Baraboo River near Baraboo water level

Name: Baraboo River near Baraboo 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, Baraboo River, Wisconsin, United States

Directions

Below flood stage

Water level

8.14ft Down 0.06 ft over the last 24 hours

Measured Oct 19, 2026, 10:00 AM CDT (53 min ago)

Flow: 393 cfs

History

7 days

Water level Minor flood stage

What this means

The gauge at Baraboo River near Baraboo reads 8.14 ft, a normal level.

It is 7.86 ft below the flood stage of 16.00 ft.

The level is falling, down 0.06 ft over the past 24 hours. Over the past 30 days it has moved between 8.03 ft and 8.25 ft.

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

Judged against the official flood stage for this gauge. How to read levels

Key numbers

Highest on record: 27.48 ftJune 13, 2008

What the stage means on the water

A normal level is usually prime time for floating and wade fishing, as long as the weather holds upstream.

The National Weather Service puts flood stage for this gauge at 16.00 ft, still 7.86 ft away.

What happens at each level

24.50 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business, a wayside park, and an auto auction business about 5 miles downstream of the gauge near the Highway 33 bridge. Water is just up to Cty X bridge. If Portage is up to ~16 ft also, water approaches or on I-90/94 and Hwy 33 intersection. Water onto Manchester St bridge.
24.00 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business, a wayside park, and an auto auction business about 5 miles downstream of the gauge near the Highway 33 bridge. Water up to Manchester St Bridge. If Portage is up to ~16 ft also water approaches I-90/94 and Hwy 33 intersection.
23.20 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business, a wayside park, and an auto auction business about 5 miles downstream near the Highway 33 bridge.
23.10 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business and a road wayside park about 5 miles downstream near the Highway 33 bridge. Floodwaters also affect an auto auction business near Highway I-94. If WI River at Portage at or above 18 ft water approaches I90/94 and Hwy 33 intersection.
22.10 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business and a road wayside park about 5 miles downstream of the gauge near the Highway 33 bridge. Floodwaters also affect an auto auction business near Highway I-94 about 5 miles downstream of the gauge.
22.00 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business and a road wayside park about 5 miles downstream near the Highway 33 bridge. Floodwaters also affect an auto auction business near Highway I-94. Ochsner Park is flooded.
20.80 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business and a road wayside park about 5 miles downstream near the Highway 33 bridge. Floodwaters also affect an auto auction business near Highway I-94.
19.00 ft: Floodwaters affect a trailer rental business and a road wayside park about 5 miles downstream near the Highway 33 bridge. Also, water affects an auto auction business near Highway I-94.
18.00 ft: If Wisconsin River at Portage up to 17 feet also, water approaches gravel of I-39 off ramp to Cascade Mt Rd. There is widespread flooding of agricultural land.
17.00 ft: If Wisconsin River at Portage up to 17 feet also, water impacts parking lots near Hwy 33 and water over Tritz Rd near Hwy 33. There is widespread flooding of agricultural land.
16.00 ft: The effects of flooding at this level are confined mainly to agricultural land.
15.00 ft: There is minor lowland and agricultural land flooding.
8.14 ft: Right now

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

Highest crests on record

Chance of at least minor flooding in October to December: 8 %.

Rank	Level	Date
1	27.48 ft	June 13, 2008
2	24.47 ft	September 2, 2018
3	22.78 ft	July 18, 1993
4	22.68 ft	February 13, 1966
5	22.04 ft	June 2, 2000
6	21.35 ft	April 5, 1959
7	21.16 ft	March 29, 1950
8	21.10 ft	March 30, 1961
9	20.96 ft	July 6, 1978
10	20.68 ft	March 17, 2019

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 0.87 in. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

17 Sat 56° 32° – Wind 13 mph

18 Sun 60° 42° – Wind 19 mph

19 Mon 64° 46° – Wind 10 mph

20 Tue 65° 46° – Wind 6 mph

21 Wed 67° 45° – Wind 10 mph

22 Thu 65° 56° – Wind 5 mph

23 Fri 70° 52° – Wind 12 mph

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:18 AM Sunset 06:10 PM Daylight 10 hr, 52 min First quarter 60%

Map

Other gauges on the Baraboo River

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Baraboo River at La ValleRiver gauge, Baraboo River	6.00 ft	Normal	−0.10 ft	26 mi
Baraboo River at Main Street at ReedsburgRiver gauge, Baraboo River	5.86 ft	Below flood stage	−0.40 ft	19 mi

Nearby gauges

Gauge	Level	Compared with normal	24 hours	Distance
Devils Lake near BarabooLake, Devils Lake	7.54 ft	Normal	−0.03 ft	6.0 mi
Wisconsin River near Wisconsin DellsRiver gauge, Wisconsin River	2.05 ft	Below flood stage	−0.17 ft	10 mi
Sixmile Creek at State Highway 19 near WaunakeeRiver gauge, Sixmile Creek	7.6 cfs	Low	−0.9 cfs	22 mi
Yahara River at WindsorRiver gauge, Yahara River	1.14 ft	Below flood stage	−0.01 ft	24 mi
Black Earth Creek at Black EarthRiver gauge, Black Earth Creek	2.14 ft	Below flood stage	−0.03 ft	24 mi
Brewery Creek-Upstream Site-At Cross PlainsRiver gauge	2.2 cfs	Normal	±0	25 mi
Dorn (Spring) Creek @ Ct Highway Q near WaunakeeRiver gauge, Dorn (Spring) Creek @ Ct Highway Q	3.2 cfs	Low	±0	25 mi
Sixmile Creek @ County Trnk Hghwy M near WaunakeeRiver gauge, Sixmile Creek @ County Trnk Hghwy M	18.5 cfs	Low	+1.8 cfs	25 mi

Questions and answers

What is flood stage for the Baraboo River near Baraboo?

The official flood stage is 16.00 ft. The level is currently 7.86 ft below it.

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 Baraboo River near Baraboo today?

On Oct 19, 2026, 10:00 AM CDT, the water level was 8.14 ft. Down 0.06 ft over the last 24 hours.

Is Baraboo River near Baraboo rising or falling?

Down 0.06 ft over the last 24 hours.

Is the level of Baraboo River near Baraboo normal?

Below flood stage. Judged against the official flood stage for this gauge.

What is the highest water level ever recorded at Baraboo River near Baraboo?

The highest level on record is 27.48 ft on June 13, 2008.

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.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads

Operator: U.S. Geological Survey
Station code: usgs:05405000 (Agency page)
Coordinates: 43.48167, -89.63639 (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	8.14 ft	2026-10-19 15:00	Provisional
Flow	393 cfs	2026-10-19 15:00	Provisional

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How to cite

U.S. Geological Survey: Baraboo River near Baraboo (usgs:05405000). Accessed October 19, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-states/wisconsin/baraboo-river-near-baraboo

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