James River (VA) at Cartersville, VA
River level and flood forecast · Goochland County
The river is 16.8 ft below flood stage (20 ft).
Forecast to rise to 5.1 ft Wed 8 AM, below the 20 ft flood stage.
Flow: 4,960 cubic feet per second (USGS).
The last 7 days and the forecast
NWS forecast issued Mon, Oct 12, 3 PM. Forecasts change as rain falls and as upstream water arrives.
Flood stages
| Major flood stage | 26.4 ft |
| Moderate flood stage | 23 ft |
| Flood stage | 20 ft |
| Action stage | 15 ft |
| Record crest (November 6, 1985) | 32.6 ft |
What floods at each level
From the National Weather Service, highest first.
- 45 ftRiver stage sensor operating limit
- 34.35 ftStage of the 100 year flood.
- 32.26 ftStage of the 50 year flood.
- 30 ftFlood waters overtop the railroad tracks on the left hand side of the river approximately 1/4 of a mile from the river bank. Access to the Cartersville Bridge, VA Route 45 is cut off from north side.
- 29 ftOverflow on left bank reaches railroad bed. 7-9 feet of water over the flood plain on left bank of river and downstream.
- 26.4 ftMajor flooding begins. Many secondary roads flooded.
- 23.5 ftCartersville Boat landing parking lot and boat ramp on righthand side of the river and 200 ft downstream of State Route 45 bridge is flooded.
- 23 ftModerate flooding begins. Secondary roads parallel to left bank of river flood.
- 21 ftApproach to old highway bridge and portions of the farm land on the left hand side of the river are flooded.
- 20 ftMinor flooding begins. Overflow onto flood plain along left bank.
Highest crests on record
- 32.6 ft — November 6, 1985
- 28.96 ft — September 7, 1996
- 27.96 ft — April 18, 1987
- 27.12 ft — October 6, 1972
- 26.45 ft — January 21, 1996
Recent crests: 19.83 ft (May 14, 2025) · 22.77 ft (February 17, 2025) · 21.82 ft (January 10, 2024) · 17.57 ft (July 16, 2023) · 15.14 ft (April 29, 2023)
Up and down the river, and nearby
- DownstreamJames River (VA) at Richmond-Westham, VA
- Fine Creek near FINE CREEK MILLS, VA
- Slate River near Arvonia, VA
- Rivanna River at Palmyra, VA
- Appomattox River at Mattoax, VA
- Hardware River below BRIERY RUN NR SCOTTSVILLE, VA
- James River (VA) at Scottsville, VA
- Appomattox River at ROUTE 602 NEAR MANNBORO, VA
- James River (VA) at KANAWHA CANAL near Richmond, VA
Not an official source. River levels, forecasts, flood stages and impacts are from the National Weather Service (CARV2); flow from the U.S. Geological Survey. Readings are provisional. In a flood, follow your local officials and the NWS at weather.gov.