Tar River below Dam near Langley Crossroads, NC 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 0208250410 sits on the Tar River and reads everything draining 775 square miles of the Upper Tar basin. Its datum sits 93 feet above sea level NAVD88. Daily flow has been on record here since 2011, 15 years of it.

Where this gauge sits in the drainage

Two gauged sites sit upstream of here. The closest is Tar River at Nc-581 near Spring Hope, NC, reading 671 square miles. This gauge adds the 104 square miles that drain in between. Downstream the next reading comes from Tar River below Tar River Reservoir near Rocky Mount, NC at 777 square miles, so what passes this gauge is about 100% of the water measured there. Water passing here goes on to Tar River at NC 97 at Rocky Mount, NC and Tar River at Tarboro, NC.

Normal flows here

The Tar River runs a median of 248 cfs at this gauge across 15 years of record. January is the fullest month at a median 633 cfs, and September the leanest at 106 cfs. The highest daily mean on record is 15,100 cfs in 2017, and the lowest is 15 cfs in 2026.

Medians from the USGS daily-statistics record, 2011 to 2026. A month at 100% is running at its own long-term median.

Flood stages and record crests

The Tar River reaches flood stage at this gauge at 16 feet. NWS starts watching it at 15 feet. The highest crest on record is 17.4 feet, in August 2024.

Flood categories and crest history from the NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge LXRN7. Stages are gage height, not depth. Not for navigation.