How our reports are made

54 waters across 13 provinces and territories, 24 of them tied to a Water Survey of Canada station and 18 with a modelled tide curve. Every number on those pages is in the table below with its source. Reviewed 2026-09-25.

Every figure and where it comes from

FigureSourceKindRefreshed
River or lake water level, in metresEnvironment and Climate Change Canada, Water Survey of Canada real-time hydrometric data (GeoMet OGC API), the station’s latest reading; relative to the station’s datum unless the station publishes an elevationMeasuredEvery 30 minutes
River flow (discharge), in cubic metres per secondThe same station’s latest discharge value, where the station measures itMeasuredEvery 30 minutes
The 30-day level or flow chartThe same station, last 30 days of provisional real-time data, one value per local dayMeasuredEvery 6 hours
High and low tide times and heightsOpen-Meteo Marine, sea level height including tides, hourly, turning points of the curve; datum global mean sea levelModelEvery 6 hours
Air temperature, high and lowOpen-Meteo daily forecast at the water’s coordinates, in degrees CelsiusModelEvery 30 minutes
Wind speed, gusts and directionOpen-Meteo current and daily, in kilometres per hourModelEvery 30 minutes
Cloud cover and rain probabilityOpen-Meteo current and dailyModelEvery 30 minutes
Barometric pressure and its trendOpen-Meteo hourly mean sea-level pressure, shown in kilopascalsModelEvery 30 minutes
Sunrise and sunsetOpen-Meteo daily, in the water’s own timezoneModelEvery 30 minutes
Moon phase and illuminationAstronomical calculation from the date, on this siteComputed herePer request
Solunar majors and minorsAstronomical calculation from the date and the coordinates, on this siteComputed herePer request
Seasonal water temperatureA monthly curve for the water’s profile, written for Canadian waters with the months under ice, held on this site; an estimate, labelled as such on every pageComputed hereFixed
The activity score out of fiveOur scoring rules applied to the readings aboveComputed herePer report
The species plan and ratingsThe water’s Canadian species profile crossed with the month and the temperature bandComputed herePer report
Coordinates and names of watersThe Water Survey of Canada station for gauged waters; otherwise the Canadian Geographical Names Database (Natural Resources Canada), by APIMeasuredFixed; re-read when the inventory grows
Fishing licence fees and rulesThe page of the agency that sells the licence, read on the date stamped on each provincial pageMeasuredRe-read when the agency changes its schedule
Measured
An instrument in the water, or a figure published by the agency that owns it.
Predicted
A harmonic prediction, not a reading taken today.
Model
A numerical model: a weather forecast, or a sea-level curve. Accurate in the open, less so in inlets and sounds, and never an observation.
Computed here
Arithmetic or astronomy performed on this site from the inputs named.

What we deliberately do not use

Canadian Hydrographic Service tides and water levels
Their licence does not allow derivative products for commercial purposes. We link tides.gc.ca for the official times and use a labelled model on the coastal pages; Great Lakes levels, which are theirs, are not shown.
British Columbia and Saskatchewan stocking records
Their terms require written permission to reuse them. Nothing from them appears here.
Catch reports from tackle shops, guides and lodges
They are somebody else’s observations. We do not reproduce or paraphrase them; angler reports on this site are written by the anglers themselves and moderated.

Licence pages and their sources

ProvinceAgencyRead onPage
British ColumbiaBC Freshwater Fishing2026-09-25source
OntarioOntario MNR2026-09-25source
AlbertaAlberta2026-09-25source
SaskatchewanSaskatchewan2026-09-25source
ManitobaManitoba2026-09-25source
New BrunswickNew Brunswick2026-09-25source
Nova ScotiaNova Scotia2026-09-25source

Common questions

Where does the water level on a river page come from?

From Environment and Climate Change Canada’s Water Survey of Canada real-time data, published under the ECCC Data Services End-use Licence; each page names its station and prints the time of the latest reading. The data is provisional until the Water Survey reviews it.

Is the level an elevation above sea level?

Usually not. Many stations measure against their own local datum, so the number shows change over time rather than height above sea level; a few lake stations publish an elevation.

Are the tides on the coastal pages official?

No. They are the turning points of a modelled sea-level curve from Open-Meteo Marine, and every page says so. The Canadian Hydrographic Service publishes the official predictions at tides.gc.ca.

Does this site say whether the ice is safe?

No. No agency measures the ice on these lakes for anglers, and neither do we; every ice-fishing page says to check the ice yourself and follow local warnings.

Who stands behind this page

Pablo Ruiz Quintero
Founder and editor
The text is written and checked by the site’s author against the official sources listed on each page. It has not yet been reviewed by a Canadian angler or editor; when it is, this page will say who and when.
Errors
Verification log
Every figure that failed a check, including ours, with the date.