If you want to see water levels throughout the Suwannee River Basin, for example after a hurricane, there are at least three ways:

1. NOAA’s National Water Prediction Service: color-coded interactive maps
   Easiest to find an access point that is not flooding and not too low.
2. SRWMD River Levels: numeric water levels in a table
   Most condensed on one page.
3. WWALS Water Levels: each public access point, with high and low water recommendations, and a link to the WWALS Water Level gauge entry
   If you already have a pretty good idea of where you want to go.

They all get their data from the USGS gauges.

What’s your favorite way? One of these, or something else?

River Water Levels, Suwannee River Basin, NOAA, USGS, SRWMD, WWALS, Action Stage, Flood, Georgia, Florida

NOAA’s National Water Prediction Service

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) provides this color-coded map:

Map: NOAA river gauges in the Suwannee River Basin 2024-08-07

To pan and zoom, follow this link for the live map:
https://water.noaa.gov

Click on any colored circle to get a graph for that gauge.

Sites with a square around the circle have a prediction in addition to the current water level.

In this example of August 7, 2024, after Hurricane Debby, the Alapaha River is in Action Stage at Statenville, predicted to rise to Minor Flood. At Jennings, just below Sasser Landing, it’s even higher, in Moderate Flood.

Most of the Suwannee River is at least in Action Stage, and in Minor Flood and still rising at White Springs and Suwannee Springs.

The Santa Fe River is entirely in flood, including the purple shows Major Flood at two downstream sites.

The Ichetucknee River is merely in yellow Action Stage.

Click on the yellow circle upstream from Valdosta, and the Skipper Bridge gauge shows the Withlacoochee River there is in Minor Flood (orange circle) and expected to stay that way (orange square).

Skipper Bridge Gauge 2024-08-07

The US 41 Valdosta gauge is also in flood.

Valdosta US 41 Gauge 2024-08-07

The yellow current circle and yellow prediction square on the US 84 gauge shows it is in Action Stage and is predicted to stay there.

Quitman US 84 Gauge 2024-08-07

Ditto Pinetta, FL, at CR 150, just downstream from Sullivan Launch.

Pinetta CR 150 Gauge 2024-08-07

SRWMD River Levels

Florida’s Suwannee River Water Management District (SRWMD) provides a table of gauges on all rivers (and many lakes and a few creeks) in District.
http://www.mysuwanneeriver.org/realtime/river-levels.php

Also, “The District offers a 24-hour voice recording of current river levels. To reach the recording, call:”
(386) 362-6626
(800) 604-2272 (FL only)

The SRWMD table includes some rivers that are not in the Suwannee River Basin. Here is an excerpt with only the Basin rivers.

Suwannee River Basin Florida rivers in SRWMD Gauges 2024-08-07

The SRWMD table is skimpy on Georgia’s Little River, missing two gauges.

WWALS Water Levels

Each of the three WWALS water trails has an Access page, with information about each public landing.
https://wwals.net/water-trails/

Two of the WWALS water trails have online water level pages.

Withlacoochee and Little River Water Trail (WLRWT)

The WLRWT Access page has high and low water level recommendations for each public access point, with a link for the appropriate gauge.

Here’s an example from the WLRWT flooding charts page, with one of the Little River gauges SRWMD omitted:

Hahira Gauge, Little River at GA 122, near Hahira, GA, Lowndes County, GA (02318380)

Highest safe 11 feet, 144 NAVD. Lowest boatable 4.25 feet, 137 NAVD.

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For each gauge, there are WWALS recommendations for highest safe and lowest boatable water levels.

The left image leads to the NOAA page for that gauge.

The right image leads to the USGS page for that gauge, which lets you set a custom time frame, which is very useful for finding past water levels.

Alapaha River Water Trail (ARWT)

The ARWT Access page has high and low water level recommendations for each public access point, with a link for the appropriate gauge.

The ARWT water levels page links to the NOAA and USGS pages for each gauge.

Suwannee River Water Trail (SRWT)

The SRWT Access page, which includes the Suwannee, Santa Fe, and Ichetucknee Rivers, has high and low water level recommendations for some public access points, with a link to the appropriate NOAA gauge web page.

So pick your favorite method to see water levels in the Suwannee River Basin.

 -jsq, John S. Quarterman, Suwannee RIVERKEEPER®

You can help with clean, swimmable, fishable, drinkable, water in the 10,000-square-mile Suwannee River Basin in Florida and Georgia by becoming a WWALS member today!
https://wwals.net/donations/

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