Coosawattee River level at Carters
Georgia · Fishing & wading
Measured at USGS 02381401 — CARTERS LAKE TAILRACE NEAR CARTERS, GA
Reading taken · as of 1 hour ago
Up and off-colour — heavier water than usual for wading
At 689.49 ft, this gauge is in the highest quarter of the 19 years USGS has recorded for this date (2007–2026), against a 686 ft median.
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Flow history at Carters
Daily values from USGS 02381401, updated every 15 to 60 minutes. Provisional.
About Coosawattee River at Carters
This page has less to show than most on the site, and the reasons are all in the data. The USGS station is Carters Lake Tailrace near Carters, GA. It reports gage height only, with no discharge parameter, so there is no CFS figure anywhere on this page and no percent of normal in flow terms. There is no NWS forecast point, so no flood categories, impact statements or crest list. And with no discharge series there is no peer gauge comparison either.
What the record does contain is a stage series of 6,995 daily values since 26 June 2007, published on a datum near 687 feet rather than in feet above a local zero. The monthly medians run from 686.63 feet in October to 688.2 in July, a range of about nineteen inches across the entire year, and the full record fits between 667.85 feet on 3 November 2014 and 696.36 feet on 13 November 2009. USGS also lists no annual peaks for this station at all.
Reservoir feeding this stretch
Flow here is set by releases from Carters Lake. A full pool usually means more water on its way down.
Coosawattee River at Carters — common questions
6 questions
Why is there no flow figure on this page?
Because the station does not report one. Gage height is the only parameter USGS publishes here, so the reading, the record high and low and the seasonal comparison are all in feet. If you need discharge for this reach you will have to get it from the project operator rather than from this gauge.
Why are the numbers near 687 rather than near zero?
The stage is published on a datum that puts the tailrace near 687 feet, so a reading of 687.5 is an ordinary level and not a flood. The whole 19-year record sits between 667.85 and 696.36 feet. Judge a reading by where it falls in that band, not by its size.
Is there any flood or peak history for this gauge?
None on file. There is no NWS forecast point, and the USGS annual peak record for this station is empty. The nineteen year daily series is the entire recorded history available here, which is worth knowing before drawing conclusions from it.
How do releases from Carters 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 Coosawattee River at Carters high or low for this time of year?
The USGS median gage height for late September here is 686 ft, from 19 years of record (2007–2026). Today sits in the highest quarter of those years. 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 02381401 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.