Kennebec River level at The Forks
Maine · Paddling & whitewater
Measured at USGS 01042500 — Kennebec River at The Forks, Maine · NWS forecast point FRKM1
Reading taken · as of 28 min ago
Too low for most boats — rocky and technical
At 438 CFS, this gauge is in the lowest 5% of the 122 years USGS has recorded for this date (1904–2026), at 21% of the 2,080 CFS median.
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Flow history at The Forks
Daily values from USGS 01042500, updated every 15 to 60 minutes; NWS forecast for FRKM1 reissued through the day. Provisional.
Highest crests on record at The Forks
12 on record
| Stage | Flow | Date |
|---|---|---|
| 14.41 ft | 28,300 CFS | Apr 18, 1983 |
| 13.78 ft | 30,300 CFS | Jun 1, 1984 |
| 12.68 ft | 24,900 CFS | Dec 22, 1973 |
| 11.06 ft | 21,600 CFS | Sep 25, 1981 |
| 11.01 ft | 21,500 CFS | May 21, 1969 |
| 10.95 ft | 20,600 CFS | Dec 19, 2023 |
| 10.70 ft | 18,900 CFS | Apr 28, 1945 |
| 10.58 ft | 18,700 CFS | May 9, 1947 |
| 10.37 ft | 20,200 CFS | Jun 19, 1969 |
| 10.10 ft | 23,700 CFS | Jun 18, 1917 |
Crests published by the National Weather Service.
About Kennebec River at The Forks
123 years of daily statistics stand behind the comparison on this page, covering 1904 to 2026, with the series itself opening on 1 October 1903 and now running to 44,917 daily values. That is the deepest record in this batch by a wide margin.
What it shows is a river that does not swing much. The published monthly medians run from 1,540 CFS in November to 3,610 in May, a little over two to one, on a 1,590 square mile drainage at 568 feet of elevation. The full daily record fits between 161 CFS on 30 August 1987 and 28,200 CFS on 1 June 1984. The largest of the 124 annual peaks on file is 32,900 CFS at 14.41 feet, on 18 April 1983.
Kennebec River at The Forks — common questions
6 questions
How much flood information does this page carry?
The crest list but not the ladder. The NWS forecast point at The Forks publishes no action, minor, moderate or major flood stages, so there is no distance-from-flood figure here. It does publish twelve historical crests, led by 14.41 feet in April 1983, 13.78 feet in June 1984 and 12.68 feet in December 1973.
Is there a peer gauge for comparison?
No. The nearest gauge on this site that reports discharge is the Saco at Conway, 108.5 miles away, and the peer comparison used elsewhere on the site is limited to 70 miles. Nothing in Maine is close enough, so this page carries no correlation figure.
Does the record show a clear spring peak?
A modest one, and it lands later than you might expect. May is the high month at a median of 3,610 CFS, with June at 2,790 and April at only 2,200, below both February and March. The low months are October and November, at 1,790 and 1,540. Across 123 years the whole annual range is about 2,070 CFS.
How fast can Kennebec River at The Forks come up?
Fast. It is free-flowing, so rain upstream moves it directly. Several feet in a few hours is normal after a heavy storm.
Is Kennebec River at The Forks high or low for this time of year?
The USGS median flow for late September here is 2,080 CFS, from 122 years of record (1904–2026). Today sits in the lowest 5% of those years, at 21% of the median. 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 01042500 every 15 to 60 minutes, and the National Weather Service reissues the flood forecast for FRKM1 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.