Madison Conditions Please

[Rhino]

The Withlacoochee has been rising (gage height recently passed 11') and the discharge rate of Madison Blue Spring has been dropping, starting December 29 to now 1/4 (just passed midnight).


If anyone has been in Madison this year, I'd appreciate a report of conditions. Some of us are planning to go soon, including a couple of Intro divers, and we're especially interested in how it looks in the basin, Horseshoe Room, Godzilla line, and before Half Hitch.


For those less familiar with Madison, the first closure due to river intrusion in 2015 occurred on January 5. I'm hoping this year is more like 2013 and 2014, when Madison didn't close until mid-Feb. Except, unlike 2013, this year I don't plan to be inside when it gets officially closed. Yes, I will also keep an eye on the weather in Georgia, but any first-hand info would be appreciated.

[patpicos]

looking at past 2 years:
2013 Madison reversed on 02/19/2013 at 45.6'. This was after a rapid rise in river levels:
02/16/2013 42.4 02/17/2013 42.91 02/18/2013 43.96 02/19/2013 45.6 02/20/2013 47.77 it reopened on 08/05/2013 w/ gauge @47.84
Jim Wyatt: Madison Blue is open to cave diving again as of 8/5/13. 30 feet visibility -- ripping flow.
it closed again shortly and reopened 09/17/2013 with gauge @ 43.45

2014 - do you have the official date it closed? i need to update spreadsheet I expect around 02/22/2014
02/15/2014 43.98 02/16/2014 44.29 02/17/2014 44.67 02/18/2014 45.11 02/19/2014 45.62 02/20/2014 46.23 02/21/2014 46.92 02/22/2014 47.44 02/23/2014 47.57 02/24/2014 47.26 02/25/2014 46.8 02/26/2014 46.62 02/27/2014 46.67 02/28/2014 46.91

[FW]

I was there Saturday. Flow is down, but still clear. There was a little tannic intrusion in the Martz jump, but not bad.

[Rhino]

looking at past 2 years:
2013 Madison reversed on 02/19/2013 at 45.6'. This was after a rapid rise in river levels:
02/16/2013 42.4 02/17/2013 42.91 02/18/2013 43.96 02/19/2013 45.6 02/20/2013 47.77 it reopened on 08/05/2013 w/ gauge @47.84
Jim Wyatt: Madison Blue is open to cave diving again as of 8/5/13. 30 feet visibility -- ripping flow.
it closed again shortly and reopened 09/17/2013 with gauge @ 43.45

2014 - do you have the official date it closed? i need to update spreadsheet I expect around 02/22/2014
02/15/2014 43.98 02/16/2014 44.29 02/17/2014 44.67 02/18/2014 45.11 02/19/2014 45.62 02/20/2014 46.23 02/21/2014 46.92 02/22/2014 47.44 02/23/2014 47.57 02/24/2014 47.26 02/25/2014 46.8 02/26/2014 46.62 02/27/2014 46.67 02/28/2014 46.91

The gage data I'm using illustrates, as you said, that just after Christmas last year, the gage at Madison started rising from under to 10' to over 30' by January 2. Height was then on its way down, when it appears that a visual observation put it at 20' and Madison was closed to diving Jan. 5.

My personal, unscientific, rule-of-thumb is that the tipping point for closing is roughly 12' at the gage. That is when the gage shows a relatively gentle rise, and is based on my admittedly limited experience of parts of 3 years diving Madison.


I don't know where your height info is from and I am not now at a computer, but I just find the one I use by searching for the USGS gage at Madison Blue Springs. I believe Caveatlas has a condition report dated 2/22/14 saying Madison is closed, and the gage height was roughly 20' on the day it was reported closed. Technically, I think both you're right and the report on Caveatlas is correct that Madison was closed beginning 2/19/15, however, I believe the decision to close was 2/18. Pretty much looking at 2013 and 2014, in my reading of the info I saw, they occurred at about 12'. In all this, I am just focusing on the first closing of each year, including the prospects for this year, and not any other time.

[Rhino]

I was there Saturday. Flow is down, but still clear. There was a little tannic intrusion in the Martz jump, but not bad.

Thanks, Forrest. Did you enter from the basin at all?

[Squirrel Girl]

Thanks, Forrest. Did you enter from the basin at all?

We did not. I'm not sure if FW looked at the basin, but we didn't dive it. Personally, I thought the cave was spectacular.

[patpicos]

I use swrmd for current gauge reading, USG's for flow rate, USG's for historical using station SR 6 by blue springs

See links below
http://nwis.waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/...ate=2015-01-22

http://www.mysuwanneeriver.org/realt...ver-levels.php

Historical readings, I click the location on above link and then click on the one that gives a CSV file

[patpicos]

45-46' above sea level is usually the tipping point. If rapid rise in levels, it can reverse more easily.

Madison is a bit more finicky to predict than peacock. Its an offset sink. It probably connects to m2 (very distant) which has a connection to the withlacoochie.


Anyhow, the flow measurements and river levels are pretty good indicators. 22cfs must be a dream to dive Madison! That's peacock flow lol

[FW]

Thanks, Forrest. Did you enter from the basin at all?

I did look at the basin, and I could see the bottom. The tannic river water wasn't even entering the run.

[TaraR]

I don't know where your height info is from and I am not now at a computer, but I just find the one I use by searching for the USGS gage at Madison Blue Springs.

Add 33ft to your number and you will get Patrick's. It's the same data from the same gage.

You are looking at gage height or where the water hits on the giant ruler in the spring run. Patrick is using and adjusted reading for the height above mean sea level.

SRWMD adds that conversion to all sites on their website so you can do direct comparisons of height between gages. With the USGS it depends on the site. Some are in the raw gage height (such as madison blue) and some are already displayed in the adjusted mean sea level, like the river gage on the bridge just outside the park. (http://waterdata.usgs.gov/fl/nwis/uv/?site_no=02319300)