Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch water level

Name: Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch 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

River gauge, Pothole Creek, Alberta, Canada

Directions

Normal for mid-October

Water level

0.54m Steady over the last 24 hours

Measured Oct 18, 2026, 12:40 PM MDT (1 hour ago)

Flow: 0.25 m³/s

History

7 days 30 days 1 year Years compared

20252026

Water level Normal range (10–90 %)

What this means

Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch is at 0.54 m, in the normal range for mid-October.

That puts it 0.02 m above the median of 0.52 m for mid-October, based on 14 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.49 m (+0.05 m).

The level has held steady over the past 24 hours. In the last month it has stayed between 0.53 m and 0.62 m.

Fall is often low-water season on rivers, until steadier rain returns.

Compared with 14 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Median for this date: 0.52 m0.02 m above the median for this date
Normal for this date: 0.45 m – 0.81 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (14 years of records)
Same day last year: 0.49 m+0.05 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days: 0.53 m – 0.62 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months: 0.42 m – 0.90 m

On the river

Outside the spring freshet, most rivers settle into a gentler pattern, broken by storms.

Flood advisories come from the provincial river forecast centre.

Weather at the gauge

No rain in the last 3 days.

18 Sun 14° 1° – Wind 15 km/h

19 Mon 17° 0° – Wind 11 km/h

20 Tue 12° 4° – Wind 11 km/h

21 Wed 22° 5° – Wind 22 km/h

22 Thu 20° 10° – Wind 30 km/h

23 Fri 12° 3° 0.3 mm, 42% Wind 28 km/h

24 Sat 7° 0° – Wind 16 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:58 AM Sunset 06:36 PM Daylight 10 hr, 38 min First quarter 52%

Map

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
St. Mary River near LethbridgeRiver gauge, St. Mary River	1.30 m	Very high	−0.04 m	1.6 km
Prairie Blood Coulee near LethbridgeRiver gauge, Prairie Blood Coulee	0.62 m	Normal	−0.01 m	9.1 km
Oldman River near LethbridgeRiver gauge, Oldman River	0.38 m	Normal	−0.04 m	16 km
Milk River Ridge ReservoirReservoir	1,031.99 m	High	±0	27 km
Canadian St. Mary Canal near Spring CouleeCanal gauge, Canadian St. Mary Canal	0.35 m	Very low	−0.04 m	29 km
Magrath Irrigation District Canal near Spring CouleeCanal gauge, Magrath Irrigation District Canal	0.43 m	High	−0.01 m	29 km
Piyami Drain near Picture ButteRiver gauge, Piyami Drain	0.53 m	Normal	−0.02 m	30 km
St. Mary Reservoir near Spring CouleeReservoir, St. Mary Reservoir	1,095.73 m	High	−0.06 m	31 km

Questions and answers

How does Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch compare with last year?

It is 0.05 m higher than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.49 m.

What is a normal level for Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.52 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.45 m and 0.81 m, based on 14 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 0.54 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch today?

On Oct 18, 2026, 12:40 PM MDT, the water level was 0.54 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch rising or falling?

Steady over the last 24 hours. Down 0.02 m over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch normal?

Normal for mid-October. Compared with 14 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.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada
Station code: eccc:05AE016 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 49.56554, -112.82741 (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	0.54 m	2026-10-18 18:40	Provisional
Flow	0.25 m³/s	2026-10-18 18:40	Provisional

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How to cite

Environment and Climate Change Canada – Water Survey of Canada: Pothole Creek at Russell'S Ranch (eccc:05AE016). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/canada/alberta/pothole-creek-at-russells-ranch

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