Simple Tides / Guides / Lake Charles Tides
Lake Charles Tide Chart
Lake Charles — southwest Louisiana’s casino-and-crawfish city on the Calcasieu River — answers to small Gulf tides of around a foot. Note the NOAA station sits at Calcasieu Pass on the Gulf, about 25 miles south of the city, so bayou and lake times run a little later.
Upcoming tides in Lake Charles
Live NOAA predictions for station 8768094 (Calcasieu Pass).
| Day | Time | Tide | Height |
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Heights in feet above MLLW, station local time. See the full interactive tide map.
The pattern
Small, mostly diurnal Gulf tides of around a foot — often just one high and one low a day. The station at Calcasieu Pass reads the Gulf’s pulse; up the river and on Big Lake (Calcasieu Lake) the same water arrives later and lower, pushed by the wind as much as the moon.
Big Lake and casinos
Big Lake is trophy speckled-trout water — the weirs and reefs fish best on moving water. The Creole Nature Trail’s marshes and the casino resorts line the lake’s west shore; see our best time to fish tides guide.
Boating
The Calcasieu Ship Channel is big-ship water — stay clear of the freighters and mind their wakes. The lake’s oyster reefs are shallow and unmarked in places. For the region, see our Gulf Coast tides guide.