Westwego River Camera

The working river, up close

Westwego sits on the West Bank of the Mississippi River in Jefferson Parish, a few miles upriver from downtown New Orleans. Here the river is not scenery in the background — it is the main event. This is one of the busiest stretches of commercial waterway in the world, and from the Westwego side you get a front-row seat: deep-draft ships bound for the Port of New Orleans and the terminals upriver, tugboats pushing long tows of barges, and the steady traffic that keeps the Lower Mississippi moving around the clock.

Why watch a river

A live river camera answers questions a chart never will. You can see the river stage and how hard the current is running, whether fog has settled over the water, how heavy the ship traffic is at this hour, and what the weather is actually doing on the West Bank rather than what a forecast predicts. For anyone who works on the water, fishes near it, or just likes watching big ships go by, it is a window that changes every few minutes.

Westwego

Westwego grew up as a river and rail town — the name is said to come from the old call to board for the westward crossing — and the water has shaped it ever since. Today it is known for its seafood: the roadside vendors of the Westwego Shrimp Lot and the Farmers and Fisheries Market draw people from across the metro area for fresh Gulf shrimp, crabs, and whatever the boats brought in. Bayou Segnette, just south of town, opens onto the marshes and fishing grounds of the Barataria basin, and New Orleans is a short drive across the river.

What to watch for

• Ocean-going ships, tankers, and container vessels passing at all hours
• Tugs pushing barge tows, often several barges long, upriver and down
• The river stage rising and falling with the season — high water in spring, lower water in late summer and fall
• Morning fog on the water and afternoon storms building over the West Bank