South River near Waynesboro Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for South River near Waynesboro in VA, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location VA, United States
- Watershed south fork shenandoah
- Primary gauge 01626000 (USGS)
About South River near Waynesboro
The South River sits in the South Fork Shenandoah watershed in Virginia.
The watershed
This station drains 127 sq mi (329 km2) above the gauge, so the reading reflects what is happening in the upper part of the river, not the whole South Fork Shenandoah. For people living along the South River, that matters because rain over this upstream area can move the stage quickly, while dry spells can show up as a shorter, shallower stretch in late summer.
The seasonal pattern is clear enough to plan around. The typical highest month is February at 3 ft (0.91 m), and the typical lowest month is September at 2.46 ft (0.75 m). That annual swing is 6.5 in (16.4 cm), which is the range docks, low crossings, and intakes have to handle through the year.
What the numbers say
The record high is 9.58 ft (2.92 m), set in September 2024. The record low is 2.36 ft (0.72 m), also in September 2024. Those two marks show that this river can reach both its highest and lowest reported stages in the same month, so late-summer conditions deserve attention here.
The record spans 50 years, which gives enough history to treat the seasonal pattern as more than a one-off. For anglers, that means shallow-water access in September can be very different from winter and early spring. For anyone with a dock or intake, the spread between 3 ft (0.91 m) in February and 2.46 ft (0.75 m) in September is the routine change to plan for.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is best read against the median for this calendar day, not as a raw elevation. A stage can look high or low by itself, but the median puts today beside what this station usually shows on the same date.
This page is from the U.S. Geological Survey, and the record covers about 50 years. That makes the daily comparison the more useful signal for local use: it shows whether today is near the middle of the historical range for this date, or well above or below it.
How this page is built
Readings come from official government gauges and are rolled into daily records: the daily mean, high and low for every day on record. Each calendar day gets its own baseline from the full history, so the level you see is compared against what this specific date usually looks like rather than an annual average.
How Nibi Metrics works · Water stories
Nibi Metrics - live water levels, flow, and forecasts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK
Real-time water levels, forecasts, and alerts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 13,000 gauged lakes and rivers across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, and the Environment Agency for England. Every number on the platform is measured, not modelled - taken from a government gauge on the water itself and compared against that location's own historical record for this exact date.
What you can see for any monitored lake or river
The level right now, in feet or metres, updated as the source agency publishes new readings - for many stations that is every five to fifteen minutes. How today compares to typical: every location carries its own typical-for-this-date band built from its historical record, so a reading is never just a number - it is above, below, or near what this water usually does on this calendar day. Which way it is moving: a measured RISING, FALLING, or STEADY verdict computed from the gauge's own recent readings, with the rate of change - the difference between a flood ending and one beginning. What comes next: level forecasts up to 72 hours ahead, driven by the gauge's recent behaviour, upstream water, and quantitative precipitation forecasts, alongside live radar, lightning, and weather for the surrounding region.
Alerts that watch the water for you
Set a threshold on any location - a level, a distance above typical, or a rate of climb - and Nibi emails or notifies you the moment the gauge crosses it. Cottagers use it for spring freshet, anglers for river conditions, marinas and municipalities for operations. The scanning runs around the clock against the same measured data shown on every page.
Where Nibi comes from
Nibi means water in Anishinaabemowin. The platform began at a family cottage on Lake Muskoka, Ontario, where the spring melt floods the shoreline most years and the only forecast was standing on the dock, looking, and guessing. It grew into an independent, member-funded platform run by Muskoka Research Inc. - no investors, no data resale, and a privacy policy shorter than most cookie banners. The core data is free for everyone, forever; paid plans add automation like multi-location alerts, deep history, and reports.
Coverage
Nibi spans the continent: every Canadian province and territory with active federal gauges - from Vancouver Island rivers to the Muskoka lakes, prairie reservoirs, and Quebec's hydrometric network - and the United States from Maine to the Texas Hill Country, the Ohio Valley, and the Pacific Northwest. Coverage grows where the water news is: when a basin floods, its gauges join the platform with their full historical records attached. Many stations report every five to fifteen minutes; most report at least hourly; every page states exactly when its gauge last spoke.
Free forever, funded by members
The core promise is simple: the water data is free, for everyone, forever. Live levels, maps, radar, and recent history never sit behind a paywall. Paid plans fund the platform by adding automation - multi-location alerts, decades of history, longer forecasts, and PDF reports - so the people who need more carry the cost for everyone who just needs to check the lake before driving up. There are no investors and no advertising deals shaping what the data says.
Water Stories
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Why Central and South Texas rivers go from gravel beds to fifty-year records in an afternoon - including July 2026 on the Nueces.
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How every number is computed - About the platform
