Morehead City Harbor Tides Today
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Morehead City Harbor runs a mean tidal range of about 2.7 ft. This month the highest water, 4.1 ft, comes on the morning of Oct 28, and the lowest, a -0.2 ft minus tide, on the morning of Oct 28.
| High tide | 12:07 AM | 2.6 ft |
| Low tide | 6:08 AM | 0.2 ft |
| High tide | 12:45 PM | 3.6 ft |
| Low tide | 7:28 PM | 0.4 ft |
Today on the water at Morehead City Harbor
Today at Morehead City Harbor: high tide at 12:07 AM (2.6 ft) and 12:45 PM (3.6 ft), low tide at 6:08 AM (0.2 ft) and 7:28 PM (0.4 ft). The National Weather Service forecast for today is mostly sunny with NE winds 15 mph, 66°F. Wind that strong can hold water in or push it out, so the real tide may run above or below these predictions. Sunrise is at 7:25 AM and sunset at 6:15 PM.
| Period | Forecast | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Today | Mostly Sunny | NE 15 mph | 66°F |
| Tonight | Mostly Cloudy | NE 13 mph | 54°F |
Forecast: National Weather Service point forecast for this location.
Where Morehead City Harbor is
Morehead City Harbor sits at 34.7200° N, 76.7108° W on North Carolina's sounds and Outer Banks, at Morehead City, NC, in Carteret County. The station here is a historical NOAA reference station: a gauge measured the tide at this spot from 1996 until 1996, and NOAA still publishes harmonic predictions from that record. There is no live reading here today. The closest gauge measuring live water level is Beaufort, Duke Marine Lab (NOAA 8656483), 2.3 mi away, and high and low water here run on average about 7 min later than there. The nearest weather station is Beaufort, NC, a shore station reporting wind and, at most sites, water temperature, 2.3 mi away.
The tide at Morehead City Harbor
Morehead City Harbor has a semidiurnal tide: two highs and two lows a day of about the same size, roughly 12 hours 25 minutes apart. This month's predictions average 1.9 high tides a day here. The mean range from lower low to higher high is 3.5 ft, and 3.1 ft between the average high and the average low, a moderate tide. On an average day the higher high tops the lower high by 0.3 ft and the lower low sits 0.1 ft below the other low. For the water around it: Ocean-side tides here are semidiurnal with two highs a day of 3 to 4 ft, while the sounds behind the banks are mostly wind driven with a lunar tide of a foot or less.
About this station
- High tide reaches Morehead City Harbor about 0.3 hours after the moon passes overhead. That lag is local, which is why high water does not line up with the moon.
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 Morehead City Harbor from the 1983-2001 National Tidal Datum Epoch; mean higher high water is 3.5 ft above it and mean sea level 1.7 ft. The land survey datum NAVD88, the zero on topographic maps and flood maps, is 2.1 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 Beaufort, Duke Marine Lab, NC gauge. Source: NOAA CO-OPS station 8656502, established 1996, gauge removed 1996. The tide times and heights are NOAA's official harmonic predictions for this station; TidalMap republishes them daily and does not alter them.
Tide stations near Morehead City Harbor
- Morehead City: 0.9 mi, tides about 11 min earlier
- Atlantic Beach Bridge: 1.5 mi, tides about 18 min later
- Atlantic Beach: 1.8 mi, tides about 45 min earlier
- Fort Macon, USCG Station: 2.2 mi, tides about 20 min earlier
- Beaufort, Duke Marine Lab: 2.3 mi, tides about 7 min earlier
TidalMapMonthly tide calendar
🌊 Biggest flood tides at Morehead City Harbor this month: Oct 1, Oct 25, Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29, Oct 30. 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 Morehead City Harbor this month: Oct 26, Oct 27, Oct 28, Oct 29. 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 Morehead City Harbor, 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 🌖 | 4:45–6:45 AM 5:10–7:10 PM | 10:19–12:19 AM 12:18–2:18 PM | 55 |
| Sun Nov 1 🌗 | 5:46–7:46 AM 6:11–8:11 PM | — 1:03–3:03 PM | 42 |
| Mon Nov 2 🌗 | 6:41–8:41 AM 7:06–9:06 PM | 11:32–1:32 AM 1:40–3:40 PM | 33 |
| Tue Nov 3 🌗 | 7:33–9:33 AM 7:58–9:58 PM | 12:44–2:44 AM 2:11–4:11 PM | 47 |
| Wed Nov 4 🌗 | 8:21–10:21 AM 8:46–10:46 PM | 1:52–3:52 AM 2:40–4:40 PM | 60 |
| Thu Nov 5 🌘 | 9:07–11:07 AM 9:32–11:32 PM | 2:57–4:57 AM 3:07–5:07 PM | 73 |
| Fri Nov 6 🌘 | 9:51–11:51 AM 10:16–12:16 AM | 4:01–6:01 AM 3:34–5:34 PM | 83 |
Predictions & observations: NOAA CO-OPS station 8656502. Solunar windows computed from the moon's position for this location. Times shown in the station's local time. Not for navigation.
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