 AM Sunset 06:19 PM Daylight 10 hr, 37 min First quarter 62%

Map

Other gauges on Rainy Lake

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Rainy Lake near Fort FrancesLake, Rainy Lake	337.39 m	Normal	−0.01 m	31 km
Rainy Lake near Bear PassLake, Rainy Lake	337.41 m	No reference yet	±0	51 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
La Vallee River near BurrissRiver gauge, La Vallee River	12.19 m	Very high	+0.01 m	18 km
Rainy River at Boat Landing below International FallsRiver gauge, Rainy River	5,620 cfs	Normal	−330.0 cfs	19 mi
Rainy River at Manitou RapidsRiver gauge, Rainy River	6,600 cfs	Low	+50.0 cfs	19 mi
Rainy River at Point Park Site No.2River gauge, Rainy River	337.36 m	Normal	+0.03 m	32 km
Rainy River at Point Park Site No.1River gauge, Rainy River	337.37 m	Normal	+0.03 m	32 km
Pinewood River at Highway No. 617River gauge, Pinewood River	10.65 m	Normal	−0.02 m	41 km
Little Fork River at LittleforkRiver gauge, Little Fork River	3.05 ft	Below flood stage	+0.11 ft	31 mi
Gold Portage Outlet From Kabetogama Lake near RayRiver gauge, Gold Portage Outlet From Kabetogama Lake	16.16 ft	Below flood stage	+0.02 ft	33 mi

Questions and answers

Is Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay higher than last year?

Yes, it is 0.06 m higher than on the same day last year, when the reading was 8.42 m.

What is a normal level for Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 8.44 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 8.35 m and 8.65 m, based on 11 years of records.

What is the water level of Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay today?

On Oct 19, 2026, 03:50 PM CDT, the water level was 8.49 m. Up 0.04 m over the last 24 hours.

Is Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay rising or falling?

Up 0.04 m over the last 24 hours. Down 0.05 m over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay normal?

Normal for mid-October. Compared with 11 years of daily readings for this time of year.

How often is this data updated?

Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada publishes a new reading every hour. This page refreshes within minutes of each update.

Where does this data come from?

The values come directly from Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada, the official operator of this gauge, and are published under the Open Government Licence – Canada. We do not estimate or model live values.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada
Station code: eccc:05PB023 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 48.84154, -93.62372 (WGS84)
Vertical datum: station datum (assumed datum)
Update interval: every hour
Licence: Open Government Licence – Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada

Published series

Parameter	Last value	Time (UTC)	Quality
Water level	8.49 m	2026-10-19 20:50	Provisional

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How to cite

Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada: Rainy Lake at Northwest Bay (eccc:05PB023). Accessed October 19, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/canada/ontario/rainy-lake-at-northwest-bay

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