Big Otter River near Evington, VA Water Level Today

NWS river forecast

Forecast from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service. Issued a few times a day and only while a forecast is active. Not for navigation.

Last 30 days

About this gauge

USGS gauge 02061500 sits on the Big Otter River and reads everything draining 315 square miles of the Upper Roanoke basin. Its datum sits 541 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1937, 89 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

No gauged site sits above this one on the mainstem, so this is the first published reading on the river. Downstream the next reading comes from Roanoke (Staunton) River at Brookneal, VA at 2,404 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 13% of the water measured there.

Normal flows here

The Big Otter River runs a median of 220 cfs at this gauge across 89 years of record. March is the fullest month at a median 364 cfs, and September the leanest at 96 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 35,700 cfs in 1995, and the lowest is 0.6 cfs in 2002.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1937 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The Big Otter River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 19 feet. NWS starts watching it at 16 feet. The highest crest on record is 29.9 feet, in June 1995.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge EVGV2. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.