Willamette River at Salem, OR

Willamette Valley & Cascades · USGS gauge 14191000 · Updated Oct 24, 3:19 AM PDT · USGS data, provisional

Fishable/Floatable6,850 cfs● steady (-1% in 24 h)

Reading time: Oct 24, 3:10 AM PDT · Provisional data

Flow is in a typical range for the date. Rivers are generally easiest to fish and float when they are near their normal flow, but this status says nothing about water clarity, hatches, hazards such as wood in the river, or dam releases.

Vs. normal for this date
22nd percentile
Typical range (25th–75th)
7,470–15,200 cfs
Median for this date
11,300 cfs
7-day low / high
6,670 / 7,030 cfs

Plain-language explanation

Willamette River at Salem is flowing at 6,850 cubic feet per second (cfs) as of Oct 24, 3:10 AM PDT. That is on the low side for this time of year: lower than about 78% of the daily flows this gauge has recorded for this date (give or take 7 days) over 111 years of record (1909–2026).

The middle half of those historical flows runs from 7,470 to 15,200 cfs, with a median of 11,300 cfs; the lowest 10% of days are at or below 4,130 cfs and the highest 10% at or above 21,400 cfs.

Over the last 24 hours the flow has been steady (-0.9%). In the last 7 days it ranged from 6,670 to 7,030 cfs.

Regulated flow: upstream dams or diversions influence this gauge, so the “normal range” above reflects managed flows and can differ from natural river behavior.

Why this status: Flow is within the range this gauge normally sees at this time of year (or the deviation is too small in absolute terms to matter).

7-day trend

6,5316,6756,8206,9657,109Sun 10/18Mon 10/19Tue 10/20Wed 10/21Thu 10/22Fri 10/23Sat 10/24

Hourly flow in cfs, Pacific time. The shaded band is the typical range (25th–75th percentile) for this date, shown when it falls within the chart.

Day (Pacific)Mean cfsPercentileStatus that day
Sun Oct 186,71223rdFishable/Floatable
Mon Oct 196,86123rdFishable/Floatable
Tue Oct 206,91723rdFishable/Floatable
Wed Oct 216,79622ndFishable/Floatable
Thu Oct 226,89122ndFishable/Floatable
Fri Oct 236,89022ndFishable/Floatable
Sat Oct 24 (so far)6,85322ndFishable/Floatable

Seasonal context

1,0002,0005,00010,00020,00050,000100,000JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

Shaded band: 10th–90th percentile of daily flows through the year; dashed line: median. Log scale. Dot: today's flow. Based on 111 years of USGS daily data (1909–2026).

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About this gauge

USGS site
USGS-14191000
USGS name
Willamette River At Salem, Or
Drainage area
7,280 sq mi
Location
44.9443, -123.0429
Record in this analysis
1909–2026

Typical uses

boatingbasssalmon

Notes: Large river; flows are influenced by reservoirs on several tributaries. (Hand-written general note, not from USGS data.)

Data from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Readings are provisional and subject to revision. Flowcast statuses are automated comparisons with each gauge's own history, not safety ratings or fishing reports. Check local conditions, weather, regulations and closures before you go. Rivers can change quickly.

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