TidalMapPaint Branch Tributary near Colesville, MD Water Level Today
NWS river forecast
| When | Stage | Flow |
|---|
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 01649150 sits on Paint Branch Tributary and reads everything draining 1 square miles of the Middle Potomac-Anacostia-Occoquan basin. Its datum sits 366 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 2007, 19 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 Paint Branch near College Park, MD at 13 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 8% of the water measured there. Water passing here goes on to Northeast Branch Anacostia River at Riverdale, MD.
Normal flows here
Paint Branch Tributary runs a median of 0.6 cfs at this gauge across 19 years of record. March is the fullest month at a median 0.9 cfs, and August the leanest at 0.3 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 64 cfs in 2014, and the lowest is 0.1 cfs in 2008.
| Month | Median flow | Share of annual median |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 0.7 cfs | 124% |
| Feb | 0.8 cfs | 139% |
| Mar | 0.9 cfs | 158% |
| Apr | 0.9 cfs | 151% |
| May | 0.8 cfs | 139% |
| Jun | 0.5 cfs | 92% |
| Jul | 0.4 cfs | 64% |
| Aug | 0.3 cfs | 56% |
| Sep | 0.3 cfs | 57% |
| Oct | 0.4 cfs | 63% |
| Nov | 0.5 cfs | 78% |
| Dec | 0.6 cfs | 105% |
Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 2007 to 2025. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.
Flood stages and record crests
Paint Branch Tributary reaches flood stage at this gauge at 13 feet. NWS starts watching it at 11 feet. The highest crest on record is 4.8 feet, in August 2021.
| Category | Gage height |
|---|---|
| Action | 11 ft |
| Minor flooding | 13 ft |
| When | Crest |
|---|---|
| August 2021 | 4.8 ft |
| September 2021 | 4.8 ft |
| June 2015 | 4.5 ft |
| June 2013 | 4.4 ft |
| September 2018 | 4.2 ft |
Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CLSM2. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.
Nearby river gauges
- Northwest Branch Anacostia River near Colesville, MD
- Paint Branch near College Park, MD
- Hawlings River near Sandy Spring, MD
- Turkey Branch near Rockville, MD
- Sligo Creek near Takoma Park, MD
- Patuxent River below Brighton Dam near Brighton MD
- Patuxent River near Laurel, MD
- Northeast Branch Anacostia River at Riverdale, MD
- Northwest Branch Anacostia River at Brentwood, MD
- Little Patuxent River at Guilford, MD
- Patuxent River near Unity, MD
- Cattail Creek near Glenwood, MD
Live streamflow and gage height: USGS gauge 01649150. Percentile context computed against the gauge's period of record. Not for navigation.
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