This file contains discharge data taken at Lock and Dam 1 of the Cape Fear River (https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?site_no=02105769), along with satellite derived precipitation data over a ~1 x 1 degree bounding box covering the confluence of the Haw and Deep Rivers in central North Carolina (-80 W, 35 S, -79 E, 36 N; see link in refs). The time series begins before Tropical Storm Julia (landfall 9/13/2016) and ends after Hurricane Matthew (landfall 9/28/2016). During this period, an incredible amount of water fell on North Carolina. For example, for an hour on October 8, precipitation peaked at more than 11 kg/m2 across our bounding box. The accompanying MATLAB code explores the lag time between these large rain events in central NC and discharge through the lower Cape Fear.