How to read tide times in Cornwall

A tide table is simple once you know the four words that matter: high water, low water, height and range.

High water and low water

High water is the predicted time when the sea is near its highest level in that tide cycle. Low water is when it is near its lowest. Around Cornwall there are normally two high waters and two low waters each day, but the exact spacing changes through the lunar cycle.

On Tide Checking, every station page shows the next event at the top, then a 14-day strip and a curve for the selected day. The dots on the curve mark the predicted highs and lows.

What the height means

The height is the predicted sea level at that gauge, shown in metres above Ordnance Datum. It is useful for comparing one tide with another at the same gauge. It should not be treated as the depth of water on a beach, harbour wall or causeway.

Range shows how big the tide is

The range is the difference between high water and low water. A bigger range means the water moves farther up and down the shore. The site marks the larger ranges as springs, which are the tides that often matter most for beach access.

Use the nearest valid gauge

Each page is labelled by its source gauge. We do not invent local times for beaches without a gauge, so a village or beach appears only when it shares a body of water with a validated Environment Agency gauge.