Buffalo River below Lobelville, TN Flow & Water Level

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 03604400 sits on the Buffalo River and reads everything draining 702 square miles of the Buffalo basin. Its datum sits 405 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1928, 83 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

One gauged site sits upstream of here. The closest is Buffalo River near Flat Woods, TN, reading 447 square miles. This gauge adds the 255 square miles that drain in between.

Normal flows here

The Buffalo River runs a median of 673 cfs at this gauge across 83 years of record. March is the fullest month at a median 1,510 cfs, and September the leanest at 349 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 82,100 cfs in 1948, and the lowest is 142 cfs in 1932.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1928 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The Buffalo River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 14 feet. NWS starts watching it at 10 feet. The highest crest on record is 26 feet, in May 2010.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge LBVT1. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.