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Durham New Elvet Bridge water level

River gauge, River Wear, Durham, United Kingdom

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Right now

Very low for mid-October

Water level

0.21m Steady over the last 24 hours

0 1 3 4 Highest onrecord 3.83 m Lowest on record 0.17 m

History

History
0.20.4mOct 11Oct 13Oct 14Oct 16Oct 18Bottom of normal range0.20.4mOct 11Oct 14Oct 18Bottom of normal range
0.20.4mSep 18Sep 25Oct 3Oct 10Oct 18Bottom of normal range0.20.4mSep 18Oct 3Oct 18Bottom of normal range
-012mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range-012mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
-0.00.51.01.5mJanMarMayJulSepNov2026-0.00.51.01.5mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

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

What this means

The River Wear at Durham New Elvet Bridge is running far below normal at 0.21 m.

The median for mid-October is 0.30 m, based on 21 years of readings, so the river level is 0.09 m below typical. On the same day last year the reading was 0.16 m, a difference of +0.04 m. The lowest reading on record is 0.17 m (November 23, 2005).

It has barely moved over the past 24 hours. Without real rain upstream, that is unlikely to change quickly. In the last month it has stayed between 0.19 m and 0.26 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
0.30 m0.09 m below the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.23 m – 0.57 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.23 m – 2.63 m
Same day last year
0.16 m+0.04 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.19 m – 0.26 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.12 m – 1.66 m
Highest on record
3.83 mJuly 18, 2009
Lowest on record
0.17 mNovember 23, 2005

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 Wear

River Wear

The River Wear in Northern England rises in the Pennines and flows eastwards, mostly through County Durham, to the North Sea in the City of Sunderland. At 60 mi (97 km) long, it is one of the region's longest rivers. The Wear wends in a steep valley through the cathedral city of Durham and gives its name to Weardale in its upper reach and Wearside by its mouth.

Read more on Wikipedia

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

Weather at the gauge

No rain in the last 3 days.

18 Sun 11° 6° 1.1 mm, 94% Wind 14 km/h
19 Mon 14° 7° 0.4 mm, 80% Wind 18 km/h
20 Tue 12° 9° 12 mm, 51% Wind 15 km/h
21 Wed 11° 6° 3.6 mm, 65% Wind 23 km/h
22 Thu 12° 4° 0.9 mm, 28% Wind 17 km/h
23 Fri 8° 4° – Wind 21 km/h
24 Sat 9° 4° – Wind 33 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:41 AM Sunset 06:03 PM Daylight 10 hr, 22 min First quarter 47%

Map

Other gauges on the River Wear

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Sunderland BridgeRiver gauge, River Wear 0.25 m Very low ±0 4.8 km
Chester-Le-StreetRiver gauge, River Wear 0.29 m Very low ±0 8.7 km
Witton ParkRiver gauge, River Wear 0.31 m Very low −0.01 m 15 km
StanhopeRiver gauge, River Wear 0.21 m Low −0.01 m 29 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Burn HallRiver gauge, River Browney 0.10 m Low +0.01 m 4.1 km
Houghton Le SpringRiver gauge, Moors Burn 0.10 m Low ±0 9.1 km
Lanchester Front StreetRiver gauge, Smallhope Burn 0.23 m Normal ±0 12 km
Crook West Bridge StreetRiver gauge, Crook Beck 0.01 m Very low ±0 13 km
TanfieldRiver gauge, River Team 0.23 m Low +0.02 m 15 km
South ChurchRiver gauge, River Gaunless 0.05 m Lowest on record ±0 15 km
Dovecote HillRiver gauge, River Gaunless 0.47 m Very low ±0 16 km

Questions and answers

Is the River Wear at Durham New Elvet Bridge higher than last year?

Yes, it is 0.04 m higher than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.16 m.

What is a normal level for the River Wear at Durham New Elvet Bridge in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.30 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.23 m and 0.57 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 0.21 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Durham New Elvet Bridge today?

On 18 Oct 2026, 07:45 BST, the water level was 0.21 m. Steady over the last 24 hours.

Is Durham New Elvet Bridge rising or falling?

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

Is the level of Durham New Elvet Bridge 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 Durham New Elvet Bridge?

The highest level on record is 3.83 m on July 18, 2009. The lowest is 0.17 m on November 23, 2005.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:0240120 (Agency page)
Coordinates
54.77657, -1.57257 (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 0.21 m 2026-10-18 06:45 Provisional

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How to cite

Environment Agency: Durham New Elvet Bridge (ea:0240120). Accessed October 18, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/durham/durham-new-elvet-bridge

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.