Marais des Cygnes River level at Melvern
Kansas · Fishing & wading
Measured at USGS 06911000 — MARAIS DES CYGNES R AT MELVERN, KS
Reading taken · as of 43 min ago
Up and off-colour — heavier water than usual for wading
At 68 CFS, this gauge is in the highest quarter of the 55 years USGS has recorded for this date (1940–2026), at 325% of the 21 CFS median.
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Flow history at Melvern
Daily values from USGS 06911000, updated every 15 to 60 minutes. Provisional.
About Marais des Cygnes River at Melvern
In Kansas, below Melvern 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 Melvern Lake. A full pool usually means more water on its way down.
Marais des Cygnes River at Melvern — common questions
3 questions
How do releases from Melvern 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 Marais des Cygnes River at Melvern high or low for this time of year?
The USGS median flow for late September here is 21 CFS, from 55 years of record (1940–2026). Today sits in the highest quarter of those years, at 325% 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 06911000 every 15 to 60 minutes. This page refreshes from USGS when you open it, and the reading is provisional until USGS reviews it. The timestamp is in the gauge's local time.