Wet water, not paper water.

Reservoir storage, basin rollups, drought class and allocations, pulled from the public record every day and compared to what is normal. One brief a week. No forecasts, no spin.

Data through Oct 15, 2026 · updated Oct 17, 2026

Latest issue · Oct 15, 2026

Blue Mesa Closes WY2026 at 140,029 af, 64% Below the Five-Year Median

Blue Mesa closes the water year at 140,029 af, 64% below the five-year median, the furthest below normal of tracked reservoirs this week. Dolores and San Juan flows surge week over week.

Read the brief →

Furthest below normal

All reservoirs →

Blue Mesa Reservoir water level

Live reservoir storage and water level in Gunnison-Colorado basin, Colorado

139,818 af · Oct 15, 2026

-65% vs 5-yr median

Willamette River at Portland streamflow

Daily mean discharge, Willamette-Columbia basin, Oregon

7,720 cfs · Oct 15, 2026

-34% vs 5-yr median

Gunnison River below Gunnison Tunnel streamflow

Daily mean discharge, Gunnison-Colorado basin, Colorado

240 cfs · Oct 15, 2026

-31% vs 5-yr median

Lake Powell water level

Live reservoir storage and water level in Colorado (Upper) basin, Arizona / Utah

5.25M af · Oct 15, 2026

-27% vs 5-yr median

Lake Mead water level

Live reservoir storage and water level in Colorado (Lower) basin, Nevada / Arizona

6.81M af · Oct 15, 2026

-22% vs 5-yr median

Boysen Reservoir water level

Live reservoir storage and water level in Wind-Bighorn-Missouri basin, Wyoming

504,275 af · Oct 15, 2026

-20% vs 5-yr median

Flaming Gorge Reservoir water level

Live reservoir storage and water level in Green-Colorado basin, Utah / Wyoming

2.46M af · Oct 15, 2026

-18% vs 5-yr median

Elephant Butte Reservoir water level

Live reservoir storage and water level in Rio Grande basin, New Mexico

94,701 af · Oct 15, 2026

-17% vs 5-yr median

The West on one map

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Drought by state, storage at each dam — color is condition vs the 5-yr median. Explore the full map →

The data

Reservoirs

Storage vs the historical normal for major western reservoirs.

Drought

Drought by western state, week over week, with the counties we track on each state's page.

Allocations

CVP and SWP allocation announcements, as they land.

Streamflow

Daily mean discharge at basin-representative gauges.

Snowpack

Snow water equivalent vs the 1991-2020 median, by state and river basin.