Stage (hydrology)

Well kiddo, a stage in hydrology is like a measuring stick in a river or a lake. Just like how you can measure your height on a measuring stick, we can measure the height of the water in the river or lake using a stage.

But, instead of just having one measuring stick, we might have lots of them all around the river or lake. This helps us keep track of how high the water is in different parts of the river or lake.

Why do we care about how high the water is? Well, when it rains a lot, the water in the river or lake can rise very quickly and even flood. By measuring the stage, we can predict when this might happen and warn people who live nearby to be careful.

So, a stage in hydrology is basically a tool to help us measure the height of the water in a river or lake and predict if it might flood.