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Little Bighorn River near Hardin

Highest listed crest 12.32 ftFlood stage 8.0 ft57 crests since 1960

The Little Bighorn River near Hardin crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 57 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1960 to 2024. The highest, 12.32 ft on May 23, 2011, was major flooding, 4.32 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
12.32 ft
May 23, 2011; 17,300 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
8.0 ft
Major flooding from 11.8 ft
Crests at major
1
28th of 93 gauges in Montana
Most recent flood crest
March 25, 2019
9.65 ft, minor flooding
Location
Big Horn County
Montana

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Little Bighorn River near Hardin
Flood stage (minor)8.06Mar 25, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage10.02May 19, 1978Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage11.81May 23, 2011Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

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

Listed crests at the Little Bighorn River near Hardin, 1960 to 2024 2468101214ft Flood stage 8.0 ftMajor 11.8 ft Mar 21, 1960: 11.78 ft, moderate flooding; 3,000 cubic feet per secondJun 11, 1968: 7.07 ft, below flood stage; 4,500 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 1969: 8.30 ft, minor flooding; 2,440 cubic feet per secondMay 24, 1970: 5.42 ft, below flood stage; 2,590 cubic feet per secondFeb 14, 1971: 7.30 ft, below flood stage; 2,000 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 1972: 7.20 ft, below flood stage; 4,000 cubic feet per secondApr 26, 1973: 4.94 ft, below flood stage; 2,450 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 1974: 4.55 ft, below flood stage; 1,970 cubic feet per secondMay 9, 1975: 6.52 ft, below flood stage; 4,040 cubic feet per secondJun 24, 1976: 4.00 ft, below flood stage; 1,380 cubic feet per secondApr 9, 1977: 4.53 ft, below flood stage; 2,110 cubic feet per secondMay 19, 1978: 11.20 ft, moderate flooding; 22,600 cubic feet per secondMay 25, 1981: 4.68 ft, below flood stage; 1,980 cubic feet per secondFeb 18, 1982: 9.17 ft, minor floodingJun 14, 1983: 3.76 ft, below flood stage; 1,100 cubic feet per secondMay 18, 1984: 5.09 ft, below flood stage; 2,210 cubic feet per secondApr 4, 1985: 4.73 ft, below flood stage; 2,050 cubic feet per secondFeb 27, 1986: 6.71 ft, below flood stageMay 29, 1987: 3.56 ft, below flood stage; 747 cubic feet per secondFeb 24, 1988: 5.60 ft, below flood stageMar 12, 1989: 7.06 ft, below flood stage; 1,700 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 1990: 4.10 ft, below flood stage; 1,090 cubic feet per secondFeb 5, 1991: 4.79 ft, below flood stageJul 4, 1992: 3.59 ft, below flood stage; 674 cubic feet per secondMar 9, 1993: 6.03 ft, below flood stageMay 21, 1994: 6.97 ft, below flood stage; 1,290 cubic feet per secondFeb 4, 1995: 6.41 ft, below flood stageMay 12, 1995: 5.86 ft, below flood stage; 2,570 cubic feet per secondFeb 9, 1996: 9.33 ft, minor floodingJun 9, 1997: 4.83 ft, below flood stage; 2,040 cubic feet per secondJul 5, 1998: 4.12 ft, below flood stage; 1,230 cubic feet per secondJun 8, 1999: 4.71 ft, below flood stage; 1,790 cubic feet per secondMay 20, 2000: 5.19 ft, below flood stage; 1,980 cubic feet per secondApr 10, 2001: 3.38 ft, below flood stage; 489 cubic feet per secondJun 3, 2002: 3.48 ft, below flood stage; 512 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 2003: 4.63 ft, below flood stage; 1,280 cubic feet per secondMay 1, 2004: 3.30 ft, below flood stage; 427 cubic feet per secondMay 13, 2005: 4.55 ft, below flood stage; 1,210 cubic feet per secondMay 25, 2006: 3.94 ft, below flood stage; 831 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 2007: 8.31 ft, minor flooding; 4,580 cubic feet per secondMay 26, 2008: 5.96 ft, below flood stage; 2,410 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 2009: 4.35 ft, below flood stage; 1,180 cubic feet per secondJun 12, 2010: 5.04 ft, below flood stage; 1,760 cubic feet per secondMay 23, 2011: 12.32 ft, major flooding; 17,300 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 2012: 4.42 ft, below flood stage; 984 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 2013: 6.16 ft, below flood stage; 2,370 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 2014: 7.06 ft, below flood stage; 3,220 cubic feet per secondMay 31, 2015: 5.75 ft, below flood stage; 2,000 cubic feet per secondApr 21, 2016: 3.83 ft, below flood stage; 567 cubic feet per secondApr 29, 2017: 6.03 ft, below flood stage; 2,330 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 2018: 8.47 ft, minor flooding; 3,780 cubic feet per secondMar 25, 2019: 9.65 ft, minor flooding; 5,910 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 2020: 4.83 ft, below flood stage; 1,170 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 2021: 4.28 ft, below flood stage; 908 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 2022: 5.66 ft, below flood stage; 1,670 cubic feet per secondJun 27, 2023: 7.78 ft, below flood stage; 3,060 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 2024: 5.90 ft, below flood stage; 1,720 cubic feet per second Highest, 12.32 ft, May 23, 2011 1960197019801990200020102020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Little Bighorn River near Hardin 1960s: 2 1970s: 1 1980s: 1 1990s: 1 2000s: 1 2010s: 3 3 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 57 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Little Bighorn River near Hardin
1May 23, 201112.32+4.32Major17,300
2Mar 21, 196011.78+3.78Moderate3,000
3May 19, 197811.20+3.20Moderate22,600
4Mar 25, 20199.65+1.65Minor5,910
5Feb 9, 19969.33+1.33Minor—
6Feb 18, 19829.17+1.17Minor—
7Jun 1, 20188.47+0.47Minor3,780
8Jun 10, 20078.31+0.31Minor4,580
9Jun 27, 19698.30+0.30Minor2,440
10Jun 27, 20237.78−0.22Below flood stage3,060
11Feb 14, 19717.30−0.70Below flood stage2,000
12Mar 9, 19727.20−0.80Below flood stage4,000
13Jun 11, 19687.07−0.93Below flood stage4,500
14Mar 12, 19897.06−0.94Below flood stage1,700
15Jun 2, 20147.06−0.94Below flood stage3,220
16May 21, 19946.97−1.03Below flood stage1,290
17Feb 27, 19866.71−1.29Below flood stage—
18May 9, 19756.52−1.48Below flood stage4,040
19Feb 4, 19956.41−1.59Below flood stage—
20Jun 1, 20136.16−1.84Below flood stage2,370
21Mar 9, 19936.03−1.97Below flood stage—
22Apr 29, 20176.03−1.97Below flood stage2,330
23May 26, 20085.96−2.04Below flood stage2,410
24May 10, 20245.90−2.10Below flood stage1,720
25May 12, 19955.86−2.14Below flood stage2,570
26May 31, 20155.75−2.25Below flood stage2,000
27Jun 2, 20225.66−2.34Below flood stage1,670
28Feb 24, 19885.60−2.40Below flood stage—
29May 24, 19705.42−2.58Below flood stage2,590
30May 20, 20005.19−2.81Below flood stage1,980
31May 18, 19845.09−2.91Below flood stage2,210
32Jun 12, 20105.04−2.96Below flood stage1,760
33Apr 26, 19734.94−3.06Below flood stage2,450
34Jun 9, 19974.83−3.17Below flood stage2,040
35Jun 2, 20204.83−3.17Below flood stage1,170
36Feb 5, 19914.79−3.21Below flood stage—
37Apr 4, 19854.73−3.27Below flood stage2,050
38Jun 8, 19994.71−3.29Below flood stage1,790
39May 25, 19814.68−3.32Below flood stage1,980
40Jun 2, 20034.63−3.37Below flood stage1,280
41Jun 9, 19744.55−3.45Below flood stage1,970
42May 13, 20054.55−3.45Below flood stage1,210
43Apr 9, 19774.53−3.47Below flood stage2,110
44Jun 7, 20124.42−3.58Below flood stage984
45Jun 9, 20094.35−3.65Below flood stage1,180
46Jun 7, 20214.28−3.72Below flood stage908
47Jul 5, 19984.12−3.88Below flood stage1,230
48Jun 13, 19904.10−3.90Below flood stage1,090
49Jun 24, 19764.00−4.00Below flood stage1,380
50May 25, 20063.94−4.06Below flood stage831

Big Horn County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Montana

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge HRDM8, 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.