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Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road water level

River gauge, River Ryburn, West Yorkshire, United Kingdom

Directions

Right now

Normal for mid-October

Water level

0.60m Up 0.03 m over the last 24 hours

1 2 3 Highest onrecord 3.33 m Lowest on record 0.39 m

History

History
0.40.60.8mOct 12Oct 14Oct 16Oct 18Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.40.60.8mOct 12Oct 16Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.40.60.8mSep 19Sep 27Oct 4Oct 12Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.40.60.8mSep 19Oct 4Oct 19Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.40.60.81.0mOct 2025Jan 2026Apr 2026Jul 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range0.40.60.81.0mOct 2025Apr 2026Oct 2026Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range
0.40.60.81.0mJanMarMayJulSepNov20260.40.60.81.0mJanAprJulOct2026

20252026

Water level Normal range (10–90 %) Top of normal rangeBottom of normal range

What this means

Water levels are unremarkable at Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road, where the gauge shows 0.60 m.

That puts it 0.05 m above the median of 0.54 m for mid-October, based on 21 years of readings. A year ago it stood at 0.66 m (−0.06 m).

It is on the way up, by 0.03 m over the past 24 hours. The 30-day range is 0.55 m – 0.67 m.

Autumn rain usually starts to lift rivers again after the summer low.

Compared with 21 years of daily readings for this time of year. How to read levels

Key numbers

Median for this date
0.54 m0.05 m above the median for this date
Normal for this date
0.45 m – 0.69 m8 years in 10 fall in this range (21 years of records)
Normal range
0.43 m – 0.79 m
Same day last year
0.66 m−0.06 m
Lowest and highest in 30 days
0.55 m – 0.67 m
Lowest and highest in 12 months
0.53 m – 1.03 m
Highest on record
3.33 mDecember 26, 2015
Lowest on record
0.39 mJune 9, 2004

For anglers and canoeists

This is an ordinary level for the river: most put-ins, beats and weirs behave as they usually do.

Many angling and canoe clubs check gauges like this one before heading out.

About the River Ryburn

River Ryburn

The River Ryburn is a river in West Yorkshire, England. It flows through the villages of Rishworth, Ripponden and Triangle before flowing into the River Calder at Sowerby Bridge.

Read more on Wikipedia

Text and image from Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA.

Weather at the gauge

Rain in the last 3 days: 1.1 mm. Rain that falls upstream can take hours or days to show up at a river gauge.

19 Mon 13° 8° 3.1 mm, 100% Wind 23 km/h
20 Tue 12° 10° 10 mm, 100% Wind 17 km/h
21 Wed 11° 6° 0.6 mm, 74% Wind 27 km/h
22 Thu 10° 4° 2.9 mm, 72% Wind 18 km/h
23 Fri 12° 7° 14 mm, 88% Wind 42 km/h
24 Sat 11° 7° 2.3 mm, 70% Wind 43 km/h
25 Sun 16° 8° 1.7 mm, 75% Wind 37 km/h

Forecast: Open-Meteo

Sunrise 07:43 AM Sunset 06:04 PM Daylight 10 hr, 22 min First quarter 62%

Map

Other gauges on the River Ryburn

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
RippondenRiver gauge, River Ryburn 0.16 m Normal +0.01 m 5.0 km

Nearby gauges

Gauge Level Compared with normal 24 hours Distance
Sowerby BridgeRiver gauge, River Calder 0.06 m Normal ±0 0.2 km
Copley BridgeRiver gauge, River Calder 0.41 m Normal +0.05 m 2.8 km
HalifaxRiver gauge, Hebble Brook 0.07 m Low +0.02 m 3.5 km
BrearleyRiver gauge, River Calder 0.25 m Normal +0.06 m 4.1 km
Stainland Board MillsRiver gauge, Black Brook 0.21 m Normal +0.03 m 4.2 km
Mytholmroyd Dauber BridgeRiver gauge, Cragg Brook 0.10 m Very low +0.01 m 5.4 km
MytholmroydRiver gauge, River Calder 1.46 m Normal +0.03 m 5.4 km
EllandRiver gauge, River Calder 0.49 m Normal +0.04 m 6.7 km

Questions and answers

How does the River Ryburn at Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road compare with last year?

It is 0.06 m lower than on the same day last year, when the reading was 0.66 m.

What is a normal level for the River Ryburn at Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road in mid-October?

The median for mid-October is 0.54 m. In 8 years out of 10 the reading falls between 0.45 m and 0.69 m, based on 21 years of records.

Is the river level the same as the depth of the water?

No. The reading is measured from a fixed zero mark at the gauge, so 0.60 m on the gauge does not mean the water is that deep.

What is the water level of Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road today?

On 19 Oct 2026, 21:45 BST, the water level was 0.60 m. Up 0.03 m over the last 24 hours.

Is Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road rising or falling?

Up 0.03 m over the last 24 hours. Up 0.02 m over the last 7 days.

Is the level of Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road normal?

Normal for mid-October. Compared with 21 years of daily readings for this time of year.

What is the highest water level ever recorded at Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road?

The highest level on record is 3.33 m on December 26, 2015. The lowest is 0.39 m on June 9, 2004.

For specialists

Station codes, datum, parameters, data quality and downloads
Operator
Environment Agency
Station code
ea:L1241 (Agency page)
Coordinates
53.70594, -1.91329 (WGS84)
Vertical datum
station datum
Update interval
every 15 minutes
Licence
Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains Environment Agency data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0

Published series

ParameterLast valueTime (UTC)Quality
Water level 0.60 m 2026-10-19 20:45 Provisional

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How to cite

Environment Agency: Sowerby Bridge Scar Head Road (ea:L1241). Accessed October 19, 2026 via Nivelmap, https://nivelmap.com/en/united-kingdom/west-yorkshire/sowerby-bridge-scar-head-road

How we check values

Each reading is stored as published. We hold back values that jump faster than physically plausible and show the measurement time with every value.