For comparison, the plot below shows the West Walker River near Coleville & HW395 at 6700 ft elevation and much further downstream in the watershed. Note the peak stage here occurs in the evening and the lowest stage is in the afternoon.
These examples illustrate how much things can vary within a large watershed and hopefully provides some insight into what is happening and why. At lower elevations with lakes and many tributaries, the best time to cross might be in the afternoon instead of the early morning. If you're camped near a river you're worried about crossing, you can set a marker to see if the flow is increasing or decreasing and how fast its rising or falling to make your best decision. With a record runoff year like 2017, the wait may be worth it.
