Dauphin Island tides today
Dauphin Island, the barrier island guarding the west side of the mouth of Mobile Bay, has a primary NOAA gauge at its eastern end.
Shaded: night. Green bands: solunar periods (thick = major, thin = minor). Heights in feet above Mean Lower Low Water, the zero of NOAA charts.
Dauphin Island, AL · Tuesday, October 13
Tide rising, 0.8 ft now
High 12:04 AM
1.8 ft · in 7 h 23 min
| Low | 11:13 AM | 0.3 ft |
Sunrise 6:53 AM · sunset 6:23 PM
Waxing crescent, 10% lit · fishing day ★★☆☆
Solunar: major 1:34 AM–3:34 AM, minor 9:18 AM–10:18 AM, major 1:58 PM–3:58 PM, minor 7:35 PM–8:35 PM
Dauphin Island tide table, next 7 days
| Day | High tides | Low tides | Coef. | Sun | Moon |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:13 AM 0.3 ft | 6:53 AM–6:23 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |||
| 12:04 AM 1.8 ft | 12:10 PM 0.3 ft | 119 | 6:54 AM–6:22 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 12:49 AM 1.8 ft | 1:09 PM 0.2 ft | 121 | 6:54 AM–6:21 PM | Waxing crescent ★★☆☆ | |
| 1:36 AM 1.8 ft | 2:10 PM 0.2 ft | 120 | 6:55 AM–6:20 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 2:24 AM 1.7 ft | 3:05 PM 0.2 ft | 118 | 6:56 AM–6:19 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 3:12 AM 1.7 ft | 3:49 PM 0.3 ft | 111 | 6:56 AM–6:18 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ | |
| 4:01 AM 1.6 ft | 4:22 PM 0.3 ft | 98 | 6:57 AM–6:17 PM | First quarter ★★☆☆ |
Plan around the tide at Dauphin Island
- Tue Oct 13, 4:41 PM to 6:18 PM1 h 37 min · lowest 0.3 ft at 11:03 AM
- Wed Oct 14, 6:54 AM to 6:22 PM11 h 28 min · lowest 0.3 ft at 12:04 PM
- Thu Oct 15, 6:54 AM to 6:21 PM11 h 27 min · lowest 0.2 ft at 1:09 PM
- Fri Oct 16, 7:10 AM to 6:20 PM11 h 10 min · lowest 0.2 ft at 2:00 PM
- Sat Oct 17, 8:11 AM to 6:19 PM10 h 8 min · lowest 0.2 ft at 3:05 PM
- Sun Oct 18, 9:04 AM to 6:18 PM9 h 14 min · lowest 0.3 ft at 3:53 PM
- Mon Oct 19, 9:52 AM to 6:17 PM8 h 25 min · lowest 0.3 ft at 4:02 PM
A falling tide uncovers sand bars and tide pools first; plan to be back before the water rises past the level you chose. Not for navigation.
Station DAUPHIN ISLAND (NOAA 8735180). Predicted astronomical tide: wind, river flow and storms can move the real water by a foot or more. 1.3 ft is the average daily range here.
Published by Radif Partners · How the tides are computed · predictions downloaded October 13, 2026
Tide times for Dauphin Island come from the National Ocean Service prediction for station 8735180, DAUPHIN ISLAND. The tide here is mostly diurnal: on 93% of days there is a single high and a single low, and the water rises or falls for hours at a time with an average daily range of only 1.3 ft. Around the new and full moon the range grows to about 2.0 ft on one day in ten, and at the quarter moons it shrinks to 0.4 ft. Heights are in feet above Mean Lower Low Water, the zero of nautical charts, so a negative number is water below that zero: 234 of the 457 days from October 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027 have one, down to -1.0 ft on January 21, 2027. The highest predicted tide of that period is 2.0 ft on October 30, 2026. Clock times are Central Time, daylight saving time included.
At the gate of Mobile Bay
1.3 ft on an average day, with a lone high and a lone low on 93% of them: the Dauphin Island tide is the tide of the northern Gulf in its plainest form. The gauge watches the main entrance to Mobile Bay, the channel between the island's east end and Mobile Point, where Fort Gaines and Fort Morgan face each other across the water. Everything that fills the bay passes this way. NOAA predicts Mobile Point from the Mobile State Dock reference, upriver at the city, with high water 106 minutes earlier and heights at 80 percent, which gives an idea of how long the tide needs to travel the length of the bay.
Mississippi Sound on the north shore
Dauphin Island is long and thin. Its south shore faces the Gulf; its north shore looks onto Mississippi Sound and the mouth of Fowl River on the mainland. NOAA keeps a gauge at the Highway 188 bridge on West Fowl River, about ten miles northwest, for anyone launching on that side. The sound is shallow, and its tide is shaped as much by the wind as by the moon.
A winter of long lows
On 234 days of the prediction period the water at this station drops below the chart datum at least once, and the deepest of those lows, -1.0 ft, comes on January 21, 2027. On this coast those winter lows often stack up with a north wind that blows the sound and the bay out, baring flats and oyster reefs along the island's back side. A strong south wind does the opposite, holding the beach covered at hours when the table says it should be exposed. For timing a morning on the flats, check both the chart above and the wind; the negative low tide guide describes what to expect when the water falls that far.
Highest and lowest tides at Dauphin Island, 2026 to 2027
The six highest highs and six lowest lows predicted for DAUPHIN ISLAND between October 1, 2026 and December 31, 2027, one per day. The high-water dates are the king tides of this station; the low-water dates are the best days to see the flats, bars and tide pools.
| Highest highs | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|
| October 30, 2026 | 1:11 AM | 2.0 ft |
| October 2, 2026 | 2:26 AM | 2.0 ft |
| October 29, 2026 | 12:14 AM | 2.0 ft |
| October 3, 2026 | 3:30 AM | 2.0 ft |
| October 31, 2026 | 2:09 AM | 1.9 ft |
| October 20, 2027 | 1:24 AM | 1.9 ft |
| Lowest lows | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|
| January 21, 2027 | 8:18 AM | -1.0 ft |
| January 20, 2027 | 7:21 AM | -1.0 ft |
| January 22, 2027 | 9:10 AM | -0.9 ft |
| December 24, 2026 | 9:21 AM | -0.9 ft |
| January 19, 2027 | 6:21 AM | -0.9 ft |
| December 25, 2026 | 10:15 AM | -0.9 ft |
Tidal datums at station 8735180
NOAA's averages over the 1983-2001 epoch, measured from the chart zero (MLLW). Average range of the tide (MN): 1.2 ft; great diurnal range (GT): 1.2 ft.
| Datum | Meaning | Height above MLLW |
|---|---|---|
| MHHW | Mean Higher High Water | 1.2 ft |
| MHW | Mean High Water | 1.2 ft |
| MSL | Mean Sea Level | 0.6 ft |
| MLW | Mean Low Water | 0.0 ft |
| MLLW | Mean Lower Low Water (chart zero) | 0.0 ft |
Other stations nearby
- Gulf Shores tides: Gulf Shores, ICWW, average range 1.2 ft, highest predicted tide 1.8 ft on October 2, 2026