Raritan River river
Total streamflow across the Raritan River was last observed at 223 cfs, and is expected to yield approximately 442 acre-ft of water today; about 11% of normal. River levels are low and may signify a drought. Average streamflow for this time of year is 1,968 cfs, with recent peaks last observed on 2021-09-02 when daily discharge volume was observed at 108,800 cfs.
Maximum discharge along the river is currently at the Raritan River At Manville Nj reporting a streamflow rate of 223 cfs. However, the streamgauge with the highest stage along the river is the Raritan River Below Calco Dam At Bound Brook Nj with a gauge stage of 16.82 ft. This river is monitored from 2 different streamgauging stations along the Raritan River, the highest being situated at an altitude of 43 ft, the Raritan River At Manville Nj.
River streamflow levels
Daily aggregate streamflow across every monitored gauge along the Raritan River. Use the range buttons to zoom in on a specific period.
Total streamflow
Sum of all monitored streamgauges · daily
Every streamgauge along the Raritan 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)▾ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Raritan River At Manville Nj
NJ
USGS 01400500
|
223 | 4.09 | -7.7 | 38% | 108 | 51,300 | 43 |
|
Raritan River Below Calco Dam At Bound Brook Nj
NJ
USGS 01403060
|
214 | 16.82 | -24.4 | 25% | 58 | 70,800 | 18 |
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
Raritan River
The Raritan River is a 90-mile long river in central New Jersey that flows through several counties, including Somerset and Middlesex. It has a long history, dating back to the Lenape Native Americans who used the river for transportation and fishing. Today, the river is used for a variety of purposes including agricultural irrigation, drinking water supply, and recreation. The river is fed by several small tributaries, and it is dammed in several places to create reservoirs for water supply. Some of the major reservoirs on the Raritan include the Round Valley Reservoir and the Spruce Run Reservoir. The river is popular for fishing, kayaking, and boating, and it is an important habitat for several species of fish and wildlife.
Track the Raritan 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 Raritan River
Where does the data for the Raritan 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.