36.2387, -81.6697 · Watauga County ·
NID NC01524. Tap the map to open this water in the
live app.
What the runs do here
Norris Branch carries no anadromous run on our corridor map, so
this page makes no claim about salmon or steelhead at this dam. What it sits on is coldwater —
resident trout water — and the section below says which classification says so.
The structure
Owner
Appalachian State University State
Purpose
Water Supply
Completed
1974
Type
Earth
Height
112 ft
Length
480 ft
Spillway
None
Storage
762 acre-ft · 22 acre pool
Drainage
0 sq mi
Condition
Fair · High hazard potential
From the National Inventory of Dams (USACE). Hazard potential is a
downstream-consequence classification, not a statement about the structure's condition.
The water above and below
Howard Creek
0.28 mi from the dam · Wild Trout Waters · wild (NCWRC)
Coldwater designation is the state's own classification. A dam sits on one river and this list
is every designated reach within a mile and a half of it, so a tributary mouth shows up here too.
Live from USGS. A gauge miles away
is a gauge miles away — the distance column is there so you can discount it. A hydro dam's
releases move the flow below it on a schedule the gauge sees and this page does not.
Public access sites near the dam, straight-line distance. A dam itself is private property
unless its owner says otherwise; these are the places the state lists as open.
Fly shops nearby
Appalachian Outfitters
2.6 mi · Boone · +1-828-372-7003
Waypoint Outfitters
2.6 mi · Boone · +1-828-865-1100
Fly Shop
2.8 mi
The Speckled Trout Outfitters
7.1 mi · Blowing Rock
Footsloggers Outdoor & Travel Outfitters
7.2 mi · +1 828-295-4453