Sunset Beach Pier Tides Today
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Sunset Beach Pier runs a mean tidal range of about 4.7 ft. This month the highest water, 6.3 ft, comes on the morning of Oct 27, and the lowest, a -0.7 ft minus tide, on the morning of Oct 28.
| Low tide | 5:54 AM | -0.1 ft |
| High tide | 12:27 PM | 5.5 ft |
| Low tide | 6:56 PM | 0.3 ft |
Today on the water at Sunset Beach Pier
Today at Sunset Beach Pier: high tide at 12:27 PM (5.5 ft), low tide at 5:54 AM (-0.1 ft) and 6:56 PM (0.3 ft). The National Weather Service forecast for today is mostly sunny with NE winds 16 mph, 68°F. Wind that strong can hold water in or push it out, so the real tide may run above or below these predictions. In effect now: Small Craft Advisory. Sunrise is at 7:31 AM and sunset at 6:23 PM.
| Period | Forecast | Wind | Temp |
|---|---|---|---|
| Today | Mostly Sunny | NE 16 mph | 68°F |
| Tonight | Mostly Cloudy | NE 14 mph | 56°F |
Forecast: National Weather Service point forecast for this location.
Where Sunset Beach Pier is
Sunset Beach Pier sits at 33.8650° N, 78.5067° W on the Carolina and Georgia coast on the South Atlantic Bight, at Sunset Beach, NC. The station here is a historical NOAA reference station: a gauge measured the tide at this spot from 1974 until 2008, and NOAA still publishes harmonic predictions from that record. There is no live reading here today. The closest gauge measuring live water level is Ocean Isle Beach (a Hohonu community gauge), 4.6 mi away, and high and low water here run on average about 43 min earlier than there. The nearest weather station is Sunset Beach Nearshore Waves (SUN2WAVE), an offshore buoy reporting wind, waves and water temperature, 2.3 mi away.
The tide at Sunset Beach Pier
Sunset Beach Pier 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 5.5 ft, and 5.0 ft between the average high and the average low, a moderate tide. On an average day the higher high tops the lower high by 0.4 ft and the lower low sits 0.2 ft below the other low. For the water around it: Lowcountry tides are semidiurnal, two highs and two lows a day of near equal size, and the range grows toward Georgia, where 6 to 9 ft is normal.
About this station
- High tide reaches Sunset Beach Pier about 12.3 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: 7.6 ft on Oct 9, 2006.
- Lowest on record: -3.1 ft on Mar 12, 2005.
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 Sunset Beach Pier from the 1983-2001 National Tidal Datum Epoch; mean higher high water is 5.5 ft above it and mean sea level 2.7 ft. These datums are controlled from NOAA's Springmaid Pier, SC gauge. Source: NOAA CO-OPS station 8659897, established 1974, gauge removed 2008. 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 Sunset Beach Pier
- Bowen Point, Shallotte Inlet: 8.4 mi, tides about 25 min later
- Varnamtown, Lockwoods Folly River: 17.2 mi, tides about 73 min later
- Oak Island, Yaupon Beach: 24.5 mi, tides at about the same time
- Southport: 28.2 mi, tides about 32 min later
- Bald Head: 29.0 mi, tides at about the same time
TidalMapMonthly tide calendar
🌊 Biggest flood tides at Sunset Beach Pier this month: Oct 10, Oct 11, 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 Sunset Beach Pier this month: Oct 1, Oct 2, Oct 6, Oct 7, Oct 8, Oct 9, Oct 10, Oct 11, Oct 12, Oct 24, Oct 25, Oct 26 …. 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 Sunset Beach Pier, 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 🌖 | 4:53–6:53 AM 5:18–7:18 PM | 10:29–12:29 AM 12:23–2:23 PM | 55 |
| Sun Nov 1 🌗 | 5:53–7:53 AM 6:18–8:18 PM | — 1:08–3:08 PM | 42 |
| Mon Nov 2 🌗 | 6:49–8:49 AM 7:14–9:14 PM | 11:42–1:42 AM 1:45–3:45 PM | 33 |
| Tue Nov 3 🌗 | 7:40–9:40 AM 8:05–10:05 PM | 12:52–2:52 AM 2:18–4:18 PM | 47 |
| Wed Nov 4 🌗 | 8:28–10:28 AM 8:53–10:53 PM | 2:00–4:00 AM 2:47–4:47 PM | 60 |
| Thu Nov 5 🌘 | 9:14–11:14 AM 9:39–11:39 PM | 3:05–5:05 AM 3:14–5:14 PM | 73 |
| Fri Nov 6 🌘 | 9:59–11:59 AM 10:24–12:24 AM | 4:08–6:08 AM 3:42–5:42 PM | 83 |
Predictions & observations: NOAA CO-OPS station 8659897. 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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