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Ness water level

River gauge, River Rye, North Yorkshire, United Kingdom

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Right now

Very low for mid-October

Water level

0.28m Steady over the last 24 hours

0 1 2 3 Highest onrecord 2.71 m Lowest on record 0.14 m

History

History
0.40.6mOct 10Oct 12Oct 14Oct 16Oct 17Bottom of normal range0.40.6mOct 10Oct 14Oct 17Bottom of normal range
0.40.6mSep 17Sep 25Oct 2Oct 10Oct 17Bottom of normal range0.40.6mSep 17Oct 2Oct 17Bottom of normal range
12mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range12mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.51.0mJanMarMayJulSepNov20260.51.0mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

Water level Normal range (10–90 %) Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range

What this means

The River Rye at Ness is running far below normal at 0.28 m.

That puts it 0.16 m below the median of 0.44 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.35 m (−0.08 m). The lowest reading on record is 0.14 m (September 19, 1996).

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 0.27 m and 0.30 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
0.44 m0.16 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.33 m – 0.65 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.34 m – 2.05 m
Same day last year
0.35 m−0.08 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.27 m – 0.30 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.27 m – 1.37 m
Highest on record
2.71 mJune 20, 2005
Lowest on record
0.14 mSeptember 19, 1996

Fishing and paddling

At low levels, many rivers become a walk-and-paddle trip. Fish hold in deeper pools and spook easily.

Flood alerts and warnings come from the Environment Agency.

About the River Rye

River Rye, Yorkshire

The River Rye in the English county of North Yorkshire rises just south of the Cleveland Hills, east of Osmotherley. It flows through Ryedale and the communities of Hawnby, Rievaulx, Helmsley, Nunnington, West and East Ness, Butterwick, Brawby, and Ryton, before joining the River Derwent at 54°10′N 00°44′W near Malton.

Read more on Wikipedia

Text and image from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA.

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 3.3 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

17 Sat 12° 7° 0.1 mm, 35% Wind 18 km/h
18 Sun 12° 6° 0.4 mm, 49% Wind 18 km/h
19 Mon 14° 9° 2.1 mm, 41% Wind 18 km/h
20 Tue 13° 9° 3.5 mm, 37% Wind 16 km/h
21 Wed 13° 9° 3.5 mm, 47% Wind 26 km/h
22 Thu 11° 7° 0.8 mm, 34% Wind 37 km/h
23 Fri 11° 4° 3.8 mm, 63% Wind 25 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:36 AM Sunset 06:04 PM Daylight 10 hr, 28 min First quarter 42%

Map

Other gauges on the River Rye

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Howe BridgeRiver gauge, River Rye 0.17 m Low −0.01 m 12 km
Broadway FootRiver gauge, River Rye 0.06 m Very low ±0 16 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
HovinghamRiver gauge, Hovingham Beck 0.03 m Low ±0 4.5 km
NormanbyRiver gauge, River Seven 0.05 m Very low +0.01 m 5.1 km
Kirkby MillsRiver gauge, River Dove 0.18 m Very low ±0 6.4 km
SinningtonRiver gauge, River Seven 0.10 m Very low ±0 8.3 km
Pickering Costa BeckRiver gauge, Costa Beck 0.13 m Normal ±0 9.1 km
Helmsley High StreetRiver gauge, Borough Beck 0.08 m Normal ±0 9.7 km
Pickering, Ings BridgeRiver gauge, Pickering Beck 0.06 m Very low ±0 10 km
PickeringRiver gauge, Pickering Beck 0.07 m Normal ±0 11 km

Questions and answers

How does the River Rye at Ness compare with last year?

It is 0.08 m lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.35 m.

What is a normal level for the River Rye at Ness in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.44 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.33 m and 0.65 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 0.28 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Ness today?

On 17 Oct 2026, 19:15 BST, the water level was 0.28 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Ness rising or falling?

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

Is the level of Ness normal?

Very 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 Ness?

The highest level on record is 2.71 m on June 20, 2005. The lowest is 0.14 m on September 19, 1996.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:F2505 (Agency page)
Coordinates
54.20385, -0.93756 (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

ParameterLast valueTime (UTC)Quality
Water level 0.28 m 2026-10-17 18:15 Provisional

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How to cite

Environment Agency: Ness (ea:F2505). Accessed October 17, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/north-yorkshire/ness

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.