Passaic River Flow
As of 2026-09-14, the Passaic River is flowing at a combined 4,151 cfs across 4 USGS streamgauges — 235% of normal for this time of year, versus a seasonal average of 1,768 cfs.
Total streamflow across the Passaic River was last observed at 4,151 cfs, and is expected to yield approximately 8,233 acre-ft of water today; about 235% of normal. River levels are high. Average streamflow for this time of year is 1,768 cfs, with recent peaks last observed on 2011-08-30 when daily discharge volume was observed at 32,060 cfs.
Maximum discharge along the river is currently at the Passaic River At Little Falls Nj reporting a streamflow rate of 2,520 cfs. However, the streamgauge with the highest stage along the river is the Passaic River At Pine Brook Nj with a gauge stage of 17.55 ft. This river is monitored from 4 different streamgauging stations along the Passaic River, the highest being situated at an altitude of 232 ft, the Passaic River Near Millington Nj.
River streamflow levels
Daily aggregate streamflow across every monitored gauge along the Passaic River. Use the range buttons to zoom in on a specific period.
Total streamflow
Sum of all monitored streamgauges · daily
Every streamgauge along the Passaic River
All 4 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)▾ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Passaic River Near Millington Nj
NJ
USGS 01379000
|
120 | 5.42 | 488.2 | 714% | 1 | 2,020 | 232 |
|
Passaic River Near Chatham Nj
NJ
USGS 01379500
|
161 | 4.05 | 315.0 | 377% | 11 | 2,610 | 199 |
|
Passaic River At Pine Brook Nj
NJ
USGS 01381900
|
1,350 | 17.55 | 788.2 | 623% | 26 | 7,030 | 167 |
|
Passaic River At Little Falls Nj
NJ
USGS 01389500
|
2,520 | 3.94 | 806.5 | 1235% | 30 | 20,400 | 131 |
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
Recreation along the Passaic River
Fishing access and paddle runs Snoflo tracks within the watershed.
Track the Passaic 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 Passaic River
How is the Passaic River flowing right now?
As of 2026-09-14, the Passaic River is flowing at a combined 4,151 cfs across its USGS streamgauges, about 235% of normal for this date. The live per-gauge breakdown and 24-hour trend are shown above.
Is the Passaic River running high or low right now?
Check the percent-of-normal figure on this page: above 100% means the river is running higher than its seasonal average for the date, below 100% means lower. The per-gauge table shows which reaches are highest and lowest.
Where does the data for the Passaic 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.