River flow
Environment and Climate Change Canada hydrometric station 08HB006, "Puntledge River at Courtenay", with data contributed by BC Hydro. New readings every five minutes, running roughly 40 minutes behind real time.
A river report written by the people floating it.
The Puntledge Tube Report answers one question: is the Puntledge worth floating today? It pulls the live gauge, the weather, and the tide, then puts them next to what actual floaters said about the river in the last few days.
Why it exists
Every summer in the Comox Valley the same question goes around over and over: how is the river running today? People check one Facebook group, then another, and come away with someone's word that it was great last weekend, which says nothing about today.
I build web apps for a living, and at some point I realized this would make a great website. I started looking into what data might be available, came up with a rough framework for how it could work, and threw something together. Live flow from the federal gauge, weather, and tide predictions all turned out to be public. Combine those with reports from people who floated that day and you have something genuinely useful.
The site puts those numbers in one place and translates them into language a tuber can act on, then lets the people who were actually on the water overrule it. A number cannot tell you the river felt bony, or that the upper stretch felt sketchy even though the flow looked fine. A person who floated it yesterday can.
Where the numbers come from
Everything on the conditions page traces back to one of four sources. None of them is proprietary, and all of them can be wrong.
Weather
Open-Meteo for the forecast, with MET Norway as a fallback when it is unreachable. Air temperature matters more than most people expect: the Puntledge runs cold even in a heatwave.
Tides
Canadian Hydrographic Service predictions for Comox, station 07965. Tides only matter on the last leg into Lewis Park, where an incoming tide turns a lazy drift into real paddling.
Float reports
Floaters like you, reporting what the river actually felt like. A gauge in cubic metres per second cannot tell you whether you dragged your backside over gravel for an hour. People can.
How the call gets made
When nobody has reported recently, the site reads the gauge and sorts the flow into one of five bands. These are starting numbers, not settled science. They were set by feel rather than by hydrology, and they will keep moving as reports pile up and show where the real edges actually sit.
Flow (m³/s)Reads asWhat that means
Under 8 Too low Expect to walk and drag over gravel bars.
8 to 12 A little low Floatable, slow, some scraping.
12 to 22 Ideal The range most floaters are hoping for.
22 to 30 A little high Faster and pushier than average.
Over 30 Too high We stop recommending it. Stay out.
One number, three different rivers. The gauge reports a single flow for the whole system, but the upper, middle, and lower stretches each have their own geometry: gradient, width, and how much rock is in the way. The same reading can feel bony on one leg and pushy on the next, even though the flow itself has not changed. That is why reports are collected per stretch rather than per float.
When recent reports do exist, their consensus wins, because it describes the river as people actually experienced it. The one exception is when the gauge has moved far enough since those reports that they no longer describe today's river. In that case the gauge takes back over, and the page says so.
What this site cannot tell you
- When BC Hydro will release water. There is no public feed for the release schedule. Releases can happen at any time without notice, and sirens mean get out of the channel immediately.
- Whether a parking spot is legal or a gate is open. We do not track parking rules or gate hours anywhere on the river. The posted signage governs, always, and your vehicle is your risk.
- What the river is doing right now. The gauge lags about 40 minutes, and reports describe a river that has already moved on. Everything here is history, not a live feed.
- Whether you should get in the water. That call is yours and only yours. If anything here nudges you toward floating when your own judgement says no, trust your judgement.
The full terms and safety disclaimer spell this out properly, and they govern your use of the site.
Common questions
Is the Puntledge River safe for tubing?
The Puntledge is a wild river. It is not groomed, patrolled, or monitored, there are no lifeguards, and it can injure or kill you. Many people float it safely every summer and some people get hurt. Wear a PFD, never float alone, float sober, and know your take-out before you launch. This site reports conditions. It never tells you the river is safe.
What water level is good for floating the Puntledge?
As a rough guide, this site treats about 12 to 22 cubic metres per second at the Courtenay gauge as the ideal range. Below 8 you will be dragging over gravel. Above 30 the river is pushy enough that we stop recommending it. Those bands are provisional and were set by feel, so recent reports from floaters override them whenever we have them.
How long does it take to float the Puntledge River?
From the hatchery, roughly 30 to 45 minutes to Puntledge Park, 45 to 75 minutes to Condensory Bridge, and 75 to 120 minutes all the way down to Lewis Park. Water level shifts those numbers a lot, so treat them as ballpark.
When is tubing season on the Puntledge?
Roughly June through September. From October through May the water is cold and BC Hydro spills high, so the conditions report closes for the season.
Where do you put in and take out?
Nearly everyone puts in at the Puntledge River Hatchery. The take-outs are Puntledge Park, Condensory Bridge, and Lewis Park, which is the last exit before the river turns into tidal estuary. Scout your take-out from shore before you launch, because missing it means a long walk or a hard paddle.
Does BC Hydro release water without warning?
Yes. Releases from the Comox Dam can happen at any time without public notice. Sirens along the river mean the water is rising, and the only correct response is to get out of the channel immediately. There is no public feed for the release schedule, so this site cannot predict releases and never tries to.
Who runs the Puntledge Tube Report, and what does it cost?
It is built and run by Roga Digital, a web development studio in Cumberland, BC, and it is free to use. It is not affiliated with BC Hydro, the City of Courtenay, or the Comox Valley Regional District.
Who made this
Puntledge Tube Report is built and operated by Roga Digital, a web development studio in Cumberland, BC that specializes in web applications for business, with clients including Telus, CarEvo, and VIU. This site is not client work though. It's a product just for you: the Comox Valley community. ❤️
Something wrong, missing, or out of date? Tell us about it. This site gets better because of wonderful people like you taking the time to provide feedback.
The most useful thing you can do
Float the river, then take a few seconds to say how it was. That is the entire engine behind this site.