Elk River level at Elk City
Kansas · Fishing & wading
Measured at USGS 07170060 — ELK R BL ELK CITY LK, KS · NWS forecast point ELCK1
Reading taken · as of 1 hour ago
Up and off-colour — heavier water than usual for wading
At 17 CFS, this gauge is running 171% of normal for mid-September — above the 10 CFS median USGS has recorded for this date across 38 years of record (1966–2026).
Sponsor Elk River
One exclusive sponsor per river, on every gauge page for it.
Cancel anytime · Questions?
Flow history at Elk City
Daily values from USGS 07170060, updated every 15 to 60 minutes; NWS forecast for ELCK1 reissued through the day. Provisional.
About Elk River at Elk City
In Kansas, below Elk City Lake. Releases can change the flow by hundreds of CFS in an hour with no rain in the basin — check it the morning you go, not the night before.
Reservoir feeding this stretch
Flow here is set by releases from Elk City Lake. A full pool usually means more water on its way down.
Elk River at Elk City — common questions
3 questions
How do releases from Elk City Lake affect this stretch?
Directly and fast. When the dam generates, flow here can climb by an order of magnitude within the hour, with no rain anywhere in the basin. That sudden release is the real hazard on a tailwater. The pool level is on lakelvl.com, linked below.
Is Elk River at Elk City high or low for this time of year?
The USGS median flow for mid-September here is 10 CFS, from 38 years of record (1966–2026). Today is 171% of it. The comparison is what makes the raw number mean anything: the same reading is a drought on one river and a flood on another.
How often does this reading update?
USGS transmits from gauge 07170060 every 15 to 60 minutes, and the National Weather Service reissues the flood forecast for ELCK1 a few times a day — more often when the river is rising. This page refreshes from both when you open it. The timestamp is in the gauge's local time.