Smith River level at Philpott
Virginia · Fishing & wading
Measured at USGS 02072000 — SMITH RIVER NEAR PHILPOTT, VA
Reading taken · as of 23 min ago
Low and clear — wadeable, and fish will be spooky
At 134 CFS, this gauge is running 53% of normal for mid-September — below the 252 CFS median USGS has recorded for this date across 75 years of record (1951–2026).
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Flow history at Philpott
Daily values from USGS 02072000, updated every 15 to 60 minutes. Provisional.
About Smith River at Philpott
In Virginia, below Philpott Lake. Releases can change the flow by hundreds of CFS in an hour with no rain in the basin — check it the morning you go, not the night before.
Reservoir feeding this stretch
Flow here is set by releases from Philpott Lake. A full pool usually means more water on its way down.
Smith River at Philpott — common questions
3 questions
How do releases from Philpott Lake affect this stretch?
Directly and fast. When the dam generates, flow here can climb by an order of magnitude within the hour, with no rain anywhere in the basin. That sudden release is the real hazard on a tailwater. The pool level is on lakelvl.com, linked below.
Is Smith River at Philpott high or low for this time of year?
The USGS median flow for mid-September here is 252 CFS, from 75 years of record (1951–2026). Today is 53% 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 02072000 every 15 to 60 minutes. This page refreshes from USGS when you open it, and the reading is provisional until USGS reviews it. The timestamp is in the gauge's local time.