Buffalo Bayou at Turning Basin water level
Harris County Flood Warning System gauge 2210 · Buffalo Bayou · San Jacinto River watershed
water surface elevation, Oct 20, 2026 at 11:13 AM CDT · 2 hours ago
- Below top of bank
- 6.8 ft
- Top of bank
- 9.0 ft
- Lowest since Sep 11
- -0.59 ft
- Highest since Sep 11
- 3.63 ft
- Usual range
- 1.06 to 3.00 ft
- Latest vs usual
- Within usual range
Of the 1,565 readings stored for this gauge, 58.6% were lower than the reading above. The closest this gauge has come to its top of bank in that period is 5.4 ft.
Last 7 days
Hourly averages of readings as published. The shaded band is this gauge's usual range: the middle 80% of its readings since Sep 11. This gauge reports about every 26 minutes, and only when its value changes, so gaps in the line are normal.
| Time | Level | Below top of bank |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 20, 11:00 AM CDT | 2.15 ft | 6.8 ft |
| Oct 20, 9:00 AM CDT | 2.14 ft | 6.9 ft |
| Oct 20, 8:00 AM CDT | 2.25 ft | 6.8 ft |
| Oct 20, 7:00 AM CDT | 2.36 ft | 6.6 ft |
| Oct 20, 6:00 AM CDT | 2.49 ft | 6.5 ft |
| Oct 20, 5:00 AM CDT | 2.38 ft | 6.6 ft |
| Oct 20, 4:00 AM CDT | 2.28 ft | 6.7 ft |
| Oct 20, 3:00 AM CDT | 2.12 ft | 6.9 ft |
| Oct 20, 2:00 AM CDT | 1.91 ft | 7.1 ft |
| Oct 20, 1:00 AM CDT | 1.52 ft | 7.5 ft |
How to read this gauge
The number above is an elevation, not a water depth. It is the height of the water surface above mean sea level, so Turning Basin reads around -1 ft even when the channel is low. What matters is the distance to the top of bank: the elevation at which water reaches the top of the channel at this location. For this gauge that is 9.0 ft.
The bottom of the channel here sits at -15.6 ft, so the channel is roughly 24.6 ft deep at this crossing. Harris County publishes the top-of-bank figure with each reading; it is their reference, not an estimate made here.
Daily highs and lows since September 11, 2026
Download the readings
buffalo-bayou-at-turning-basin.csv (CSV): every reading stored for this gauge since September 11, 2026, 1,565 rows, updated with this page. Columns: time in UTC, time in Central, water surface elevation, top of bank, and distance below top of bank, all in feet. The source and accuracy notes below apply to the file too.
Put this gauge on your website
HOAs, MUDs, civic clubs and schools can show this gauge's latest reading on their own site. Paste this HTML where it should appear; the card updates with this page. More gauges.
In past storms
| Storm | Peak | Peak time | Rise | Below bank at peak |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| October 1–2, 2026 | 3.47 ft | Oct 2, 2026 at 4:49 AM CDT | 0.1 ft | 5.5 ft |
Storms are runs of National Weather Service flood alerts for Harris County; each storm page lists every gauge's peak.
Other gauges on Buffalo Bayou
Readings from the rest of the Buffalo Bayou gauge network, each at its own most recent reading. Elevations fall as the channel runs downstream, so compare the below top of bank column rather than the raw levels.
| Crossing | Level | Below top of bank | Reading taken |
|---|---|---|---|
| US 90 | 124.08 ft | 11.6 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:02 AM CDT |
| Greenbusch Road | 97.06 ft | 18.2 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:25 AM CDT |
| Peek Road | 88.29 ft | 13.7 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:23 AM CDT |
| Dairy Ashford Road | 46.25 ft | 26.9 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:19 AM CDT |
| West Beltway 8 | 35.16 ft | 27.0 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:17 AM CDT |
| Piney Point Rd | 28.13 ft | 23.9 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:40 AM CDT |
| San Felipe Drive | 23.23 ft | 31.1 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:17 AM CDT |
| Woodway Drive | 9.28 ft | 33.7 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:11 AM CDT |
| Shepherd Drive | 2.41 ft | 25.6 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 11:15 AM CDT |
| Milam Street | 2.03 ft | 19.8 ft | Oct 20, 2026 at 12:43 PM CDT |
USGS gauge nearby
Buffalo Bayou at Turning Basin, Houston (USGS 08074710), less than 0.1 mi away, read 2.08 ft at Oct 20, 2026 at 12:30 PM CDT. Its zero is at 0 ft NAVD88, so it also reports water surface elevation.
All gauges in this watershed: San Jacinto River watershed water levels.