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Rockfish River near Greenfield

Highest listed crest 33.20 ftFlood stage 12.0 ft82 crests since 1942

The Rockfish River near Greenfield crested at major flood stage 1 time among the 82 crests the National Weather Service lists from 1942 to 2025. The highest, 33.20 ft on August 20, 1969, was major flooding, 21.20 feet above flood stage.

The gauge

Highest listed crest
33.20 ft
August 20, 1969; 70,000 cubic feet per second
Flood stage
12.0 ft
Major flooding from 27.0 ft
Crests at major
1
90th of 242 gauges in Virginia
Most recent flood crest
May 14, 2025
12.95 ft, minor flooding
Location
Nelson County
Near Waynesboro (14.3 mi)

Flood stages

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

Flood categories, Rockfish River near Greenfield
Action stage10.049Dec 21, 2018The level at which the NWS or its partners begin to take action
Flood stage (minor)12.031May 14, 2025Minimal or no property damage, but possibly some public threat
Moderate flood stage22.01Oct 15, 1942Some inundation of structures and roads near the stream
Major flood stage27.01Aug 20, 1969Extensive inundation of structures and roads

Every listed crest

82 crests from 1942 to 2025. Filled: at or above flood stage. Hover a crest for its date and stage.

Listed crests at the Rockfish River near Greenfield, 1942 to 2025 101520253035ft Flood stage 12.0 ftMajor 27.0 ft Oct 15, 1942: 25.40 ft, moderate flooding; 30,000 cubic feet per secondSep 19, 1944: 19.20 ft, minor flooding; 13,700 cubic feet per secondSep 18, 1945: 13.66 ft, minor flooding; 4,780 cubic feet per secondApr 1, 1948: 11.28 ft, action stage; 3,050 cubic feet per secondAug 4, 1948: 10.72 ft, action stage; 2,690 cubic feet per secondDec 4, 1948: 13.30 ft, minor flooding; 4,450 cubic feet per secondSep 10, 1950: 10.25 ft, action stage; 2,440 cubic feet per secondDec 4, 1950: 14.12 ft, minor flooding; 5,260 cubic feet per secondFeb 4, 1952: 10.18 ft, action stage; 2,440 cubic feet per secondMar 11, 1952: 15.30 ft, minor flooding; 6,840 cubic feet per secondFeb 21, 1953: 10.66 ft, action stage; 2,500 cubic feet per secondMar 25, 1953: 11.60 ft, action stage; 3,040 cubic feet per secondAug 18, 1955: 18.45 ft, minor flooding; 12,200 cubic feet per secondJul 20, 1956: 10.85 ft, action stage; 2,560 cubic feet per secondApr 5, 1957: 10.17 ft, action stage; 2,210 cubic feet per secondApr 23, 1958: 10.30 ft, action stage; 1,840 cubic feet per secondJun 2, 1959: 12.85 ft, minor flooding; 3,260 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 1959: 13.43 ft, minor flooding; 3,670 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 1959: 16.96 ft, minor flooding; 7,860 cubic feet per secondOct 24, 1959: 10.92 ft, action stage; 2,140 cubic feet per secondMay 8, 1960: 10.77 ft, action stage; 2,080 cubic feet per secondJul 27, 1960: 10.30 ft, action stage; 1,680 cubic feet per secondFeb 25, 1961: 10.15 ft, action stage; 1,780 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 1961: 11.12 ft, action stage; 2,240 cubic feet per secondOct 21, 1961: 15.90 ft, minor flooding; 6,340 cubic feet per secondNov 10, 1962: 11.23 ft, action stage; 2,300 cubic feet per secondMar 12, 1963: 10.03 ft, action stage; 1,700 cubic feet per secondJan 25, 1964: 10.32 ft, action stage; 1,840 cubic feet per secondNov 25, 1964: 11.35 ft, action stage; 2,410 cubic feet per secondFeb 7, 1965: 15.50 ft, minor flooding; 5,860 cubic feet per secondFeb 13, 1966: 12.11 ft, minor flooding; 2,820 cubic feet per secondFeb 28, 1966: 11.10 ft, action stage; 2,240 cubic feet per secondMar 7, 1967: 14.98 ft, minor flooding; 5,260 cubic feet per secondAug 24, 1967: 11.46 ft, action stage; 2,460 cubic feet per secondDec 10, 1967: 10.10 ft, action stage; 1,740 cubic feet per secondJul 29, 1969: 14.00 ft, minor flooding; 4,170 cubic feet per secondAug 20, 1969: 33.20 ft, major flooding; 70,000 cubic feet per secondFeb 2, 1970: 10.67 ft, action stage; 1,690 cubic feet per secondApr 2, 1970: 10.55 ft, action stage; 1,640 cubic feet per secondMay 30, 1971: 11.22 ft, action stage; 5,560 cubic feet per secondJun 21, 1972: 20.11 ft, minor flooding; 17,500 cubic feet per secondOct 5, 1972: 11.57 ft, action stage; 5,540 cubic feet per secondMar 19, 1975: 12.32 ft, minor flooding; 6,310 cubic feet per secondOct 9, 1976: 10.81 ft, action stage; 4,680 cubic feet per secondSep 5, 1979: 13.24 ft, minor flooding; 7,370 cubic feet per secondSep 22, 1979: 12.25 ft, minor flooding; 6,200 cubic feet per secondApr 3, 1983: 11.23 ft, action stage; 5,130 cubic feet per secondFeb 14, 1984: 10.15 ft, action stage; 4,030 cubic feet per secondAug 12, 1984: 11.72 ft, action stage; 5,670 cubic feet per secondNov 4, 1985: 15.24 ft, minor flooding; 9,970 cubic feet per secondSep 8, 1987: 11.10 ft, action stage; 4,990 cubic feet per secondMay 10, 1990: 11.72 ft, action stage; 5,670 cubic feet per secondOct 23, 1990: 11.39 ft, action stage; 5,310 cubic feet per secondApr 21, 1992: 14.22 ft, minor flooding; 8,620 cubic feet per secondJun 5, 1992: 10.52 ft, action stage; 4,400 cubic feet per secondNov 13, 1992: 12.62 ft, minor flooding; 6,670 cubic feet per secondNov 23, 1992: 13.88 ft, minor flooding; 8,190 cubic feet per secondMar 4, 1993: 11.15 ft, action stage; 5,050 cubic feet per secondJan 19, 1996: 11.73 ft, action stage; 5,500 cubic feet per secondSep 6, 1996: 15.77 ft, minor flooding; 10,600 cubic feet per secondJan 28, 1998: 10.09 ft, action stage; 3,840 cubic feet per secondFeb 17, 1998: 10.48 ft, action stage; 4,210 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 1999: 11.54 ft, action stage; 5,300 cubic feet per secondFeb 22, 2003: 10.06 ft, action stage; 3,810 cubic feet per secondSep 19, 2003: 14.32 ft, minor flooding; 8,610 cubic feet per secondSep 28, 2004: 11.06 ft, action stage; 4,810 cubic feet per secondDec 23, 2004: 10.78 ft, action stage; 4,520 cubic feet per secondNov 29, 2005: 11.76 ft, action stage; 5,540 cubic feet per secondOct 7, 2006: 11.23 ft, action stage; 4,980 cubic feet per secondJan 25, 2010: 13.33 ft, minor flooding; 7,350 cubic feet per secondSep 30, 2010: 10.85 ft, action stage; 4,590 cubic feet per secondApr 16, 2011: 13.81 ft, minor flooding; 7,950 cubic feet per secondAug 14, 2011: 13.10 ft, minor flooding; 7,070 cubic feet per secondDec 7, 2011: 10.56 ft, action stage; 4,190 cubic feet per secondJan 31, 2013: 11.55 ft, action stage; 5,280 cubic feet per secondMay 16, 2014: 11.39 ft, action stage; 5,040 cubic feet per secondSep 29, 2015: 10.57 ft, action stage; 4,300 cubic feet per secondMay 5, 2017: 12.08 ft, minor flooding; 5,886 cubic feet per secondSep 17, 2018: 13.22 ft, minor flooding; 7,212 cubic feet per secondDec 21, 2018: 11.64 ft, action stage; 5,410 cubic feet per secondApr 13, 2020: 12.03 ft, minor flooding; 5,831 cubic feet per secondMay 14, 2025: 12.95 ft, minor flooding; 6,886 cubic feet per second Highest, 33.20 ft, Aug 20, 1969 1960198020002020

Crests at or above flood stage, by decade

Crests at or above flood stage per decade, Rockfish River near Greenfield 1940s: 4 1950s: 6 6 1960s: 6 1970s: 4 1980s: 1 1990s: 4 2000s: 1 2010s: 5 2020s: 2 1940s1950s1960s1970s1980s1990s2000s2010s2020s
  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.

Highest crests

The 50 highest of 82 listed crests.

Highest listed crests, Rockfish River near Greenfield
1Aug 20, 196933.20+21.20Major70,000
2Oct 15, 194225.40+13.40Moderate30,000
3Jun 21, 197220.11+8.11Minor17,500
4Sep 19, 194419.20+7.20Minor13,700
5Aug 18, 195518.45+6.45Minor12,200
6Sep 30, 195916.96+4.96Minor7,860
7Oct 21, 196115.90+3.90Minor6,340
8Sep 6, 199615.77+3.77Minor10,600
9Feb 7, 196515.50+3.50Minor5,860
10Mar 11, 195215.30+3.30Minor6,840
11Nov 4, 198515.24+3.24Minor9,970
12Mar 7, 196714.98+2.98Minor5,260
13Sep 19, 200314.32+2.32Minor8,610
14Apr 21, 199214.22+2.22Minor8,620
15Dec 4, 195014.12+2.12Minor5,260
16Jul 29, 196914.00+2.00Minor4,170
17Nov 23, 199213.88+1.88Minor8,190
18Apr 16, 201113.81+1.81Minor7,950
19Sep 18, 194513.66+1.66Minor4,780
20Sep 6, 195913.43+1.43Minor3,670
21Jan 25, 201013.33+1.33Minor7,350
22Dec 4, 194813.30+1.30Minor4,450
23Sep 5, 197913.24+1.24Minor7,370
24Sep 17, 201813.22+1.22Minor7,212
25Aug 14, 201113.10+1.10Minor7,070
26May 14, 202512.95+0.95Minor6,886
27Jun 2, 195912.85+0.85Minor3,260
28Nov 13, 199212.62+0.62Minor6,670
29Mar 19, 197512.32+0.32Minor6,310
30Sep 22, 197912.25+0.25Minor6,200
31Feb 13, 196612.11+0.11Minor2,820
32May 5, 201712.08+0.08Minor5,886
33Apr 13, 202012.03+0.03Minor5,831
34Nov 29, 200511.76−0.24Action5,540
35Jan 19, 199611.73−0.27Action5,500
36Aug 12, 198411.72−0.28Action5,670
37May 10, 199011.72−0.28Action5,670
38Dec 21, 201811.64−0.36Action5,410
39Mar 25, 195311.60−0.40Action3,040
40Oct 5, 197211.57−0.43Action5,540
41Jan 31, 201311.55−0.45Action5,280
42Sep 30, 199911.54−0.46Action5,300
43Aug 24, 196711.46−0.54Action2,460
44Oct 23, 199011.39−0.61Action5,310
45May 16, 201411.39−0.61Action5,040
46Nov 25, 196411.35−0.65Action2,410
47Apr 1, 194811.28−0.72Action3,050
48Nov 10, 196211.23−0.77Action2,300
49Apr 3, 198311.23−0.77Action5,130
50Oct 7, 200611.23−0.77Action4,980

Other gauges in Nelson County

Flood gauges in Nelson County
Bent Creek16.030.76 ft, Nov 5, 19855
Lovingston13.032.00 ft, Aug 20, 19691

Nelson County: every hazard · River floods across the country · Virginia

NOAA National Water Prediction Service, gauge RKRV2, 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.