South Fork Licking River at Cynthiana, KY 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 03252500 sits on the South Fork Licking River and reads everything draining 621 square miles of the South Fork Licking basin. Its datum sits 688 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 1938, 58 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

One gauged site sits upstream of here. The closest is Hinkston Creek near Carlisle, KY, reading 154 square miles. This gauge adds the 467 square miles that drain in between. Downstream the next reading comes from South Fork Licking River at Hayes, KY at 915 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 68% of the water measured there.

Normal flows here

The South Fork Licking River runs a median of 176 cfs at this gauge across 58 years of record. February is the fullest month at a median 760 cfs, and October the leanest at 13 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 30,700 cfs in 1948, and the lowest is 0.1 cfs in 2023.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 1938 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The South Fork Licking River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 20 feet. NWS starts watching it at 16 feet. The highest crest on record is 28.5 feet, in March 1997.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge CYNK2. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.