River Levels
Kentucky river levels
Live streamflow for 59 gauged Kentucky reaches, highest first. Where a gauge has a long enough record, the reading is placed against its own history for today's date.
55% of gauged Kentucky rivers are running in their normal range for the date, as of October 8, 2026.
Of 56 gauged reaches with a long enough USGS record, 23 are below normal (6 of them much below), 31 are in the normal range, and 2 are above normal (0 of them much above). Normal means the middle half of that gauge's own history for this calendar date.
To cite: Paddling Hubs analysis of USGS streamflow, paddlinghubs.com/flows/kentucky. The daily normals behind it are a free download.
| River | Flow | Usually today | Vs normal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio Rivernear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 37,000 cfs11.54 ft | 29,200 cfs | Normal61st percentile · 97 yr record |
| Cedar Creeknear Canoe Kentucky | 476 cfs7.17 ft | 1,380 cfs | Below normal13th percentile · 13 yr record |
| Kentucky Rivernear Canoe Kentucky | 436 cfs8.31 ft | 1,270 cfs | Below normal22nd percentile · 49 yr record |
| Kentucky Rivernear Luma Clear Kayak Sales | 357 cfs9.23 ft | 445 cfs | Normal40th percentile · 49 yr record |
| Kentucky Rivernear Boone Creek Outdoors | 356 cfs10.72 ft | 772 cfs | Normal25th percentile · 16 yr record |
| Green Rivernear Adventures of Mammoth Cave | 271 cfs2.57 ft | 440 cfs | Normal30th percentile · 57 yr record |
| Barren Rivernear Drakes Creek Canoe | 248 cfs3.96 ft | 629 cfs | Much below normal9th percentile · 62 yr record |
| Green Rivernear Mammoth Cave Adventures | 222 cfs8.45 ft | 264 cfs | Normal37th percentile · 88 yr record |
| Dix Rivernear Boone Creek Outdoors | 186 cfs5.20 ft | 114 cfs | Normal52nd percentile · 16 yr record |
| Levisa Forknear Elkhorn City | 179 cfs5.96 ft | 390 cfs | Much below normal7th percentile · 57 yr record |
| Tug Forknear Elkhorn City | 170 cfs2.43 ft | 185 cfs | Normal44th percentile · 59 yr record |
| North Fork Kentucky Rivernear Gorge Underground | 158 cfs1.39 ft | 138 cfs | Normal54th percentile · 95 yr record |
| Licking Rivernear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 124 cfs4.17 ft | 354 cfs | Below normal13th percentile · 53 yr record |
| Kincaid Creeknear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 121 cfs5.28 ft | 472 cfs | Much below normal6th percentile · 53 yr record |
| Middle Fork Kentucky Rivernear Gorge Underground | 114 cfs5.12 ft | 122 cfs | Normal47th percentile · 65 yr record |
| Salt Rivernear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 94 cfs1.05 ft | 90 cfs | Normal50th percentile · 41 yr record |
| Big South Fork Cumberland Rivernear Sheltowee Trace Adventure Resort | 87 cfs1.49 ft | 126 cfs | Normal32nd percentile · 83 yr record |
| Nolin Rivernear Adventures of Mammoth Cave | 53 cfs0.93 ft | 75 cfs | Below normal22nd percentile · 67 yr record |
| Elkhorn Creeknear Canoe Kentucky | 50 cfs2.13 ft | 65 cfs | Normal40th percentile · 111 yr record |
| White Oak Creeknear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 50 cfs4.10 ft | 4.9 cfs | Above normal77th percentile · 14 yr record |
| South Fork Red Rivernear Drakes Creek Canoe | 40 cfs5.56 ft | Not recorded | No historical record |
| Drakes Creeknear Drakes Creek Canoe | 38 cfs4.04 ft | 81 cfs | Much below normal9th percentile · 66 yr record |
| South Fork Kentucky Rivernear SUP Kentucky | 34 cfs3.26 ft | 50 cfs | Normal38th percentile · 99 yr record |
| Clear Forknear Sheltowee Trace Adventure Resort | 31 cfs5.41 ft | 54 cfs | Below normal25th percentile · 57 yr record |
| Red Rivernear Lake Kayak Rentals in the Gorge | 26 cfs2.49 ft | 34 cfs | Normal38th percentile · 94 yr record |
| Cranes Nest Rivernear Elkhorn City | 19 cfs2.16 ft | 15 cfs | Normal61st percentile · 63 yr record |
| Rockcastle Rivernear Sheltowee Trace Adventure Resort | 18 cfs0.89 ft | 39 cfs | Normal29th percentile · 89 yr record |
| Dix Rivernear Get Outside Kentucky | 16 cfs0.64 ft | 17 cfs | Normal48th percentile · 84 yr record |
| North Fork Kentucky Rivernear Elkhorn City | 15 cfs1.24 ft | 13 cfs | Normal60th percentile · 27 yr record |
| Floyds Forknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 15 cfs3.75 ft | 30 cfs | Below normal25th percentile · 25 yr record |
| Slate Creeknear Lake Kayak Rentals in the Gorge | 14 cfs1.46 ft | 9.2 cfs | Normal54th percentile · 26 yr record |
| Brashears Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 12 cfs5.62 ft | 8.4 cfs | Normal51st percentile · 45 yr record |
| North Elkhorn Creeknear Kayaking The Midway | 12 cfs3.68 ft | 16 cfs | Normal40th percentile · 33 yr record |
| Bacon Creeknear Adventures of Mammoth Cave | 11 cfs3.25 ft | 16 cfs | Below normal22nd percentile · 16 yr record |
| Salt Rivernear Kayaking The Midway | 8.9 cfs2.67 ft | 15 cfs | Normal29th percentile · 24 yr record |
| Johns Creeknear Elkhorn City | 7.7 cfs3.16 ft | 7.2 cfs | Normal51st percentile · 84 yr record |
| Cedar Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 7.3 cfs0.41 ft | 7.7 cfs | Normal47th percentile · 27 yr record |
| Tradewater Rivernear Lakeside Rentals | 6.8 cfs2.74 ft | 2.9 cfs | Normal57th percentile · 86 yr record |
| Clarks Rivernear Lakeside Rentals | 5.9 cfs4.14 ft | 10 cfs | Below normal25th percentile · 44 yr record |
| South Fork Licking Rivernear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 5.3 cfs2.26 ft | 45 cfs | Below normal10th percentile · 13 yr record |
| West Fork Drakes Creeknear Drakes Creek Canoe | 3.5 cfs6.88 ft | 17 cfs | Below normal17th percentile · 58 yr record |
| Red Rivernear Gorge Underground | 3.3 cfs2.64 ft | 2.3 cfs | Normal53rd percentile · 71 yr record |
| Stoner Creeknear Boone Creek Outdoors | 2.5 cfs13.13 ft | 28 cfs | Normal27th percentile · 11 yr record |
| Silver Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 2.1 cfs3.38 ft | 6.2 cfs | Normal27th percentile · 72 yr record |
| Lynn Camp Creeknear Sheltowee Trace Adventure Resort | 2.1 cfs2.80 ft | 8.9 cfs | Below normal17th percentile · 52 yr record |
| Buck Creeknear Sheltowee Trace Adventure Resort | 2.0 cfs1.07 ft | 16 cfs | Normal26th percentile · 73 yr record |
| Twelvemile Creeknear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 1.9 cfs1.46 ft | 2.9 cfs | Below normal23rd percentile · 25 yr record |
| South Fork Beargrass Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 1.8 cfs3.08 ft | 5.5 cfs | Below normal12th percentile · 28 yr record |
| Elkhorn Creeknear Elkhorn City | 1.7 cfs3.35 ft | Not recorded | No historical record |
| Long Lick Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 1.4 cfs1.24 ft | 0.5 cfs | Above normal78th percentile · 34 yr record |
| Sturgeon Creeknear Luma Clear Kayak Sales | 1.2 cfs1.24 ft | 8.0 cfs | Normal26th percentile · 33 yr record |
| South Fork Licking Rivernear Kayaking The Midway | 0.9 cfs4.73 ft | 16 cfs | Much below normal5th percentile · 88 yr record |
| South Elkhorn Creeknear Kayaking The Midway | 0.5 cfs2.59 ft | 4.0 cfs | Below normal11th percentile · 76 yr record |
| North Fork Licking Rivernear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 0.4 cfs1.39 ft | 3.0 cfs | Below normal20th percentile · 35 yr record |
| Cedar Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 0.2 cfs1.61 ft | 0.7 cfs | Normal32nd percentile · 24 yr record |
| Houston Creeknear Kayaking The Midway | 0.2 cfs4.30 ft | Not recorded | No historical record |
| Eagle Creeknear Canoe Kentucky | 0.1 cfs1.04 ft | 1.8 cfs | Below normal10th percentile · 15 yr record |
| Eagle Creeknear Thaxton’s Canoe Trails and Paddlers’ Inn | 0.0 cfs1.36 ft | 7.6 cfs | Below normal10th percentile · 111 yr record |
| Mill Creeknear Endless Summer Paddle Company | 0.0 cfs0.65 ft | 1.9 cfs | Much below normal5th percentile · 27 yr record |
Streamflow from the U.S. Geological Survey, updated hourly. "Usually today" is the median for this calendar date over the gauge's full record. A gauge tells you how much water is moving, not whether a run is safe: check the class, the hazards, and a current local report before you put on.
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