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Rio Grande near Del Norte

Highest listed crest 6.80 ftFlood stage 5.5 ft23 crests since 1911

The Rio Grande near Del Norte crested above flood stage 12 times among the 23 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1911 to 2019. The highest, 6.80 ft on October 5, 1911, was moderate flooding, 1.30 feet above flood stage. 1 other gauge on the Rio Grande crested above flood stage within a week of it.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
6.80 ft
October 5, 1911; 18,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
5.5 ft
Major flooding from 7.5 ft
Crests at major
0
12 above flood stage
Most recent flood crest
June 12, 2019
5.69 ft, minor flooding
Location
Rio Grande County
Colorado

Flood stages

The thresholds the National Weather Service uses for this gauge today, and how many listed crests reached each.

Flood categories, Rio Grande near Del Norte
Action stage5.07May 22, 2005The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)5.511Jun 12, 2019Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage6.51Oct 5, 1911Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage7.50—Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

23 crests from 1911 to 2019. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Rio Grande near Del Norte, 1911 to 2019 -202468ft Flood stage 5.5 ftMajor 7.5 ft Oct 5, 1911: 6.80 ft, moderate flooding; 18,000 cubic feet per secondJun 15, 1917: 5.80 ft, minor flooding; 8,790 cubic feet per secondJun 1, 1920: -0.99 ft, below flood stage; 8,100 cubic feet per secondJun 13, 1921: 6.10 ft, minor flooding; 9,630 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1922: 5.30 ft, action stage; 8,320 cubic feet per secondJun 29, 1927: 6.40 ft, minor flooding; 15,000 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 1941: 5.56 ft, minor flooding; 7,960 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 1948: 5.81 ft, minor flooding; 8,840 cubic feet per secondJun 19, 1949: 6.16 ft, minor flooding; 10,000 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 1970: 5.36 ft, action stage; 7,380 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1979: 5.68 ft, minor flooding; 8,030 cubic feet per secondJun 10, 1980: 5.59 ft, minor flooding; 7,750 cubic feet per secondMay 27, 1984: 5.43 ft, action stage; 7,200 cubic feet per secondJun 9, 1985: 5.91 ft, minor flooding; 8,920 cubic feet per secondJun 7, 1986: 5.39 ft, action stage; 7,620 cubic feet per secondJun 16, 1987: 5.22 ft, action stage; 7,490 cubic feet per secondJun 18, 1995: 5.50 ft, minor flooding; 7,410 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 1997: 5.33 ft, action stage; 7,440 cubic feet per secondMay 22, 2005: 5.40 ft, action stage; 7,570 cubic feet per secondMay 21, 2008: 4.92 ft, below flood stage; 6,370 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 2009: 4.87 ft, below flood stage; 6,040 cubic feet per secondMay 29, 2010: 4.53 ft, below flood stage; 5,430 cubic feet per secondJun 12, 2019: 5.69 ft, minor flooding; 8,000 cubic feet per second Highest, 6.80 ft, Oct 5, 1911 192019401960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Rio Grande near Del Norte 1910s: 2 1920s: 2 1930s: 0 1940s: 3 3 1950s: 0 1960s: 0 1970s: 1 1980s: 2 1990s: 1 2000s: 0 2010s: 1 1910s1920s1930s1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s
  1. These are the crests the local National Weather Service office lists for the gauge: the highest on record and recent crests. Lesser floods between them may be missing, so counts by decade are a floor.
  2. Categories use today's flood stages. Levees, dams and channel changes since a crest can make old and new stages not directly comparable.
  3. 1 crest measured on an earlier gauge datum is left out: -0.99 ft on Jun 5, 1905.

Highest crests

Highest listed crests, Rio Grande near Del Norte
1Oct 5, 19116.80+1.30Moderate18,000
2Jun 29, 19276.40+0.90Minor15,000
3Jun 19, 19496.16+0.66Minor10,000
4Jun 13, 19216.10+0.60Minor9,630
5Jun 9, 19855.91+0.41Minor8,920
6May 22, 19485.81+0.31Minor8,840
7Jun 15, 19175.80+0.30Minor8,790
8Jun 12, 20195.69+0.19Minor8,000
9May 30, 19795.68+0.18Minor8,030
10Jun 10, 19805.59+0.09Minor7,750
11Jun 19, 19415.56+0.06Minor7,960
12Jun 18, 19955.500.00Minor7,410
13May 27, 19845.43−0.07Action7,200
14May 22, 20055.40−0.10Action7,570
15Jun 7, 19865.39−0.11Action7,620
16Sep 6, 19705.36−0.14Action7,380
17Jun 2, 19975.33−0.17Action7,440
18May 30, 19225.30−0.20Action8,320
19Jun 16, 19875.22−0.28Action7,490
20May 21, 20084.92−0.58Below flood stage6,370
21May 8, 20094.87−0.63Below flood stage6,040
22May 29, 20104.53−0.97Below flood stage5,430
23Jun 1, 1920-0.99−6.49Below flood stage8,100

The worst floods along the Rio Grande

For this gauge's highest crests, the other gauges on the Rio Grande that crested above flood stage within a week.

October 5, 1911: 6.80 ft here, moderate flooding

  • OtowiNM · Oct 7, 1911 · 13.10 ft · Moderate

June 29, 1927: 6.40 ft here, minor flooding

  • EmbudoNM · Jul 3, 1927 · 10.60 ft · Minor

June 19, 1949: 6.16 ft here, minor flooding

  • EmbudoNM · Jun 22, 1949 · 12.17 ft · Moderate
  • AlamosaCO · Jun 20, 1949 · 10.62 ft · Minor · its highest

Gauges on the Rio Grande

Flood gauges sharing the river's name, linked within 80 miles of one another.

Flood gauges on the Rio Grande
San Felipe PuebloNM8.510.53 ft, May 14, 19410
AlamosaCO9.010.62 ft, Jun 20, 19490
AlbuquerqueNM8.012.30 ft, Apr 24, 19420
EmbudoNM10.015.90 ft, Jun 19, 19031
EspanolaNM9.510.40 ft, May 15, 19410
OtowiNM9.014.50 ft, Sep 29, 19040
Wagon Wheel GapCO6.06.10 ft, Jun 9, 19850
Cochiti DamNM6.67.05 ft, May 31, 19840
Del Norte this gaugeCO5.56.80 ft, Oct 5, 19110
LobatosCO9.010.00 ft, Jun 18, 19030

Other gauges in Rio Grande County

Flood gauges in Rio Grande County
South Fork7.09.70 ft, Oct 15, 19111

Rio Grande County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Colorado

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge DNRC2, retrieved October 30, 2026. Stages in feet on the gauge's own datum, not elevation. Crests are as the National Weather Service lists them; preliminary values may be revised.