Tag Archives: Hightower Creek

Clean Santa Fe River and Withlacoochee 2026-09-24 except downstream from Sugar Creek 2026-09-22

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Update 2026-10-03: Clean Alapaha, Withlacoochee, Santa Fe Rivers before rains 2026-10-02.

Update 2026-09-26: Apparently no effect of dirty milk water spill downstream to Pride Branch 2026-09-25.

The Santa Fe and Withlacoochee Rivers tested clean this week.

Except the Withlacoochee was filthy Tuesday at GA 133, downstream from Sugar Creek, after rains Monday and Tuesday.

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia, or Florida.

There was the Wednesday dirty milk water spill on US 84 west of Quitman in Brooks County, into Pride Branch, Piscola Creek, Okapilco Creek, and the Withlacoochee River upstream from Knights Ferry Boat Ramp. But the downstream landowner says there has been no fish kill nor any other obvious ill effects on the creek or Purdue Sinks. More on that in another post.

So according to the results we have, happy paddling, swimming, boating, and fishing, but avoid the Withlacoochee River between Sugar Creek and the Little River Confluence.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for details.

[Clean Santa Fe River, and Withlacoochee 2026-09-24, except downstream from, Sugar Creek 2026-09-22]
Clean Santa Fe River, and Withlacoochee 2026-09-24, except downstream from, Sugar Creek 2026-09-22

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

OK Sugar Creek 2026-09-12, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-14, Clean Santa Fe River 2026-09-16

Update 2026-09-26: Clean Santa Fe River and Withlacoochee except downstream from Sugar Creek 2026-09-24.

Sugar Creek is OK this week, according to a WWALS Saturday sample. Nonetheless, the Withlacoochee River tested OK Monday in Valdosta’s results, and the Santa Fe River tested clean Wednesday in WWALS results.

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia, or Florida.

So according to the results we have, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

[OK Sugar Creek 2026-09-12, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-14, Clean Santa Fe River 2026-09-16, Happy paddling, swimming, fishing]
OK Sugar Creek 2026-09-12, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-14, Clean Santa Fe River 2026-09-16, Happy paddling, swimming, fishing

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Filthy Sugar Creek 2026-09-07, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-08, Clean Santa Fe River and Poe Springs 2026-09-09

Update 2026-09-18: OK Sugar Creek 2026-09-12, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-14, Clean Santa Fe River 2026-09-16.

Sugar Creek and Hightower Creek are filthy again, from WWALS Monday samples. And again, nobody knows why. WWALS will investigate.

Nonetheless, the Withlacoochee River tested OK Tuesday in Georgia and clean Wednesday in Florida.

The Santa Fe River and Poe Springs tested clean for Wednesday.

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia, or Florida.

So according to the results we have, still avoid Sugar Creek and its tributaries such as Hightower Creek. But on the rivers, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating, if you can avoid the rains.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

[Filthy Sugar Creek 2026-09-07, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-08, Clean Santa Fe River, and Poe Springs 2026-09-09]
Filthy Sugar Creek 2026-09-07, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-09-08, Clean Santa Fe River, and Poe Springs 2026-09-09

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Filthy Sugar Creek, OK Withlacoochee River 2026-08-26 Clean Santa Fe River 2026-08-27

Update 2026-09-04: Clean Alapaha River 2026-08-28, Withlacoochee and Santa Fe Rivers 2026-09-02.

Something is wrong with Sugar Creek that is hard to explain by first flush, yet no sewage spills have been found.

WWALS tested Sugar Creek filthy Saturday and Wednesday at the WaterGoat. Valdosta Utilities corroborated that for Wednesday at Gornto Road. Upstream on Hightower Creek at Gornto Road, Valdosta Utilities got too high for Monday, and way-too high for Wednesday, matching WWALS the result for that site. Valdosta also got too high for Wednesday on One Mile Branch at West Gordon Street, but not nearly as high as on Hightower Branch. More on all that below.

Meanwhile, Valdosta Utilities got OK results for the Withlacoochee River upstream at US 41 (North Valdosta Road) and downstream at GA 133 and US 84. WWALS got clean results at Holly Point, only four miles upstream from the Suwannee River.

And WWALS got clean Thursday results for the Santa Fe River.

No new sewage spills were reported in the past week in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida or Georgia.

So according to the results we have, avoid Sugar Creek and its tributaries One Mile Branch and Hightower Creek. But on the rivers, happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating, if you can avoid the rains.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

[Filthy Sugar Creek 2026-08-26, OK Withlacoochee River, Clean Santa Fe River 2026-08-27]
Filthy Sugar Creek 2026-08-26, OK Withlacoochee River, Clean Santa Fe River 2026-08-27

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

OK Santa Fe and Alapaha Rivers, Questionable Withlacoochee River, Dirty Sugar Creek, Clean Little River 2026-03-19

Update 2026-03-27: Clean New, Withlacoochee, and Santa Fe Rivers 2026-03-26.

Sugar Creek is dirty again, but not as filthy as last week, according to a WWALS Tuesday sample. So was Hightower Creek at St. Augustine Road, also for Tuesday.

For the Withlacoochee River, Valdosta Utilities for Monday got very filthy with E. coli at GA 133, but clean at US 84.

WWALS got clean downstream at Holly Point for Tuesday, and clean upstream at Hagan Bridge for Thursday, also on the Withlacoochee River. And clean for Thursday on the Little River at Troupville Boat Ramp, just above the Withlacoochee.

The Santa Fe River tested clean for Thursday, and the Alapaha River tested OK for Saturday.

No new sewage spills have been reported this week in the Suwannee River Basin in Florida or Georgia.

So chances are the contamination from the big rain of Monday has been diluted. Happy paddling, swimming, fishing, and boating this weekend.

Come join us tomorrow, Saturday, for a Chainsaw cleanup, Withlacoochee River, Upstream from Troupville 2026-03-21. You do not have to use a saw. You can pull trimmed branches aside, pick up trash, photograph, or just paddle along.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

[OK Alapaha, Santa Fe Rivers, Questionable Withlacoochee, Dirty Sugar Creek, Clean Little River 2026-03-19]
OK Alapaha, Santa Fe Rivers, Questionable Withlacoochee, Dirty Sugar Creek, Clean Little River 2026-03-19

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Filthy Withlacoochee River and Sugar Creek 2026-02-17

Update 2026-02-21: Clean Santa Fe, Alapaha Rivers, cleaner Withlacoochee, New Rivers 2026-02-19.

WWALS got filthy river results on the Withlacoochee River at US 41 and Langdale Park Boat Ramp for Monday, but Valdosta Utilities got even worse at GA 133 and US 84 for Tuesday.

In between, WWALS got pretty bad on Hightower Creek, but the worst on Sugar Creek, both for Tuesday.

Yet downstream in Florida, WWALS got clean on the Withlacoochee River for Tuesday.

No new sewage spills have been reported this week in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia or Florida.

So this filthiness is probably first flush after the Sunday rains. That’s a utilities term: after a long drought, a big rain washes the woods, which animals have been using as a latrine.

If so, the waterways will clean up in a few days as the water runs. But I’d avoid all these for a few days.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

[Filthy Withlacoochee River and Sugar Creek 2026-02-17, After big rains, But clean far downstream]
Filthy Withlacoochee River and Sugar Creek 2026-02-17, After big rains, But clean far downstream

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results, rainfall, and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Santa Fe River Clean, Withlacoochee Clean Upstream, Bad Downstream 2026-01-22

Update 2026-01-30: Clean Alapaha, Santa Fe, and Withlacoochee Rivers 2026-01-28.

WWALS got good river results on the Santa Fe River for Wednesday and upstream on the Withlacoochee River for Thursday.

Valdosta Utilities got bad E. coli results downstream at GA 133 and US 84 for Thursday.

We have no new creek test results.

I wonder if some of the contamination I detected Sunday on feeder creeks just upstream from Langdale Park Boat Ramp had not washed downstream to GA 133 and beyond by Thursday. Or did something else come down Hightower Creek and Sugar Creek into the Withlacoochee River?

No new sewage spills have been reported this week in Georgia or Florida.

So if you can find a river with enough water, happy paddling, boating, swimming, and fishing this weekend before the big freeze next week.

This image is an illustration. Scroll down for the details.

[Santa Fe River Clean, Withlacoochee Clean Upstream, Withlacoochee Bad Downstream at GA 133 & US 84, 2026-01-22]
Santa Fe River Clean, Withlacoochee Clean Upstream, Withlacoochee Bad Downstream at GA 133 & US 84, 2026-01-22

Withlacoochee River

Please welcome back WWALS tester Cindy Vedas. For Thursday she got:

  • a very clean 33 cfu/100 mL at Franklinville Landing, “Looks great at this location.”
  • a perfect zero (0) at Staten Road, “River looks good here.”
  • and 66 at Langdale Park Boat Ramp, “River not flowing much at all. New No Hunting signs are posted.”

Valdosta Utilities for Thursday got 770 at GA 133 and 650 at US 84, both above the 410 one-time test limit.

Santa Fe River

WWALS testers Bob Mills and Kurt Hurzeler for Wednesday at Mills Dock, a bit upstream from Poe Springs Ramp, bot a very clean 33, with 6.2 C air temperature and 17.0 C water temperature. And a beaver!

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results rainfall and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Valdosta Force Main alongside Hightower Creek 2026-01-09

It’s not obvious that Valdosta’s Force Main from its Remer Pump Station on Sugar Creek runs alongside Hightower Creek up across St. Augustine Road, Norman Drive, and I-75, then along various county roads, to the Withlacoochee Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP), whose treated wastewater outfall is to the nearby Withlacoochee River.

Here are some pictures in the other direction, west to east, across the land just west of I-75 (thanks to the landowners), across I-75, to Norman Drive.

[Valdosta Force Main alongside Hightower Creek, Across I-75 and Norman Drive 2026-01-09]
Valdosta Force Main alongside Hightower Creek, Across I-75 and Norman Drive 2026-01-09

See also Filthy Hightower Creek 2026-01-08 but clean upstream ILM Pond 2026-01-09.

https://wwals.net/?p=69215

You can find this force main on the VALORGIS map. You have to turn on the layer ValdostaEasements. Then it appears in black.

Also turn on Streams to make the creeks show up, although VALORGIS only shows Hightower Creek as far as St. Augustine Road.

And turn off Zoning to reduce distractions. Continue reading →

Filthy Hightower Creek 2026-01-08 but clean upstream ILM Pond 2026-01-09

Update 2026-01-23: Valdosta Force Main alongside Hightower Creek 2026-01-09.

Update 2026-01-16: Clean Ichetucknee, Santa Fe, Withlacoochee Rivers 2026-01-14.

Thanks to the landowners, on Friday John S. Quarterman tested ILM Pond at the top of Hightower Creek, west of I-75, and found its level well below its outflow pipes. Also, it tested pretty clean, despite the geese that land there. So that can’t be the source of contamination into Hightower Creek.

On Thursday, Suzy Hall tested Hightower Creek at St. Augustine Road and found it still dirty. Downstream, she also tested Sugar Creek at the WaterGoat and found it OK, not far upstream from the Withlacoochee River.

There’s no water in Hightower Creek all the way from ILM Pond under I-75. Until just below the Sam’s Club detention pond. So that seems like a good place to test next.

This image is an overview. Scroll down for the details.

[Dirty Hightower Creek 2026-01-08, Clean ILM Pond 2026-01-09, Sugar Creek OK, Where is the source?]
Dirty Hightower Creek 2026-01-08, Clean ILM Pond 2026-01-09, Sugar Creek OK, Where is the source?

This is an update to the WWALS Friday Weekly Water Quality Report in which we found the Withlacoochee River clean, and the Santa Fe River.

The inch of rain Saturday last week had little effect, and the drizzle this Saturday probably even less.

No new sewage spills have been reported since then in Georgia or Florida.

The weather is supposed to be fine but cold today, so if you can find a river with enough water, and happy paddling, motoring, swimming, and fishing.

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results rainfall and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →

Hightower Creek dirty upstream at Norman Drive 2026-01-01

Update 2026-01-09: Clean Withlacoochee and Santa Fe Rivers 2026-01-07.

It sure looks like there is some sort of leak upstream of Norman Drive on Hightower Creek.

WWALS tester Suzy Hall got 833 cfu/100 mL for Thursday, only slightly lower than her 866 half a mile downstream at St. Augustine Road. Both results are above the one-time test limit of 410. Both WWALS and Valdosta Utilities have been getting too-high results at St. Augustine Road for many weeks.

And Valdosta Utilities got 880 at GA 133 for Wednesday on the Withlacoochee River.

That could be the contamination Suzy saw Tuesday washing downstream. If so, where is the water coming from to wash it down? There was no rain until today.

This image is an overview. Scroll down for the details.

[Hightower Creek dirty upstream at Norman Drive 2026-01-01, And Withlacoochee River at GA 133 2025-12-31]
Hightower Creek dirty upstream at Norman Drive 2026-01-01, And Withlacoochee River at GA 133 2025-12-31

Suzy’s Norman Drive number is way worse than when I sampled the same location a year ago, December 12 02, 2024. That was part of a ten-site effort with Suzy Hall all the way down Hightower Creek and Sugar Creek to just above the Withlacoochee River. That project localized a likely sewer leak within 2,000 feet.

And a month later, the City of Valdosta found that major sewage spill in Sugar Creek that had been spilling for months.

Will Valdosta Utilities find this sewer system leak?

Fortunately, Valdosta Utilities got an OK 200 downstream at US 84 on the Withlacoochee River for Wednesday.

Today’s rain is supposed to be gone by tomorrow.

So if you can find a river with enough water, and you don’t mind cold and rain, happy paddling, motoring, swimming, and fishing this weekend.

Maybe you’d like to join us, weather permitting for Full Wolf Moon Paddle, Banks Lake, Gather 5 PM, launch 5:30 PM, moonrise 6:07 PM, sunset 5:55 PM, end 7 PM, Saturday, January 3, 2026.

Follow this link for the WWALS composite spreadsheet of water quality results rainfall and sewage spills in the Suwannee River Basin in Georgia and Florida:
https://wwals.net/issues/testing/#results

The image below is a current excerpt from that spreadsheet. Continue reading →