How high is the Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL right now?

The Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL is currently flowing at 1 cubic feet per second with a gage height of 1.85 feet, based on the most recent USGS instantaneous reading.

Is the flow on the Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL normal for this time of year?

Current flow is classified as very low for June 11. Today's discharge is at the 9th percentile compared to the long-term historical record at this gauge.

Is the Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL at flood stage?

No — the gage height is 4.15 feet below the NWS flood-stage threshold of 6.0 feet.

What is the historical median flow for the Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL on June 11?

The long-term median discharge for this date is 6 cfs based on USGS daily statistics. The 10th–95th percentile range historically is 1 to 106 cfs.

Where is the Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL stream gauge located?

The Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL stream gauge is operated by the USGS in Lake County, IL on the Skokie River. USGS site number 05535000 (coordinates 42.2325, -87.8453).

Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL

USGS Site No: 05535000 • Skokie River • Lake County, IL

Skokie River at Lake Forest, IL on the Skokie River is currently at 1 cfs (Very Low — 9th percentile for this date) . Gage height: 1.85 ft.

Reading from 1 week ago

Downstream on Skokie River ↓

Skokie River Near Highland Park, IL

CFS Discharge

1.85

Gage Height (ft)

Very Low

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	1	Today: 1 cfs
25th	Low threshold	3
50th (Median)	Normal (median)	6
75th	High threshold	17
95th	Very High threshold	106

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	1	1.89
May 27, 2026	2	1.95
May 26, 2026	5	2.07
May 25, 2026	10	2.20
May 24, 2026	14	2.24
May 23, 2026	2	1.91
May 20, 2026	3	1.96
May 18, 2026	8	2.15
May 17, 2026	7	2.12
May 16, 2026	7	2.11
May 15, 2026	4	2.02
Apr 20, 2026	56	2.79
Apr 19, 2026	79	3.03
Apr 18, 2026	145	3.64
Apr 17, 2026	83	3.06
Apr 16, 2026	107	3.29
Apr 15, 2026	132	3.52
Apr 14, 2026	28	2.49
Apr 13, 2026	15	2.31
Apr 12, 2026	11	2.24
Apr 11, 2026	15	2.31
Apr 10, 2026	21	2.40
Apr 9, 2026	10	2.21
Apr 8, 2026	12	2.26
Apr 7, 2026	16	2.32
Apr 6, 2026	28	2.49
Apr 5, 2026	57	2.80
Apr 4, 2026	74	2.98
Apr 3, 2026	86	3.09
Apr 2, 2026	84	3.08

Station Information

USGS Site No: 05535000
State: IL
County: Lake County
Coordinates: 42.2325, -87.8453
Drainage Area: 13 mi²
Datum (ft): 648.5
HUC Code: 07120003

View on USGS NWIS →

Flood Stage Thresholds

Action Stage: 4.0 ft
Flood Stage: 6.0 ft
Moderate Flood: 8.5 ft
Major Flood: 10.5 ft

Currently 4.15 ft below flood stage.

Recent Extremes

Max discharge: 145 cfs

Apr 18, 2026
Min discharge: 0 cfs

Sep 7, 2025
Days at flood stage: 0

Computed from the local daily-values archive.

Nearby Gauges

Des Plaines River at Lincolnshire, IL
4.4 mi · 121 cfs

Low
Skokie River Near Highland Park, IL
5.6 mi · 1 cfs

Very Low
North Branch Chicago River at Deerfield, IL
5.7 mi · 3 cfs

Normal
Wf Of Nb Chicago River at Northbrook IL
6.5 mi · 5 cfs

Normal
Buffalo Creek Near Wheeling, IL
8.0 mi · 8 cfs

Normal