West Fork San Jacinto River above Lake Houston near Porter Water Level
Live river level, flow, historical records and forecast for West Fork San Jacinto River above Lake Houston near Porter in TX, United States, built from official government gauge data.
- Location TX, United States
- Watershed west fork san jacinto
- Primary gauge 08068090 (USGS)
About West Fork San Jacinto River above Lake Houston near Porter
West Fork San Jacinto River in the West Fork San Jacinto watershed, Texas.
What the record shows
The station record runs for more than 42 years. The highest level in that span was 94.22 ft (28.72 m) in August 2017, and the lowest was 0.04 ft (0.01 m) in October 1995.
The seasonal pattern is modest but clear. January is the highest typical month at 13.96 ft (4.26 m), while August is the lowest typical month at 10.86 ft (3.31 m). That is a typical annual swing of 3.1 ft (94.5 cm).
For people near the channel, that means the river is usually working within a fairly tight band, but the record shows it can leave that band by a wide margin. A dock, bank access point, or low crossing has to be ready for both the usual month-to-month change and the much larger flood peaks that have already happened here.
The watershed
The gauge drains 962 sq mi (2492 km2) upstream of this station. In this part of Texas, flash-flood hydrology matters: rain can move the river fast, and long low-flow stretches can separate the bigger rises.
That makes short-term watching more useful than thinking only about the season. A wet spell can change conditions in hours, not weeks, and the river can answer local rain quickly. For anglers, that can shift water clarity and bank access quickly. For cottagers and anyone with an intake nearby, the key is how fast the stage can change, not just where the month-to-month average sits.
Reading the hero number
The number shown on the page is best read against the median for this calendar day, not just as a raw elevation. Raw elevation tells you where the water is right now; the calendar-day median tells you whether today is ordinary for this station or running high or low for the date.
This page is based on USGS data, and the record covers more than 42 years. That length of record is what gives the daily median meaning: it places today’s reading against the station’s own history, which is more useful than a single number by itself.
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
