South Fork Shenandoah River near Lynnwood, 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 01628500 sits on the South Fork Shenandoah River and reads everything draining 1,079 square miles of the South Fork Shenandoah basin. Its datum sits 1,002 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1931, 96 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

One gauged site sits upstream of here. The closest is North River near Burketown, VA, reading 376 square miles. This gauge adds the 703 square miles that drain in between. Downstream the next reading comes from South Fork Shenandoah River near Luray, VA at 1,372 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 79% of the water measured there.

Normal flows here

The South Fork Shenandoah River runs a median of 594 cfs at this gauge across 96 years of record. March is the fullest month at a median 1,200 cfs, and September the leanest at 316 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 63,500 cfs in 1996, and the lowest is 84 cfs in 2002.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1931 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The South Fork Shenandoah River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 16 feet. NWS starts watching it at 14 feet. The highest crest on record is 30.8 feet, in September 1996.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge LYWV2. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.