Simple Tides / Guides / Anchorage Tides

Anchorage Tide Chart

Anchorage sits on Cook Inlet, home to some of the biggest tides on Earth — swings topping 30 feet that reverse rivers, strand boats, and send a surfable wall of water up Turnagain Arm.

The pattern

A mixed semidiurnal tide with a range that routinely exceeds 25 feet and can top 35 on the year’s biggest exchanges — second only to a handful of places on the planet, including the Bay of Fundy. The two daily highs are unevenly matched, and the water moves with astonishing speed and force.

The Turnagain bore

The inlet’s signature spectacle is the bore tide: on big incoming tides, a wall of water up to six feet tall races up Turnagain Arm against the current, drawing surfers and kayakers who ride it for miles. It runs strongest on the largest tides of the month — check the forecast and watch from the highway pullouts if you are not riding.

Salmon and safety

Ship Creek in downtown Anchorage draws king and coho salmon — and combat fishermen — on the incoming tide. But Cook Inlet demands respect: the mud flats exposed at low tide are lethally soft, and the incoming tide outruns a person. Never walk the flats, and give the water a wide berth. For the state, see our Alaska tide guide.