Blackwater River near Franklin, 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 02049500 sits on the Blackwater River and reads everything draining 613 square miles of the Blackwater basin. Its datum sits essentially at sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1944, 82 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

Two gauged sites sit upstream of here. The closest is Blackwater River at Route 620 near Zuni, VA, reading 420 square miles. This gauge adds the 193 square miles that drain in between. Downstream the next reading comes from Blackwater River at Hwys 58/258 at Franklin, VA at 664 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 92% of the water measured there.

Normal flows here

The Blackwater River runs a median of 263 cfs at this gauge across 82 years of record. February is the fullest month at a median 945 cfs, and September the leanest at 34 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 22,000 cfs in 1999, and the lowest is 0.0 cfs in 2002.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1944 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The Blackwater River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 10.8 feet. NWS starts watching it at 6.8 feet. The highest crest on record is 25.1 feet, in September 1999.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge FKNV2. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.