Ward Creek at Essen Lane near Baton Rouge Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for Ward Creek at Essen Lane near Baton Rouge in LA, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location LA, United States
- Watershed amite
- Primary gauge 07379050 (USGS)
About Ward Creek at Essen Lane near Baton Rouge
Ward Creek at Essen Lane near Baton Rouge is a gauged river in the Amite watershed, Louisiana.
What the record shows
This station has more than 22 years on record, and the spread between its extremes is wide enough to matter at the bank. The record high is 22.56 ft (6.88 m) in August 2016. The record low is 7.88 ft (2.4 m) in May 2017.
The seasonal pattern is much narrower than that full record range. The typical high month is May at 8.37 ft (2.55 m), and the typical low month is November at 8.16 ft (2.49 m). The typical annual swing is 2.6 in (6.5 cm). For a dock, culvert, or low crossing, that means the day-to-day seasonal change is small, but the big event years can push the water far outside that usual band.
In Gulf lowland country, slow drainage and rainfall-driven surges can keep water up for days. That is the kind of setting where a high reading is worth attention even if the gauge is not changing fast.
The watershed
Ward Creek here belongs to the Amite watershed, so this page is best read as a local gauge on a larger drainage system. For people living nearby, the useful question is not only how high the water is today, but how much room this reach has before it gets out of its usual range.
The seasonal numbers suggest a creek that does not swing much in a normal year. That can make a small rise noticeable at a crossing, driveway, or outfall because there is not much seasonal movement to hide it. The record high shows that much larger levels are possible when the watershed gets enough water at once.
Reading the hero number
The hero number on this page is most useful when you compare today’s reading with the median for this calendar day, not with the gauge’s absolute elevation. Raw elevation alone tells you where the water sits on the staff; the calendar-day median tells you whether it is running above, below, or near what this station usually sees at this time of year.
This station is operated by the U.S. Geological Survey. With more than 22 years of record, that day-by-day comparison is a better guide for anglers, cottagers, and flood-watchers than a single number in isolation.
How this page is built
Readings come from official government gauges and are rolled into daily records: the daily mean, high and low for every day on record. Each calendar day gets its own baseline from the full history, so the level you see is compared against what this specific date usually looks like rather than an annual average.
How Nibi Metrics works · Water stories
Nibi Metrics - live water levels, flow, and forecasts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK
Real-time water levels, forecasts, and alerts for lakes and rivers across Canada, the US and the UK. Built on official government data.
Nibi Metrics tracks more than 13,000 gauged lakes and rivers across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom, reading directly from official federal monitoring networks: the Water Survey of Canada, the United States Geological Survey, Quebec's provincial hydrometric network, and the Environment Agency for England. Every number on the platform is measured, not modelled - taken from a government gauge on the water itself and compared against that location's own historical record for this exact date.
What you can see for any monitored lake or river
The level right now, in feet or metres, updated as the source agency publishes new readings - for many stations that is every five to fifteen minutes. How today compares to typical: every location carries its own typical-for-this-date band built from its historical record, so a reading is never just a number - it is above, below, or near what this water usually does on this calendar day. Which way it is moving: a measured RISING, FALLING, or STEADY verdict computed from the gauge's own recent readings, with the rate of change - the difference between a flood ending and one beginning. What comes next: level forecasts up to 72 hours ahead, driven by the gauge's recent behaviour, upstream water, and quantitative precipitation forecasts, alongside live radar, lightning, and weather for the surrounding region.
Alerts that watch the water for you
Set a threshold on any location - a level, a distance above typical, or a rate of climb - and Nibi emails or notifies you the moment the gauge crosses it. Cottagers use it for spring freshet, anglers for river conditions, marinas and municipalities for operations. The scanning runs around the clock against the same measured data shown on every page.
Where Nibi comes from
Nibi means water in Anishinaabemowin. The platform began at a family cottage on Lake Muskoka, Ontario, where the spring melt floods the shoreline most years and the only forecast was standing on the dock, looking, and guessing. It grew into an independent, member-funded platform run by Muskoka Research Inc. - no investors, no data resale, and a privacy policy shorter than most cookie banners. The core data is free for everyone, forever; paid plans add automation like multi-location alerts, deep history, and reports.
Coverage
Nibi spans the continent: every Canadian province and territory with active federal gauges - from Vancouver Island rivers to the Muskoka lakes, prairie reservoirs, and Quebec's hydrometric network - and the United States from Maine to the Texas Hill Country, the Ohio Valley, and the Pacific Northwest. Coverage grows where the water news is: when a basin floods, its gauges join the platform with their full historical records attached. Many stations report every five to fifteen minutes; most report at least hourly; every page states exactly when its gauge last spoke.
Free forever, funded by members
The core promise is simple: the water data is free, for everyone, forever. Live levels, maps, radar, and recent history never sit behind a paywall. Paid plans fund the platform by adding automation - multi-location alerts, decades of history, longer forecasts, and PDF reports - so the people who need more carry the cost for everyone who just needs to check the lake before driving up. There are no investors and no advertising deals shaping what the data says.
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How every number is computed - About the platform
