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Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove

Highest listed crest 14.26 ftFlood stage 11.0 ft60 crests since 1960

The Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove crested above flood stage 20 times among the 60 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1960 to 2024. The highest, 14.26 ft on September 26, 1986, was moderate flooding, 3.26 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
14.26 ft
September 26, 1986; 2,910 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
11.0 ft
Major flooding from 15.0 ft
Crests at major
0
20 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
September 14, 2019
13.84 ft, moderate flooding
Location
McHenry County
Near Fox Lake (3.4 mi), McHenry (7.7 mi), Salem Lakes (8.7 mi)

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove
Action stage8.032Jul 17, 2024The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)11.013Mar 14, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage13.07Sep 14, 2019Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage15.00—Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

60 crests from 1960 to 2024. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove, 1960 to 2024 6810121416ft Flood stage 11.0 ftMajor 15.0 ft Apr 5, 1960: 13.70 ft, moderate floodingFeb 10, 1966: 11.67 ft, minor flooding; 1,810 cubic feet per secondJun 12, 1967: 12.62 ft, minor flooding; 2,120 cubic feet per secondJul 18, 1969: 8.47 ft, action stage; 931 cubic feet per secondSep 19, 1970: 8.03 ft, action stage; 799 cubic feet per secondFeb 20, 1971: 13.03 ft, moderate flooding; 2,430 cubic feet per secondSep 21, 1972: 10.29 ft, action stage; 1,360 cubic feet per secondMay 3, 1973: 10.56 ft, action stage; 1,610 cubic feet per secondMay 17, 1974: 11.97 ft, minor flooding; 1,990 cubic feet per secondMar 20, 1975: 8.90 ft, action stage; 1,040 cubic feet per secondMar 6, 1976: 12.35 ft, minor flooding; 2,120 cubic feet per secondJul 4, 1978: 9.08 ft, action stage; 1,020 cubic feet per secondMar 21, 1979: 11.55 ft, minor flooding; 1,820 cubic feet per secondSep 18, 1980: 7.37 ft, below flood stage; 648 cubic feet per secondApr 12, 1981: 6.96 ft, below flood stage; 578 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 1983: 11.57 ft, minor flooding; 1,820 cubic feet per secondFeb 14, 1984: 9.83 ft, action stage; 1,280 cubic feet per secondFeb 25, 1985: 8.66 ft, action stage; 962 cubic feet per secondSep 26, 1986: 14.26 ft, moderate flooding; 2,910 cubic feet per secondFeb 1, 1988: 9.25 ft, action stage; 1,270 cubic feet per secondSep 2, 1989: 6.69 ft, below flood stage; 603 cubic feet per secondMar 12, 1990: 8.52 ft, action stage; 866 cubic feet per secondMar 29, 1991: 9.45 ft, action stage; 1,180 cubic feet per secondJul 1, 1993: 12.73 ft, minor flooding; 2,230 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 1994: 13.66 ft, moderate flooding; 2,830 cubic feet per secondApr 28, 1995: 7.82 ft, below flood stage; 715 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 1996: 9.62 ft, action stage; 1,200 cubic feet per secondFeb 22, 1997: 11.44 ft, minor flooding; 1,770 cubic feet per secondJun 29, 1998: 8.32 ft, action stage; 758 cubic feet per secondJun 15, 1999: 13.73 ft, moderate flooding; 2,870 cubic feet per secondJun 14, 2000: 13.71 ft, moderate flooding; 2,860 cubic feet per secondFeb 26, 2001: 9.59 ft, action stage; 1,200 cubic feet per secondJun 6, 2002: 8.47 ft, action stage; 893 cubic feet per secondMay 24, 2004: 9.84 ft, action stage; 1,270 cubic feet per secondFeb 15, 2005: 8.37 ft, action stage; 868 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 2006: 6.92 ft, below flood stage; 537 cubic feet per secondAug 22, 2007: 11.34 ft, minor flooding; 1,740 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 2008: 10.88 ft, action stage; 1,590 cubic feet per secondDec 29, 2008: 10.33 ft, action stage; 1,410 cubic feet per secondMay 16, 2010: 8.81 ft, action stage; 981 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 2011: 7.37 ft, below flood stage; 633 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 2012: 6.87 ft, below flood stage; 527 cubic feet per secondApr 19, 2013: 12.42 ft, minor flooding; 2,140 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 2014: 8.84 ft, action stage; 1,060 cubic feet per secondJul 19, 2015: 9.82 ft, action stage; 1,380 cubic feet per secondNov 28, 2015: 8.16 ft, action stage; 906 cubic feet per secondJul 13, 2017: 10.30 ft, action stage; 1,340 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 2018: 12.14 ft, minor flooding; 2,060 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 2018: 11.19 ft, minor flooding; 1,750 cubic feet per secondSep 5, 2018: 10.54 ft, action stage; 1,560 cubic feet per secondOct 8, 2018: 9.64 ft, action stage; 1,300 cubic feet per secondMar 14, 2019: 11.47 ft, minor flooding; 1,830 cubic feet per secondSep 14, 2019: 13.84 ft, moderate flooding; 2,950 cubic feet per secondOct 4, 2019: 10.50 ft, action stage; 1,540 cubic feet per secondMar 30, 2020: 9.10 ft, action stage; 1,140 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2020: 10.80 ft, action stage; 1,630 cubic feet per secondMar 1, 2023: 7.90 ft, below flood stage; 781 cubic feet per secondApr 6, 2023: 8.27 ft, action stage; 872 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 2024: 10.33 ft, action stage; 1,480 cubic feet per secondJul 17, 2024: 8.73 ft, action stage; 966 cubic feet per second Highest, 14.26 ft, Sep 26, 1986 1960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove 1960s: 3 1970s: 4 1980s: 2 1990s: 4 2000s: 2 2010s: 5 5 2020s: 0 1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  1. These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
  2. Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.

Highest crests

The 50 highest of 60 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Nippersink Creek near Spring Grove
1Sep 26, 198614.26+3.26Moderate2,910
2Sep 14, 201913.84+2.84Moderate2,950
3Jun 15, 199913.73+2.73Moderate2,870
4Jun 14, 200013.71+2.71Moderate2,860
5Apr 5, 196013.70+2.70Moderate—
6Feb 21, 199413.66+2.66Moderate2,830
7Feb 20, 197113.03+2.03Moderate2,430
8Jul 1, 199312.73+1.73Minor2,230
9Jun 12, 196712.62+1.62Minor2,120
10Apr 19, 201312.42+1.42Minor2,140
11Mar 6, 197612.35+1.35Minor2,120
12Feb 21, 201812.14+1.14Minor2,060
13May 17, 197411.97+0.97Minor1,990
14Feb 10, 196611.67+0.67Minor1,810
15Apr 4, 198311.57+0.57Minor1,820
16Mar 21, 197911.55+0.55Minor1,820
17Mar 14, 201911.47+0.47Minor1,830
18Feb 22, 199711.44+0.44Minor1,770
19Aug 22, 200711.34+0.34Minor1,740
20Jun 21, 201811.19+0.19Minor1,750
21Jun 10, 200810.88−0.12Action1,590
22May 1, 202010.80−0.20Action1,630
23May 3, 197310.56−0.44Action1,610
24Sep 5, 201810.54−0.46Action1,560
25Oct 4, 201910.50−0.50Action1,540
26Dec 29, 200810.33−0.67Action1,410
27Apr 4, 202410.33−0.67Action1,480
28Jul 13, 201710.30−0.70Action1,340
29Sep 21, 197210.29−0.71Action1,360
30May 24, 20049.84−1.16Action1,270
31Feb 14, 19849.83−1.17Action1,280
32Jul 19, 20159.82−1.18Action1,380
33Oct 8, 20189.64−1.36Action1,300
34May 22, 19969.62−1.38Action1,200
35Feb 26, 20019.59−1.41Action1,200
36Mar 29, 19919.45−1.55Action1,180
37Feb 1, 19889.25−1.75Action1,270
38Mar 30, 20209.10−1.90Action1,140
39Jul 4, 19789.08−1.92Action1,020
40Mar 20, 19758.90−2.10Action1,040
41May 14, 20148.84−2.16Action1,060
42May 16, 20108.81−2.19Action981
43Jul 17, 20248.73−2.27Action966
44Feb 25, 19858.66−2.34Action962
45Mar 12, 19908.52−2.48Action866
46Jul 18, 19698.47−2.53Action931
47Jun 6, 20028.47−2.53Action893
48Feb 15, 20058.37−2.63Action868
49Jun 29, 19988.32−2.68Action758
50Apr 6, 20238.27−2.73Action872

The worst floods along the Nippersink Creek

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the Nippersink Creek that crested above flood stage within a week.

September 14, 2019: 13.84 ft here, moderate flooding

June 15, 1999: 13.73 ft here, moderate flooding

June 14, 2000: 13.71 ft here, moderate flooding

Gauges on the Nippersink Creek

In USGS station-number order, which runs downstream within a river basin.

Flood gauges on the Nippersink Creek
Wonder LakeIL9.014.30 ft, Jun 11, 19671
Spring Grove this gaugeIL11.014.26 ft, Sep 26, 19860

Other gauges in McHenry County

Flood gauges in McHenry County
Mchenry7.07.48 ft, Jun 26, 20130
Algonquin3.04.50 ft, Apr 1, 191612
Algonquin tailwater9.514.00 ft, Jul 5, 19386
McHenry (Stratton Lock and Dam) tailwater4.09.00 ft, Jul 5, 19386
Johnsburg6.58.90 ft, Jul 4, 19382
Marengo12.013.06 ft, Sep 4, 20180
Wonder Lake9.014.30 ft, Jun 11, 19671

McHenry County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Illinois

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge NIPI2, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.