Gauge Description:

Note: USGS added a new gage on the Souhegan in the summer of 2008 about 5 miles downstream of the takeout in Milford.  This new gage a much better indicator of levels on the upper Souhegan than the Merrimack gage.  We will need to gather more information over time to correlate the gage to runable levels, however the 400 cfs level should be fairly accurate.   The painted gage at the class III put-in is the one used for levels in the New England Whitewater guide, but this gauge is in serious deterioration at this time. A new gage was painted on the rt 31 bridge back in 1995 so people would not have to walk in to the other gage for a level check. The gages match levels at 1.7'. Here are some other readings of interest.
 

Dam put-in   rt 31 bridge     runability 

.8                 1.3       (minimum play 
.9                 1.4       level at bridge hole)
1                  1.5       minimum level most people like
1.2                1.5             
1.4                1.6       good surfing at ledges
1.7                1.7       medium low
1.9                1.8
2.1                1.9       medium
2.25               2.0       medium high
2.4                2.1       high



Beyond 2.1' at the bridge the gage is not
reliable because of the velocity of the river.  

Estimated chance (%) of finding the river runnable.
Month............% chance.................comment
 

January ............ 5%....Usually frozen
February............10%....Usually frozen.
March...............40%....Opens up about mid month.
April...............65%....Best chance in early April 
May ................20%....Best chance in early May. 
June.................8%
July.................5%
August...............5%....Just a trickle 
September...........10%....Tropical storms and their remains
October........�....15%
November............20%....Fall rains, dormant trees 
December............20%....River starts freezing about Christmas.

Be aware this is averaged out over several years. The % chance refers to the probability of finding the river running on any given day. For instance a 5% probability for August means on average you can only expect 1-1/2 days of water. One year there could be 3 days in August with water, other years none. Spring levels are usually higher than fall levels. The river rises and falls rapidly because of the small steep watershed. An occasional summer storm could bring the river up for a day.
 

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