Little Bighorn River river
Total streamflow across the Little Bighorn River was last observed at 388 cfs, and is expected to yield approximately 770 acre-ft of water today; about 40% of normal. River levels are low and may signify a drought. Average streamflow for this time of year is 974 cfs, with recent peaks last observed on 2019-12-01 when daily discharge volume was observed at 5,766 cfs.
Maximum discharge along the river is currently at the Little Bighorn River Near Hardin Mt reporting a streamflow rate of 229 cfs. This is also the highest stage along the Little Bighorn River, with a gauge stage of 3.03 ft at this location. This river is monitored from 2 different streamgauging stations along the Little Bighorn River, the highest being situated at an altitude of 4,332 ft, the Little Bighorn River At State Line Nr Wyola Mt.
River streamflow levels
Daily aggregate streamflow across every monitored gauge along the Little Bighorn River. Use the range buttons to zoom in on a specific period.
Total streamflow
Sum of all monitored streamgauges · daily
Every streamgauge along the Little Bighorn River
All 2 USGS gauges Snoflo tracks for this river, with current flow, stage, recent change, percent of normal, and the gauge's all-time min / max. Click any header to sort. Cells are heatmapped relative to the column min/max -- darker blue = higher.
| Streamgauge▾ | Streamflow (cfs)▾ | Gauge stage (ft)▾ | 24h Δ (%)▾ | % Normal▾ | Min (cfs)▾ | Max (cfs)▾ | Elevation (ft)▾ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Little Bighorn River At State Line Nr Wyola Mt
MT
USGS 06289000
|
175 | 2.46 | 1.7 | 38% | 0 | 1,890 | 4,332 |
|
Little Bighorn River Near Hardin Mt
MT
USGS 06294000
|
229 | 3.03 | 6.0 | 36% | 6 | 5,680 | 2,894 |
Maximum streamflow discharge by year
The single highest aggregate discharge recorded each year. Spotting the multi-year trend reveals droughts vs. wet cycles long before the headline daily flow does.
Annual peak discharge
From the river's full record · one point per water year
Streamflow elevation profile
Each bubble is one gauge along the river, plotted by current streamflow (x-axis) vs elevation (y-axis), sized by gauge stage. Reading top-to-bottom traces the river from headwaters down to its mouth -- you can see flow accumulate as elevation drops.
Elevation vs streamflow
One point per monitored gauge · bubble size = gauge stage
Little Bighorn River
The Little Bighorn River is a 138-mile-long tributary of the Bighorn River in Montana and Wyoming. The river is most well-known for its significance in Native American history as the site of the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876. The river originates in Wyoming's Bighorn Mountains and flows into Montana, where it joins the Bighorn River. The Little Bighorn River is fed by several tributaries, including the Nowood River and the Crazy Woman Creek. There are no dams or reservoirs on the Little Bighorn River, but there are several irrigation diversions for agriculture. The river is also popular for recreational activities, such as fishing, boating, and camping.
Recreation along the Little Bighorn River
Fishing access and paddle runs Snoflo tracks within the watershed.
Fishing
- Tongue River Fishing Site
- Tongue River Fishing East
- Tongue River Fishing West
- Bighorn Lake
- Big Horn Lake
- Sheridan Fairgrounds Pond
Paddle runs
- Wagon Box Creek To Dry Fork Trail
- Dry Fork River From Its Confluence With Lake Creek To Confluence With Little Big Horn
- Fools Gold Crossing (Fdr 480) To Wagon Box Creek
- Nf Tongue From Burgess Picnic Ground To Pole Creek
- Sf Tongue- Johnson Creek To Confluence With Nf Tongue
- Bridge At Tongue River Canyon To Burgess Picnic Grounds
Track the Little Bighorn River in the Snoflo app
Set per-gauge push alerts (e.g. "alert me when flow at the Russian R Nr Healdsburg crosses 5,000 cfs"), and Snoflo's iOS app pushes the moment USGS reports the crossing.
About the Little Bighorn River
Where does the data for the Little Bighorn River come from?
Streamflow and gauge stage data are sourced from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water Information System. The aggregate flow shown at the top of the page is computed by Snoflo as the sum of all monitored gauges along the river.
How is "percent of normal" calculated?
Today's aggregate streamflow is compared to the historical average aggregate streamflow on this calendar day across the river's full record. 100% means right on average; values above 100% indicate above-normal flow (wet year); values below indicate below-normal (dry year or drought).
Why are some gauges showing very different flows?
Gauges along a river measure flow at different points: headwater gauges read what's coming off the snowpack or mountain runoff; downstream gauges integrate everything upstream, including tributary inputs. Wide spreads usually mean a tributary is contributing significantly between gauges.
What's the elevation profile chart showing?
Each bubble is one gauge along the river, plotted by streamflow (x-axis) and elevation (y-axis), sized by gauge stage. Reading top-down traces the river from headwaters to mouth -- you can see flow build as elevation drops.
Can I get alerts when a specific gauge crosses a threshold?
Yes -- alerts are managed in the Snoflo iOS app on a per-gauge basis. Open any individual streamgauge from the table above and favorite it to set a discharge threshold.