How high is the Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd right now?

The Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd is currently flowing at 32 cubic feet per second with a gage height of 4.22 feet, based on the most recent USGS instantaneous reading.

Is the flow on the Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd normal for this time of year?

Current flow is classified as normal for June 11. Today's discharge is at the 53th percentile compared to the long-term historical record at this gauge.

Is the Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd at flood stage?

No — the gage height is 5.78 feet below the NWS flood-stage threshold of 10.0 feet.

What is the historical median flow for the Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd on June 11?

The long-term median discharge for this date is 27 cfs based on USGS daily statistics. The 10th–95th percentile range historically is 2 to 272 cfs.

Where is the Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd stream gauge located?

The Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd stream gauge is operated by the USGS in Codington County, SD on the Big Sioux River. USGS site number 06479438 (coordinates 45.0061, -97.1651).

Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd

USGS Site No: 06479438 • Big Sioux River • Codington County, SD

Big Sioux River Near Watertown,sd on the Big Sioux River is currently at 32 cfs (Normal — 53th percentile for this date) . Gage height: 4.22 ft.

Reading from 1 week ago

↑ Upstream on Big Sioux River

Big Sioux River Near Florence,sd

Downstream on Big Sioux River ↓

Big Sioux River at Watertown,sd

CFS Discharge

4.22

Gage Height (ft)

Normal

Flow Condition

Normal

Flood Status

Historical Percentile Comparison

Today's discharge compared to the long-term record for June 11 at this station. Percentile rank shows what fraction of historical years had lower flow on this date.

Percentile	Label	CFS Threshold	Today's Flow
10th	Very Low threshold	2
25th	Low threshold	7
50th (Median)	Normal (median)	27
75th	High threshold	74	Today: 32 cfs
95th	Very High threshold	272

30-Day Hydrograph

Recent discharge plotted against the historical 10th–95th percentile envelope for the same calendar days. Source: USGS daily values + long-term statistics.

10th–95th historical Day-of-year median Recent discharge

30-Day Flow History

Date	Discharge (CFS)	Gage Ht (ft)
May 28, 2026	38	4.30
May 27, 2026	43	4.36
May 26, 2026	40	4.32
May 25, 2026	41	4.34
May 24, 2026	41	4.33
May 23, 2026	38	4.30
May 22, 2026	32	4.22
May 21, 2026	30	4.19
May 20, 2026	31	4.21
May 19, 2026	30	4.20
May 18, 2026	26	4.14
May 17, 2026	23	4.10
May 16, 2026	23	4.11
May 15, 2026	25	4.13
Apr 20, 2026	72	4.55
Apr 19, 2026	75	4.58
Apr 18, 2026	80	4.64
Apr 17, 2026	87	4.71
Apr 16, 2026	91	4.75
Apr 15, 2026	92	4.76
Apr 14, 2026	89	4.73
Apr 13, 2026	83	4.67
Apr 12, 2026	79	4.63
Apr 11, 2026	77	4.60
Apr 10, 2026	81	4.65
Apr 9, 2026	88	4.73
Apr 8, 2026	98	4.83
Apr 7, 2026	93	4.78
Apr 6, 2026	79	4.63
Apr 5, 2026	71	4.54

Station Information

USGS Site No: 06479438
State: SD
County: Codington County
Coordinates: 45.0061, -97.1651
Drainage Area: 525 mi²
Datum (ft): 1,726.7
HUC Code: 10170201

View on USGS NWIS →

Flood Stage Thresholds

Action Stage: 9.0 ft
Flood Stage: 10.0 ft
Moderate Flood: 11.0 ft
Major Flood: 12.0 ft

Currently 5.78 ft below flood stage.

Recent Extremes

Max discharge: 965 cfs

Jun 28, 2025
Min discharge: 16 cfs

May 14, 2025
Days at flood stage: 0

Computed from the local daily-values archive.

Nearby Gauges

Big Sioux River at Watertown,sd
4.5 mi · 73 cfs

Normal
Willow Creek Near Watertown,sd
8.4 mi · 0 cfs

Unknown
Big Sioux River Near Florence,sd
12.1 mi · 5 cfs

Normal
Big Sioux River Below Watertown, SD
12.3 mi · 21 cfs

Low
Big Sioux River Near Castlewood,sd
19.9 mi · 101 cfs

Normal