Deschutes River near Rainier, WA
River level and flood forecast · Thurston County
The river is 8.0 ft below flood stage (11 ft).
Forecast to hold near 3.0 ft through Mon, Oct 19, 5 PM.
Flow: 24 cubic feet per second (USGS).
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Mon, Oct 12, 8:51 AM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
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An email when the National Weather Service forecasts Deschutes River near Rainier to flood, when it floods, and when it's over.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 15 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 13.5 ft |
| Flood stage | 11 ft |
| Action stage | 9 ft |
| Record crest (January 9, 1990) | 17.01 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 16.5 ftthe Deschutes River will cause severe, near record flooding. Residences will be flooded with Tumwater valley deeply flooded. Flooding will occur all along the river including headwaters...tributaries...and other streams within and near the Deschutes River Basin.
- 15 ftthe Deschutes River will cause major flooding...with swift and deep water flooding roads...farm lands...and the residential areas of Cougar Mountain...Driftwood Valley...Falling Horseshoe and areas downstream in the Tumwater Valley. Flooding will occur all along the river including headwaters...tributaries...and other streams within and near the Deschutes River Basin.
- 13.5 ftthe Deschutes River will flood residential areas...especially Cougar Mountain...Driftwood Valley...and Falling Horseshoe. Downstream flooding will occur in areas of Tumwater Valley including the golf course. Many roads and farm lands will also be flooded.
- 11 ftthe Deschutes River will flood downstream in Tumwater Valley including the golf course. Minor flooding will also occur in several residential areas...mainly Cougar Mountain and Driftwood Valley. Many roads and farm lands will also be flooded.
- 9 ftthe Deschutes River locally spills over its banks into low fields and forested lands, mainly along Vail Cutoff Road and Reichel Road (east of the town of Vail).
Highest crests on record
- 17.01 ft — January 9, 1990
- 15.74 ft — February 8, 1996
- 15.68 ft — January 15, 1974
- 15.28 ft — January 21, 1972
- 14.29 ft — December 29, 1996
Recent crests: 12.22 ft (December 9, 2025) · 12.97 ft (March 1, 2022) · 13.07 ft (January 7, 2022) · 13.52 ft (February 9, 2017) · 12.75 ft (December 9, 2015)
Up and down the river, and nearby
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (DSRW1); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.