Search
Menu

Explore

Hazards

Analysis

Rankings

Reference

Flathead River near Polson

Highest listed crest 21.00 ftFlood stage 18.0 ft36 crests since 1894

The Flathead River near Polson crested above flood stage 3 times among the 36 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1894 to 2025. The highest, 21.00 ft on June 1, 1894, was minor flooding, 3.00 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Flathead River crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
21.00 ft
June 1, 1894; 110,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
18.0 ft
No major stage set
Crests at major
0
3 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
May 26, 1980
19.30 ft, minor flooding
Location
Lake County
Montana

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Flathead River near Polson
Flood stage (minor)18.03May 26, 1980Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat

Every listed crest

36 crests from 1894 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Flathead River near Polson, 1894 to 2025 510152025ft Flood stage 18.0 ft Jun 1, 1894: 21.00 ft, minor flooding; 110,000 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 1913: 16.20 ft, below flood stage; 75,400 cubic feet per secondMay 29, 1928: 17.20 ft, below flood stage; 82,800 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 1942: 16.20 ft, below flood stage; 53,500 cubic feet per secondJun 3, 1945: 17.04 ft, below flood stage; 58,400 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1946: 15.67 ft, below flood stage; 50,500 cubic feet per secondMay 15, 1947: 16.80 ft, below flood stage; 56,600 cubic feet per secondJun 6, 1948: 19.15 ft, minor flooding; 73,200 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 1949: 15.89 ft, below flood stage; 51,500 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 1951: 17.99 ft, below flood stage; 66,800 cubic feet per secondJun 4, 1953: 16.64 ft, below flood stage; 58,100 cubic feet per secondJul 3, 1954: 16.69 ft, below flood stage; 59,300 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1956: 16.89 ft, below flood stage; 58,200 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 1958: 17.45 ft, below flood stage; 61,600 cubic feet per secondJun 26, 1959: 16.25 ft, below flood stage; 55,700 cubic feet per secondJun 18, 1960: 16.13 ft, below flood stage; 55,000 cubic feet per secondJun 6, 1961: 16.16 ft, below flood stage; 55,200 cubic feet per secondJun 12, 1964: 17.99 ft, below flood stage; 66,800 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 1965: 16.36 ft, below flood stage; 56,400 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 1972: 16.32 ft, below flood stage; 54,800 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 1974: 16.90 ft, below flood stage; 58,900 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 1975: 16.36 ft, below flood stage; 55,200 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 1980: 19.30 ft, minor flooding; 61,800 cubic feet per secondJun 20, 1982: 16.05 ft, below flood stage; 52,800 cubic feet per secondJun 14, 1991: 16.00 ft, below flood stage; 50,300 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 1995: 16.39 ft, below flood stage; 55,200 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1997: 16.64 ft, below flood stage; 57,000 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 2002: 15.83 ft, below flood stage; 51,300 cubic feet per secondJun 26, 2011: 15.90 ft, below flood stage; 52,300 cubic feet per secondJun 28, 2012: 16.48 ft, below flood stage; 56,100 cubic feet per secondJun 20, 2014: 15.70 ft, below flood stage; 51,000 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 2018: 15.50 ft, below flood stage; 49,700 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 2020: 14.70 ft, below flood stage; 44,000 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 2021: 11.84 ft, below flood stage; 29,100 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 2022: 16.89 ft, below flood stage; 56,300 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 2025: 8.63 ft, below flood stage; 16,100 cubic feet per second Highest, 21.00 ft, Jun 1, 1894 1900192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Flathead River near Polson 1890s: 1 1 1900s: 0 1910s: 0 1920s: 0 1930s: 0 1940s: 1 1950s: 0 1960s: 0 1970s: 0 1980s: 1 1990s: 0 2000s: 0 2010s: 0 2020s: 0 1890s1900s1910s1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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

Highest listed crests, Flathead River near Polson
1Jun 1, 189421.00+3.00Minor110,000
2May 26, 198019.30+1.30Minor61,800
3Jun 6, 194819.15+1.15Minor73,200
4Jun 16, 195117.99−0.01Below flood stage66,800
5Jun 12, 196417.99−0.01Below flood stage66,800
6May 26, 195817.45−0.55Below flood stage61,600
7May 29, 192817.20−0.80Below flood stage82,800
8Jun 3, 194517.04−0.96Below flood stage58,400
9Jun 24, 197416.90−1.10Below flood stage58,900
10Jun 7, 195616.89−1.11Below flood stage58,200
11Jun 24, 202216.89−1.11Below flood stage56,300
12May 15, 194716.80−1.20Below flood stage56,600
13Jul 3, 195416.69−1.31Below flood stage59,300
14Jun 4, 195316.64−1.36Below flood stage58,100
15Jun 7, 199716.64−1.36Below flood stage57,000
16Jun 28, 201216.48−1.52Below flood stage56,100
17Jun 9, 199516.39−1.61Below flood stage55,200
18Jun 19, 196516.36−1.64Below flood stage56,400
19Jun 19, 197516.36−1.64Below flood stage55,200
20Jun 13, 197216.32−1.68Below flood stage54,800
21Jun 26, 195916.25−1.75Below flood stage55,700
22Jun 10, 191316.20−1.80Below flood stage75,400
23Jun 10, 194216.20−1.80Below flood stage53,500
24Jun 6, 196116.16−1.84Below flood stage55,200
25Jun 18, 196016.13−1.87Below flood stage55,000
26Jun 20, 198216.05−1.95Below flood stage52,800
27Jun 14, 199116.00−2.00Below flood stage50,300
28Jun 26, 201115.90−2.10Below flood stage52,300
29May 19, 194915.89−2.11Below flood stage51,500
30Jun 2, 200215.83−2.17Below flood stage51,300
31Jun 20, 201415.70−2.30Below flood stage51,000
32Jun 7, 194615.67−2.33Below flood stage50,500
33May 30, 201815.50−2.50Below flood stage49,700
34Jun 8, 202014.70−3.30Below flood stage44,000
35Jun 1, 202111.84−6.16Below flood stage29,100
36May 26, 20258.63−9.37Below flood stage16,100

The worst floods along the Flathead River

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

June 1, 1894: 21.00 ft here, minor flooding

Gauges on the Flathead River

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

Flood gauges on the Flathead River
Columbia FallsMT13.025.58 ft, Jun 9, 19642
Polson this gaugeMT18.021.00 ft, Jun 1, 18940

Other gauges in Lake County

Flood gauges in Lake County
Bigfork6.57.34 ft, Jun 20, 19740

Lake County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Montana

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge FPOM8, 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.