New River level at Fayetteville

West Virginia · Paddling & whitewater

Measured at USGS 03185400 — NEW RIVER AT THURMOND, WV · NWS forecast point THMW2

2,020CFS 84% of normal

Reading taken · as of 18 min ago

Gage height2.94 ft
Median for mid-September2,410 CFS
Years of record45 (1981–2026)
Highest on record92,500 CFS daily, 1981–2026
Lowest on record808 CFS daily

On the low side — bony, but runnable in a plastic boat

At 2,020 CFS, this gauge is running 84% of normal for mid-September — below the 2,410 CFS median USGS has recorded for this date across 45 years of record (1981–2026).

Last 30 days · 1,670–13,800 CFS · dashed line is the seasonal median

Flood stages at Fayetteville

National Weather Service categories for gauge THMW2, WFO RLX. Impact wording is the NWS's own, verbatim.

Flow history at Fayetteville

Loading history…

Daily values from USGS 03185400, updated every 15 to 60 minutes; NWS forecast for THMW2 reissued through the day. Provisional.

Highest crests on record at Fayetteville

12 on record
StageFlowDate
20.35 ft100,000 CFSJan 20, 1996
20.27 ft99,240 CFSFeb 1, 2013
20.10 ft97,200 CFSJan 26, 2010
20.05 ft96,600 CFSFeb 23, 2003
19.68 ft92,064 CFSFeb 25, 2019
19.58 ft90,851 CFSJun 24, 2016
19.06 ft84,363 CFSFeb 16, 2025
19.05 ft84,600 CFSNov 20, 2003
18.95 ft83,400 CFSNov 6, 1985
18.64 ft80,000 CFSFeb 15, 1984

Crests published by the National Weather Service.

About New River at Fayetteville

In West Virginia — the reading paddlers, anglers and outfitters here check before committing to a shuttle. New River Gorge; NPS closes put-ins at 12 ft.

New River at Fayetteville — common questions

3 questions

How fast can New River at Fayetteville come up?

Fast. It is free-flowing, so rain upstream moves it directly. Several feet in a few hours is normal after a heavy storm.

Is New River at Fayetteville high or low for this time of year?

The USGS median flow for mid-September here is 2,410 CFS, from 45 years of record (1981–2026). Today is 84% of it. The comparison is what makes the raw number mean anything: the same reading is a drought on one river and a flood on another.

How often does this reading update?

USGS transmits from gauge 03185400 every 15 to 60 minutes, and the National Weather Service reissues the flood forecast for THMW2 a few times a day — more often when the river is rising. This page refreshes from both when you open it. The timestamp is in the gauge's local time.

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