Tomales Bay Tides: Tide Chart and Times
Marin County, California · Pacific time · feet
The tide at Tomales Bay today starts with a high of 4.1 ft at 6:13 AM, falls to a low of 3.3 ft at 11:06 AM, then climbs to a high of 5.2 ft at 4:22 PM.
The falling tide is now 5.2 ft
Next high
14h 49m
6:18 AM
Next low
7h 43m
12:12 AM
Tomales Bay is a long, narrow bay on the San Andreas Fault, lined by Marshall, oyster farms and Point Reyes ridges. The tide sets the currents at the mouth, the mudflats at the south end, and where kayaks can launch.
Also covers Marshall, Hog Island, Nick's Cove, Millerton Point, Blakes Landing.
Saturday, October 31
Saturday, October 31
- ▲ ▲ High tide6:13 AM4.1 ft 4.1 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide11:06 AM3.3 ft 3.3 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide4:22 PM5.2 ft 5.2 ft
Sunday, November 1
- ▼ ▼ Low tide12:12 AM−0.5 ft −0.5 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide6:18 AM4.2 ft 4.2 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide11:40 AM3.1 ft 3.1 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide4:37 PM4.8 ft 4.8 ft
Monday, November 2
- ▼ ▼ Low tide12:20 AM−0.2 ft −0.2 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide7:13 AM4.4 ft 4.4 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide1:07 PM2.6 ft 2.6 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide5:59 PM4.5 ft 4.5 ft
Tuesday, November 3
- ▼ ▼ Low tide1:22 AM0.1 ft 0.1 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide7:59 AM4.7 ft 4.7 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide2:17 PM2.0 ft 2.0 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide7:21 PM4.2 ft 4.2 ft
Wednesday, November 4
- ▼ ▼ Low tide2:16 AM0.4 ft 0.4 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide8:38 AM5.0 ft 5.0 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide3:15 PM1.3 ft 1.3 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide8:35 PM4.1 ft 4.1 ft
Thursday, November 5
- ▼ ▼ Low tide3:03 AM0.8 ft 0.8 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide9:13 AM5.3 ft 5.3 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide4:04 PM0.6 ft 0.6 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide9:41 PM4.1 ft 4.1 ft
Friday, November 6
- ▼ ▼ Low tide3:45 AM1.2 ft 1.2 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide9:46 AM5.5 ft 5.5 ft
- ▼ ▼ Low tide4:48 PM0.1 ft 0.1 ft
- ▲ ▲ High tide10:41 PM4.1 ft 4.1 ft
Today and Tomorrow at Tomales BayThis Week at Tomales Bay
Feet above MLLW · Pacific time · shaded = night
Tap the chart for the height at any time. The full week is in the table below.Hover or tap the chart for the height at any time.
Predicted vs Actual Water Level
NOAA Point Reyes gauge · last 2448 hours
Tide predictions cover only the pull of the moon and sun. NOAA's Point Reyes gauge, about 12 miles away, measures the real water level every 6 minutes, so the gap between the two lines is the weather: storm surge, wind, air pressure and runoff. The same gap usually holds across the Marin coast and Tomales Bay.
Loading live readings from NOAA…
Predicted Measured
Today at a Glance
Tidal range today
5.8 ft
Typical this month: 5.4 ft
Spring and neap cycle
Between springs and neaps
Next spring tide Nov 9, next neap Nov 3
How they work →Moon
Waning gibbous
60% lit, waning. New moon Nov 8
Sunrise and sunset
7:36 AM / 6:13 PM
10h 37m of daylight
Tomales Bay Tide Table, Next 7 Days
From today · Pacific time
Today, Oct 31
- ▲ High 6:13 AM4.1 ft
- ▼ Low 11:06 AM3.3 ft
- ▲ High 4:22 PM5.2 ft
Sunday, Nov 1
- ▼ Low 12:12 AM−0.5 ft
- ▲ High 6:18 AM4.2 ft
- ▼ Low 11:40 AM3.1 ft
- ▲ High 4:37 PM4.8 ft
Monday, Nov 2
- ▼ Low 12:20 AM−0.2 ft
- ▲ High 7:13 AM4.4 ft
- ▼ Low 1:07 PM2.6 ft
- ▲ High 5:59 PM4.5 ft
Tuesday, Nov 3
- ▼ Low 1:22 AM0.1 ft
- ▲ High 7:59 AM4.7 ft
- ▼ Low 2:17 PM2.0 ft
- ▲ High 7:21 PM4.2 ft
Wednesday, Nov 4
- ▼ Low 2:16 AM0.4 ft
- ▲ High 8:38 AM5.0 ft
- ▼ Low 3:15 PM1.3 ft
- ▲ High 8:35 PM4.1 ft
Thursday, Nov 5
- ▼ Low 3:03 AM0.8 ft
- ▲ High 9:13 AM5.3 ft
- ▼ Low 4:04 PM0.6 ft
- ▲ High 9:41 PM4.1 ft
Friday, Nov 6
- ▼ Low 3:45 AM1.2 ft
- ▲ High 9:46 AM5.5 ft
- ▼ Low 4:48 PM0.1 ft
- ▲ High 10:41 PM4.1 ft
Minus Tides at Tomales Bay
Daylight low tides below zero in the next 60 days, the best times for tidepooling and walking the low beach. More on what a minus tide is.
- Saturday, Nov 7, 5:27 PM−0.3 ft
- Sunday, Nov 22, 4:51 PM−0.6 ft
- Saturday, Dec 5, 4:36 PM−0.3 ft
- Sunday, Dec 6, 5:15 PM−0.6 ft
- Sunday, Dec 20, 3:47 PM−0.4 ft
- Monday, Dec 21, 4:34 PM−1.0 ft
- Tuesday, Dec 22, 5:21 PM−1.5 ft
Tomales Bay Tides: Currents, Mudflats and Marshall
Tomales Bay tides run about an hour behind the bay’s mouth by the time they reach Marshall on the east shore. Tides here are predicted from NOAA’s Marshall, Tomales Bay station, about a mile away. NOAA’s offsets put high tide at Marshall about 50 minutes after the Tomales Bay entrance and low tide almost an hour after it.
The bay is about 15 miles long, about a mile wide and averages around 18 feet deep. It formed along a sunken stretch of the San Andreas Fault, which is why it is so long and straight.
Paddling Around the Tide
Point Reyes National Seashore warns that the change between high and low tide makes strong currents, especially at the mouth. Low tides expose mudflats at the south end of the bay, and paddlers can get stuck at Millerton Point or White House Pool. The park calls Millerton Point very shallow and best used at high tide.
Wind matters as much as the tide. Northwest wind funnels between Inverness Ridge and Bolinas Ridge, and the afternoon wind tends to be stronger than the morning wind. Water temperature can drop to 50°F and rarely reaches 68°F, even in late summer. The park’s kayaking page lists the six launch sites on the bay.
Pelican Point, Duck Island and the east side of Hog Island are closed to the public all year. Hog Island is a seal haul-out and a brown pelican roost.
Oyster farming is the big business on the east shore. Tomales Bay Oyster Company dates to 1909, and Hog Island Oyster Co. started on a small lease near Marshall in 1983. The Nick’s Cove boat ramp sits north of Marshall.
Tides Near Tomales Bay
All Marin tides →How the tide is running right now at the closest spots.
Also close to Tomales Bay: Point Reyes 12 mi · Alamere Falls 14 mi · Bolinas 19 mi · Agate Beach 20 mi · Duxbury Reef 20 mi
Where the Tomales Bay Tide Station Is
38.1617, -122.8933
Tide times for Tomales Bay come from NOAA's Marshall, Tomales Bay tide station (9415339), about 1.3 miles away.
About Tides at Tomales Bay
How the tide works at Tomales Bay
Tomales Bay gets mixed semidiurnal tides, the usual pattern on the California coast: two highs and two lows most days, with one high noticeably higher than the other and one low noticeably lower. The lower low is the one that uncovers the most shore.
A typical day here swings about 5.4 ft from low water to the next high. The biggest spring tides of the next month stretch that to about 8.2 ft, and the quietest neap days shrink it to about 3.0 ft. The next spring tides peak around Nov 9.
Where the Tomales Bay predictions come from
Every time and height is a NOAA prediction for NOAA's Marshall, Tomales Bay tide station (9415339), about 1.3 miles away. It is a subordinate station: NOAA predicts its highs and lows by applying time and height offsets to the San Francisco (Golden Gate) reference station.
The curve between each high and low is drawn with the standard cosine method, so heights between the turns are close estimates. Weather can move the real water level: strong onshore wind and low air pressure raise it, and offshore wind and high pressure lower it. Read more on how tide predictions work.
Reading the tide clock, table and chart
The tide clock's hand sweeps from high tide at the top to low tide at the bottom and back, one full turn per tidal cycle of about 12 hours and 25 minutes. The countdowns on either side show the time to the next high and the next low.
The day picker and the 7-day table list each turn of the tide with its time and height. On the chart, each crest is a high and each trough a low; shaded bands are night. Heights are feet above mean lower low water, so a negative number is a minus tide. Our guide on how to read a tide chart goes further.
Tomales Bay Tide Questions
How much later is the tide at Marshall than at the mouth of Tomales Bay?
Close to an hour. NOAA's tide offsets put high tide at Marshall about 50 minutes after the Tomales Bay entrance and low tide about 56 minutes after it. If you are launching from Marshall, plan with the Marshall times, not the times for the mouth or for San Francisco.
Where can you launch a kayak on Tomales Bay at low tide?
Skip Millerton Point and White House Pool on a low tide. Point Reyes National Seashore says low water exposes mudflats at the south end of the bay, and paddlers can get stuck at those two access points. Millerton Point is very shallow and works best near high tide.
Can you land on Hog Island in Tomales Bay?
Not on its east side. The park service keeps Pelican Point, Duck Island and the east side of Hog Island closed to the public all year. Hog Island is a seal haul-out and a roost for brown pelicans, so give it wide room in a kayak.
What time is high tide at Tomales Bay today?
The panel at the top lists today's highs and lows at Tomales Bay with their times and heights, and the tide clock counts down to the next high and the next low. Times are Pacific time and heights are in feet above mean lower low water (MLLW).
How big is the tide at Tomales Bay?
Over the next 30 days the daily swing at Tomales Bay runs from about 3.0 ft on the quietest neap days to 8.2 ft on the biggest spring tides, with 5.4 ft on a typical day. Like the rest of the California coast, most days bring two highs and two lows of unequal size.
Where do the Tomales Bay tide times come from?
They are astronomical predictions from NOAA's Marshall, Tomales Bay tide station (9415339), about 1.3 miles away. Wind, storms, river runoff and air pressure can push the real water level higher or lower than predicted, so treat them as a planning guide, not a guarantee, and never use them for navigation.