Cape Disappointment Tides Today
Open this station in TidalMapLive water level, free for 7 days
Cape Disappointment runs a mean tidal range of about 5.9 ft. This month the highest water, 10.0 ft, comes on the afternoon of Nov 25, and the lowest, a -2.1 ft minus tide, on the evening of Nov 25.
| Low tide | 1:16 AM | 0.6 ft |
| High tide | 8:22 AM | 7.2 ft |
| Low tide | 2:11 PM | 2.9 ft |
| High tide | 8:03 PM | 6.7 ft |
Today on the water at Cape Disappointment
Today at Cape Disappointment: high tide at 8:22 AM (7.2 ft) and 8:03 PM (6.7 ft), low tide at 1:16 AM (0.6 ft) and 2:11 PM (2.9 ft). The National Weather Service forecast for Tuesday is partly sunny with SE winds 1 to 8 mph, 58°F. Sunrise is at 6:58 AM and sunset at 5:00 PM.
| Period | Forecast | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overnight | Cloudy | E 9 mph | 49°F |
| Tuesday | Partly Sunny | SE 1 to 8 mph | 58°F |
Forecast: National Weather Service point forecast for this location.
Where Cape Disappointment is
Cape Disappointment sits at 46.2810° N, 124.0463° W on the Columbia River, about 1 mi southwest of Ilwaco, WA. The station here is a live gauge in a NOAA PORTS harbor system, reporting water level in near real time for commercial traffic. It has been in NOAA's records since 2015. The nearest weather station is Clatsop Spit, OR (162), an offshore buoy reporting wind, waves and water temperature, 6.0 mi away.
The tide at Cape Disappointment
Cape Disappointment has a mixed tide: two highs and two lows a day, but of unequal size, so one low each day drains noticeably lower than the other. This month's predictions average 1.9 high tides a day here. The mean range from lower low to higher high is 8.1 ft, and 6.0 ft between the average high and the average low, a large tide. On an average day the higher high tops the lower high by 0.7 ft and the lower low sits 1.4 ft below the other low. For the water around it: The ocean tide runs far up the Columbia, mixed semidiurnal at about 8 ft near the mouth and shrinking to 2 ft or less at Vancouver, where spring runoff moves the river as much as the moon does.
About this station
- High tide reaches Cape Disappointment about 8.6 hours after the moon passes overhead. That lag is local, which is why high water does not line up with the moon.
- Highest water on record: 11.8 ft on Jan 4, 2022.
- Lowest on record: -3.2 ft on Dec 6, 2021.
Datum and source
Heights on this page are feet above mean lower low water (MLLW), the zero NOAA's nautical charts use for soundings. A predicted 0.0 ft low is the average of the lower low each day; a minus tide is water below chart datum, and a 2 ft high means 2 ft more water than the chart shows. NOAA fixes MLLW at Cape Disappointment from the 1983-2001 National Tidal Datum Epoch; mean higher high water is 8.1 ft above it and mean sea level 4.3 ft. The land survey datum NAVD88, the zero on topographic maps and flood maps, is 0.5 ft above MLLW here, so a water level on this page converts to NAVD88 by subtracting that amount. These datums are controlled from NOAA's Astoria, OR gauge. Source: NOAA CO-OPS station 9440581, established 2015. The tide times and heights are NOAA's official harmonic predictions for this station; TidalMap republishes them daily and does not alter them. The observed line is the gauge's own six-minute water level feed.
Tide stations near Cape Disappointment
- Fort Canby, Jetty 'A', Wash.: 1.0 mi, tides about 7 min earlier
- Columbia River entrance (N. Jetty): 1.3 mi, tides about 12 min earlier
- Ilwaco, Baker Bay, Wash.: 1.6 mi, tides about 34 min later
- Chinook, Baker Bay, Wash.: 4.7 mi, tides at about the same time
- Greenhead Slough: 7.8 mi, tides about 80 min later
TidalMapMonthly tide calendar
🌊 Biggest flood tides at Cape Disappointment this month: Nov 22, Nov 23, Nov 24, Nov 25, Nov 26, Nov 27, Nov 28. These spring highs push water up into the grass and over the oyster rock; prime for poling into flooded marsh for tailing reds.
🔻 Negative (minus) low tides at Cape Disappointment this month: Nov 7, Nov 8, Nov 9, Nov 10, Nov 11, Nov 12, Nov 22, Nov 23, Nov 24, Nov 25, Nov 26, Nov 27 …. These drain the flats and expose the oyster rock, prime for sight-fishing and clamming.
Best fishing times (solunar)
Major and minor solunar windows for Cape Disappointment, peak feeding activity is around the moon overhead/underfoot (majors) and moonrise/moonset (minors). Score is the day's activity coefficient (0–100).
| Day | Major windows | Minor windows | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Today 🌗 | 6:49–8:49 AM 7:14–9:14 PM | 11:44–1:44 AM 1:36–3:36 PM | 49 |
| Wed Nov 4 🌗 | 7:36–9:36 AM 8:01–10:01 PM | 1:02–3:02 AM 1:55–3:55 PM | 62 |
| Thu Nov 5 🌘 | 8:22–10:22 AM 8:47–10:47 PM | 2:17–4:17 AM 2:13–4:13 PM | 74 |
| Fri Nov 6 🌘 | 9:07–11:07 AM 9:32–11:32 PM | 3:31–5:31 AM 2:31–4:31 PM | 84 |
| Sat Nov 7 🌘 | 9:52–11:52 AM 10:17–12:17 AM | 4:43–6:43 AM 2:50–4:50 PM | 92 |
| Sun Nov 8 🌘 | 10:38–12:38 PM 11:03–1:03 AM | 5:55–7:55 AM 3:13–5:13 PM | 97 |
| Mon Nov 9 🌑 | 11:26–1:26 PM 11:51–1:51 AM | 7:05–9:05 AM 3:41–5:41 PM | 99 |
Predictions & observations: NOAA CO-OPS station 9440581. Solunar windows computed from the moon's position for this location. Times shown in the station's local time. Not for navigation.
Open this station in TidalMapLive water level, free for 7 days
Set your own flood/low lines, moon & solunar, weather and live tides in the app, start a free TidalMap trial.