About this river
Kankakee River is a 12.0 mile river near Kayak Morris Campground in Illinois. Streamflow is measured at the USGS gauge Kankakee River near Wilmington, IL (site 05527500). The National Hydrography Dataset places it at stream order 9. Reach geometry comes from the USGS National Hydrography Dataset.
Typical flow by month
1935 to 2026
Kankakee River typically runs highest in April, at a median 6,905 cfs, and lowest in September, at 1,075 cfs. The highest flow on record for any single day is 55,100 cfs, in 1991.
| Month | Typical (cfs) | Usual range (cfs) | Relative level |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 3,620 | 1,900 to 6,550 | |
| February | 4,160 | 2,030 to 7,120 | |
| March | 6,510 | 4,130 to 9,520 | |
| April | 6,905 | 4,370 to 10,650 | |
| May | 5,550 | 3,600 to 8,930 | |
| June | 4,150 | 2,835 to 7,525 | |
| July | 2,330 | 1,500 to 4,140 | |
| August | 1,460 | 1,030 to 2,190 | |
| September | 1,075 | 780 to 1,760 | |
| October | 1,300 | 908 to 2,360 | |
| November | 2,215 | 1,235 to 4,125 | |
| December | 2,950 | 1,550 to 5,590 |
Typical is the median of each month’s daily median values, and the usual range runs from the median 25th to the median 75th percentile, across about 92 years of record. Statistics published by the US Geological Survey for Kankakee River near Wilmington, IL (site 05527500). Conditions on any given day can fall well outside the usual range. Check the current reading before you go.
Boat access nearby
5 mapped launches sit in the mapped area of Kankakee River, all of them public access. Ramp data comes from the USGS national boat-ramp inventory.
- Braidwood LakeBraidwood LakePublic
- Braidwood Lake south rampPublic
- Kankakee River State ParkKankakee RiverPublic
- Braidwood LakeBraidwood LakePublic
- Kankakee Conservation AreaKankakee RiverPublic
Embed this gauge on your site
Paste this snippet anywhere, an outfitter page, a club site, a trip report, to show Kankakee River's live streamflow, water level and 7-day trend. It reads the USGS gauge directly, updates itself, and links back here.
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