See all 5 routes on Medina River
Texas | Texas Hill Country
Medina River
Peaceful Valley Road to Ranger Crossing
Check current paddling conditions for this Medina River route, including water level, recent gauge trend, weather, and route details.
Route location
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Need to know
Why this call
Conditions
Gauge history and hourly forecast
The top card is the quick read. This lower section keeps the longer gauge trend, gauge context, and hourly forecast together.
Gauge detail
Gauge history & hourly forecastDetailed view
Gauge
Recent trend
Checking preferred range.
Checking trend.
Gauge source
--Checking timestampMN DNR provides the current paddling level here, but not chart-ready recent samples.
Weather
Hourly forecast
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Next 8 hours
Short-route forecast
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Route overview
Quick facts and what's next
Distance, difficulty, shuttle basics, and the near-term outlook before you commit to the drive.
Quick facts
Plan ahead
Upcoming outlook
These are early planning reads. Re-check live conditions before you commit to the drive.
Waiting on forecast.
Waiting on forecast.
Plan
Plan your trip
Launch points, shuttle details, distance, and access notes.
Route logistics
Access and shuttle
Launch at Peaceful Valley Road and take out at Ranger Crossing for a 3.8-mile Medina River day trip. Use the Patterson Road gauge, cross-check the Bandera gauge, expect shallow dragging near the 30 cfs floor, and keep stops to lawful public access because most adjacent land is private.
Prepare this trip
Take the plan with you
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Put-in
Peaceful Valley Road CrossingTRPA's Google map links resolve to exact access-anchor coordinates for Peaceful Valley Road and Ranger Crossing, but final water entry and exit should follow current signs, road-shoulder conditions, and safe banks rather than a projected mid-channel point.
Take-out
Ranger Crossing at Highway 16TRPA says almost all property adjacent to the Medina River is private. Use public road crossings for access and do not treat private banks, cabins, camps, or ranch roads as public stops.
Plan this segment
Access caveats and watch for
Access caveats
- TRPA's Google map links resolve to exact access-anchor coordinates for Peaceful Valley Road and Ranger Crossing, but final water entry and exit should follow current signs, road-shoulder conditions, and safe banks rather than a projected mid-channel point.
- TRPA says almost all property adjacent to the Medina River is private. Use public road crossings for access and do not treat private banks, cabins, camps, or ranch roads as public stops.
- The route was implemented with USGS 0817887350 product-live at 49.6 cfs and downstream USGS 08178880 at 59.0 cfs, above the 30 cfs lower-Medina floor but far below the 300 cfs ideal cue. At similar or lower levels, expect exposed gravel, dragging, and slower travel.
- Downstream Bandera-area water-quality cautions on the TRPA page are not the primary evidence for this short reach, but paddlers should still avoid paddling after local runoff or visible contamination.
Watch for
- Flows below about 30 cfs on USGS 0817887350, when the TRPA lower-Medina minimum is not met and dragging over rock or gravel bars is likely.
- High or rising water after storms, especially above about 300 cfs where TRPA says more navigation skill is needed and near 2,000 cfs where the route should not be attempted.
- Wood, strainers, narrow channels, blind bends, fences or debris after floods, and limited exits between public crossings.
- Private-property boundaries, road-crossing traffic, roadside parking limits, heat, sun exposure, and lack of public riverbank camping.
- Changing access conditions at small public crossings; if a crossing is posted, unsafe, or blocked, skip the trip rather than inventing a private alternate.
Route gallery
See this route on the water
Photos help show what the access looks like and what the route actually feels like on the water.
Score & sources
Why this score
See the gauge, weather, and source notes behind today's call.
Why this scoreToday's evidence strength is checking
Evidence strength mostly comes down to three things: how direct the active gauge is, how clear the range is, and how fresh the data is.
- Checking evidence-strength notes.
- Checking evidence cautions.
Data behind the scoreGauge, thresholds, and timing
These are the live readings and threshold notes behind today's score.
| Gauge site | Medina Rv at Patterson Rd at Medina, TX |
| Discharge | Checking |
| Gauge height | Checking |
| 24h trend | Checking |
| 24h change | Checking |
| Current band | Checking |
| Rain last 24h | Checking |
| Rain last 72h | Checking |
| Air temp | Checking |
| Water temp | Checking |
| Wind | Checking |
| Gusts | Checking |
| Rain timing | Checking |
| Target band | 300 cfs to 1,500 cfs |
| Low threshold | 30 cfs |
| High threshold | 2,000 cfs |
| Evidence strength behind the range | Local route guidance |
| Gauge observed | Checking |
| Paddle Today updated | Checking |
| Main source behind this score | Texas Rivers Protection Association Medina River guidance |
| Gauge source | Checking |
| Weather source | Checking |
| Rainfall source | Checking |
NotesWhat to know before you go
These notes cover the access details, route quirks, and source caveats most likely to matter once you get there.
- Route shapePeaceful Valley Road Crossing to Ranger Crossing at Hwy 16, 3.8 mi
TRPA lists Peaceful Valley Road Crossing to Ranger Crossing at Hwy 16 as one of its Medina River featured runs and gives the route mileage.
- Public access coordinates29.7439466, -99.1487218 to 29.7369976, -99.1232512
TRPA's Peaceful Valley Road and Ranger Crossing map links resolve to these Google Maps coordinates; they are stored as access anchors, with final water-entry adjusted to current signs and bank conditions on arrival.
- Direct live gaugeUSGS 0817887350 at 49.6 cfs / 4.71 ft; USGS 08178880 at 59.0 cfs / 4.29 ft
USGS Water Services returned same-day Medina River discharge and gage height at 2026-08-11 06:10 CDT for Patterson Road and 2026-08-11 05:45 CDT for Bandera.
- Threshold posture30 cfs floor; 300-1,500 cfs ideal; 2,000 cfs ceiling
TRPA says the Medina needs about 30 cfs from town of Medina and below, is ideal around 300-1,500 cfs, and should not be attempted above about 2,000 cfs.
- CampingNo public on-route camping selected
TRPA says the only public camping along the Medina River is Pioneer River Resort in Bandera, downstream from this selected reach; do not infer legal camping from private banks or road crossings.
- SafetyPrivate banks, low water, floods, wood and road-crossing access
TRPA warns that almost all adjacent property is private, public road crossings should be used for access, low flows can mean dragging, and high flows over about 300 cfs require stronger navigation skills.
- Image decisionNo route-gallery image selected
Bounded TRPA, Commons, USGS, local tourism, and same-route web review found route-context photos but no clearly rights-clean exact Peaceful-Valley-to-Ranger-Crossing paddling asset selected for local reuse.
Verify it yourselfCheck the source links
Use these links to double-check the gauge, route details, and access notes before you head out.
Paddler reports
Recent notes from paddlers
A few quick notes from people who were on this route recently.
Reports
Paddler reports
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More routes to check next
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Quick answers
Medina River paddling FAQ
What water level is good for paddling Medina River?
Paddle Today watches Medina Rv at Patterson Rd at Medina, TX and treats 300 cfs to 1,500 cfs as the target band for this route, with weather and recent trend included in the final score.
Where does this Medina River route start and end?
This route starts at Peaceful Valley Road Crossing and ends at Ranger Crossing at Highway 16, about About 3.8 mi on the water.
Is this Medina River route good for beginners?
This is listed as a moderate route. Expect more planning than an easy float, and use the live score, route notes, and source links before committing.
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