North Oconee River at College St, at Athens, GA 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 02217770 sits on the North Oconee River and reads everything draining 275 square miles of the Upper Oconee basin. Its datum sits 600 feet above sea level NGVD29. Daily flow has been on record here since 2002, 24 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

One gauged site sits upstream of here. The closest is North Oconee River at Woodbridge Rd, near Commerce, GA, reading 99 square miles. This gauge adds the 176 square miles that drain in between. Downstream the next reading comes from Oconee River near Penfield, GA at 940 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 29% of the water measured there.

Normal flows here

The North Oconee River runs a median of 194 cfs at this gauge across 24 years of record. February is the fullest month at a median 392 cfs, and September the leanest at 98 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 7,050 cfs in 2019, and the lowest is 2.4 cfs in 2002.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 2002 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The North Oconee River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 19 feet. NWS starts watching it at 10 feet. The highest crest on record is 19.4 feet, in May 1966.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge NOCG1. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.