Around here
Around West Fork Cedar River
Public land: USGS PAD-US
About this river
West Fork Cedar River is a 61.9 mile river near Sunset Bay Marina in Iowa. Streamflow is measured at the USGS gauge West Fork Cedar River at Finchford, IA (site 05458900). The National Hydrography Dataset places it at stream order 5. Reach geometry comes from the USGS National Hydrography Dataset.
Typical flow by month
1946 to 2026
West Fork Cedar River typically runs highest in April, at a median 730 cfs, and lowest in February, at 113 cfs. The highest flow on record for any single day is 25,100 cfs, in 1951.
Show the numbers
| Month | Typical (cfs) | Usual range (cfs) |
|---|---|---|
| January | 119 | 64 to 260 |
| February | 113 | 71 to 342 |
| March | 595 | 236 to 1,310 |
| April | 730 | 370 to 1,440 |
| May | 685 | 341 to 1,370 |
| June | 700 | 305 to 1,540 |
| July | 487 | 201 to 956 |
| August | 199 | 113 to 370 |
| September | 143 | 75 to 326 |
| October | 174 | 75 to 430 |
| November | 217 | 105 to 429 |
| December | 175 | 88 to 360 |
Typical is the median of each month’s daily median values, and the usual range runs from the median 25th to the median 75th percentile, across about 81 years of record. Statistics published by the US Geological Survey for West Fork Cedar River at Finchford, IA (site 05458900). Conditions on any given day can fall well outside the usual range. Check the current reading before you go.
Boat access nearby
8 mapped launches sit in the mapped area of West Fork Cedar River, all of them public access. Ramp data comes from the USGS national boat-ramp inventory.
- Washington Union AccessWest Fork Cedar RiverPublic
- Big Marsh Wildlife AreaBig Marsh Wildlife Area waterPublic
- Big Marsh Wildlife AreaBig Marsh Wildlife Area waterPublic
- Big Marsh Wildlife AreaBig Marsh Wildlife Area waterPublic
- Big Marsh Wildlife AreaWest Fork Cedar RiverPublic
- Shell Rock ParkShell Rock RiverPublic
- Camp ComfortShell Rock RiverPublic
- North Cedar ParkCedar RiverPublic
Embed this gauge on your site
Paste this snippet anywhere, an outfitter page, a club site, a trip report, to show West Fork Cedar River's live streamflow, water level and 7-day trend. It reads the USGS gauge directly, updates itself, and links back here.
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