Reading the river: the flood gauges around Lexington and what each number means
The National Weather Service publishes flood stages, impact notes and a crest history for many of the river gauges it watches. Around Lexington, four Kentucky River gauges carry impact notes, and a handful of creek gauges inside Fayette County add heights and crest records.
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Four numbers, set for each spot on the river
Every gauge page on the National Water Prediction Service shows the river's height in feet against four thresholds. The NWS defines them this way. Action stage is the level where the Weather Service or its partners need to start preparing, and people near the river should watch the gauge closely. Minor flooding means "minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat." Moderate flooding means some structures and roads near the stream are under water and some evacuations may be needed. Major flooding means extensive inundation of structures and roads.
Two things trip people up. First, the stage is a gauge reading, not a depth: 40 feet at High Bridge does not mean 40 feet of water in anyone's yard. Second, the thresholds are different at each gauge, because they are set by what floods near that gauge. Minor flooding starts at 30 feet at Camp Nelson but at 26 feet at Ford Lock.
The NWS also notes that not every gauge has all three flood categories. That matters in Lexington, because the creek gauges inside the county report heights but have no flood categories at all.
Four gauges on the county line
Kentucky American Water describes the Kentucky River as passing south of Lexington, and the Kentucky Geological Survey puts it along the whole southern boundary of Jessamine County. These are the four gauges on that stretch with NWS stages and impact notes, as published on November 9, 2026. Stages are in feet.
StagesAction 28, minor 30, moderate 36, major 40.
Crests47.04 on April 6, 2025, the record; 46.02 in May 2010; 42.92 in March 2021.
StagesAction 26, minor 30, moderate 36, major 39.
Crests53.1 in December 1978; 52.9 in 1972; 47.2 on April 6, 2025.
StagesAction 28. No minor, moderate or major stages are set; the gauge reports observed heights only.
Crests41.67 on April 6, 2025; 41.3 in March 2021; 41.07 in May 2010.
StagesAction 24, minor 26, moderate 35, major 40.
Crests40.15 in December 1978; 38.05 in March 2021; 36.07 in March 1962.
From the NWS National Water Prediction Service gauge records for CPNK2, HIBK2, VLVK2 and FODK2, read November 9, 2026. The NWS Louisville April 2025 event summary gives the High Bridge crest as 47.13 feet; the gauge record lists 47.2.
The streets named in the impact notes
The useful part of each gauge page is its impact list: the NWS's own notes on what goes under water at each height. These are the notes for the four gauges, in the NWS's words or close to them.
High Bridge Lock
- 25 feet: Dix Drive begins to flood.
- 26 feet: homes along Dix Drive are cut off.
- 30 feet: a large portion of Dix Drive floods.
- 36 feet: water enters homes along Dix Drive; Brooklyn Road floods.
- 39 feet: Dix Drive floods completely, many homes are flooded, Palisades Road floods, and part of Highway 68 floods.
Camp Nelson
- 25 feet: high water notifications begin at Camp Nelson RV Park.
- 28 feet: Sugar Creek Pike floods.
- 34 feet: evacuations begin at the RV park.
- 36 feet: portions of River Road and Buckeye Road flood.
- 38 feet: portions of Camp Nelson Road and Hopkins Lane near the river flood.
Valley View
- 16 to 17 feet: the Valley View ferry may close at the captain's discretion, then closes.
- 22 feet: Donaldson Park begins to flood.
- 35 feet: portions of Hunters Ferry Road, Poosey Ridge Road, Whitlock Road, Carvers Ferry Road, Camp Daniel Boone Road, Tates Creek Road and Tattlers Branch flood.
- 41 feet: homes south of Camp Daniel Boone Road flood.
Ford Lock
- 26 feet: low-lying parts of Fort Boonesborough State Park flood.
- 30 feet: KY 388 floods, some homes are threatened, and more of the park floods.
Valley View's 41.67-foot crest on April 6, 2025 sits past the 41-foot note about homes south of Camp Daniel Boone Road, and Camp Nelson's record that same day was well above its 40-foot major flood stage.
The creek gauges: heights, but no flood stages
The NWS gauge records place seven stream gauges in Fayette County. None has a forecast or flood categories; each record says only observed stages are available. They still keep a crest history, and at four of them it holds only one or two crests. Two more gauges downstream, at Georgetown and Midway, have longer records.
- Elkhorn Creek at Fort Spring, Fayette County. 14 crests on file.12.92 ft, Sept 2006
- Elkhorn Creek at Yarnallton, Fayette County. 10 crests on file.11.79 ft, Sept 2006
- West Hickman Creek at Veterans Park, Fayette County. 2 crests on file.10.29 ft, Apr 3, 2015
- East Hickman Creek near East Hickman, Fayette County. 1 crest on file.9.15 ft, Apr 3, 2015
- North Elkhorn Creek at Eastland Park, Fayette County. 13 crests on file.7.7 ft, Sept 2006
- Cane Run Creek at Highlands, Fayette County. 2 crests on file.6.92 ft, June 2017
- Cane Run Creek near Douglas Park, Fayette County. 1 crest on file.6.78 ft, Apr 3, 2015
- North Elkhorn Creek at Georgetown, Scott County. 12 crests on file.19.01 ft, Mar 1997
- South Elkhorn Creek at Midway, Woodford County. 19 crests on file.26.37 ft, Mar 1997
Top crest listed for each gauge, from the NWS National Water Prediction Service gauge records, read November 9, 2026.
What the creek records say
April 3, 2015 is the top crest on file at three of the city's creek gauges, on West Hickman, East Hickman and Cane Run. September 2006 tops three others on the Elkhorn system. Neither date is among the top three crests at Camp Nelson or High Bridge. On these records the creeks and the river at the county line had their top crests on different days, so the river gauge is not a stand-in for the creek behind your house.
With so few crests on file, these records are a rough guide. A creek can flood a street without setting a gauge record, and the June 22, 2026 storm, when the NWS reported 2.5 to 3 inches in under ninety minutes in Lexington, does not appear on any of these lists.
Which gauge to watch
- Inside Lexington: the creek gauge on your watershed's creek, plus NWS flash flood warnings. The watershed page shows which creek drains your neighborhood.
- Jessamine County near the river, Wilmore and the High Bridge area: High Bridge and Camp Nelson.
- South Fayette along Tates Creek Road to the river: Valley View.
- Madison County near Fort Boonesborough: Ford Lock.
- Georgetown and Midway: the North and South Elkhorn gauges; the Georgetown page covers the town's utility.
Before and after the crest
The City's emergency management site, BeReadyLexington, puts awareness first: a NOAA weather radio, and the NWS's watches and warnings. Its advice for when a warning is issued is blunt: get out. It also says to know how to shut off electricity, water and gas, and lists turning off the electricity and closing gas valves among its flood steps.
River water is floodwater, so treat everything it touched as contaminated. The flash flood page covers safety and the City's after-flood list, and the local guide explains why karst ground lets water in from below even when no river is near.
Getting the house dry
River floods leave silt and soaked materials that the EPA says should be dried within 24 to 48 hours or assumed to grow mold. The drying and mold page goes through that window, and the debris page covers getting rid of what cannot be saved.
Bluegrass Dry-Out Referral does not monitor rivers or do any cleanup. It is a referral service: a callback request is passed to an independent restoration company when one that serves your area is taking work.
Gauge questions
What is flood stage on the Kentucky River at High Bridge?
The NWS sets action stage at 26 feet, minor flooding at 30, moderate at 36 and major at 39. Its impact notes say Dix Drive begins to flood at 25 feet and water enters homes along Dix Drive at 36.
What was the record crest at Camp Nelson?
47.04 feet on April 6, 2025, according to the NWS gauge record. The previous top crest on the list was 46.02 feet in May 2010. Major flood stage there is 40 feet.
Is there a flood gauge for the creeks in Lexington?
Yes, several, on Elkhorn, North Elkhorn, Cane Run, West Hickman and East Hickman creeks. The NWS lists them as observed-only: they report heights but have no forecasts or flood categories, and four of them have only one or two crests on file.
Does a gauge reading tell me if my house will flood?
No. It tells you how high the river is at that gauge. Whether your lot floods depends on its elevation and the flood maps; the City points residents to the FEMA Map Information Exchange and its Flood Hazard Zone Viewer.