Lake Charles water level
NOAA tide gauge 8767816 · Calcasieu Parish · Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana
water level relative to MHHW (an ordinary high tide) · Oct 23, 2026 at 9:54 PM CDT · 11 minutes ago
- Below NWS minor coastal flood threshold
- 1.5 ft
- NWS coastal flood threshold (minor)
- +1.64 ft
- NWS coastal flood threshold (moderate)
- +2.64 ft
- NWS coastal flood threshold (major)
- +4.64 ft
- NOAA high tide flooding threshold (minor)
- +1.70 ft
- NOAA high tide flooding threshold (moderate)
- +2.67 ft
- NOAA high tide flooding threshold (major)
- +3.90 ft
- Highest observed (NOAA)
- +4.64 ft (August 27, 2020)
- Highest astronomical tide
- +0.37 ft
- Usual range
- -0.58 to +0.98 ft
NOAA marks recent readings as preliminary: they can be revised after review.
Last 7 days
Hourly averages of NOAA's six-minute readings. The shaded band is this gauge's usual range: the middle 80% of its readings since September 11, 2026.
How to read this gauge
The number is the observed water level relative to mean higher high water (MHHW), the average height of the higher of each day's two high tides at this station. 0 ft is an ordinary high tide; +1 ft is a foot higher than that. It is the water surface, not a depth, and it includes the tide and anything on top of it: storm surge, wind pushing water in or out, river flow.
The NWS coastal flood thresholds are the National Weather Service's references for this station: water at or above the minor level is where flooding of low-lying areas begins. They describe the station, not any particular street or property. This site shows readings only, never tide predictions.
Daily highs and lows since September 11, 2026
Other tide gauges in Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana
| Tide gauge | Water level | Against flood thresholds | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bulk Terminal | +0.27 ft | 1.4 ft below NOAA minor HTF | 11 minutes ago |
| Calcasieu Pass | +0.07 ft | 2.1 ft below NWS minor | 11 minutes ago |
Download the readings
lake-charles.csv (CSV): every six-minute reading from the last 90 days, 10,172 rows, with time in UTC and Central, water level in feet relative to MHHW, and NOAA's quality flag (p preliminary, v verified).
lake-charles-daily.csv (CSV): the low and high of every day since September 11, 2026.
Source. Water levels, datums, thresholds and the record from NOAA Tides & Currents (CO-OPS); coastal flood thresholds from the National Weather Service. This site is not affiliated with either.