Tide charts tell you what the water is supposed to do. This page shows what it’s actually doing. The three gauges below report live NOAA measurements every six minutes, plotted against the astronomical predictions — the gap between the two lines is the wind and weather.
How to read it: when observed runs above predicted, wind or storm surge is stacking water onto the coast — the beach will be narrower than the tide tables suggest, sound-side roads flood sooner, and “low tide” won’t feel very low. When observed runs below predicted, offshore winds are pushing water out. On a calm day the ocean gauge sits nearly on top of its prediction, and that’s the boring good news.
One caveat before you panic at the sound-side numbers: the two sound gauges routinely run half a foot or so above their predictions all summer. That’s seasonal sea level — warm water and prevailing winds ride higher than the astronomical baseline — not a storm. What matters on the sound side is the change: a gauge that jumps from its usual +0.5 to +1.5 and climbing is the one telling you something.
Duck — FRF Pier (ocean gauge, station 8651370). The oceanfront reference for the northern beaches. If this gauge is running high, every beach from Carova to Nags Head is running high with it.
Oregon Inlet Marina (sound side, station 8652587). Inside the inlet. Watch this one during sustained southwest or northeast blows — sound-side water levels respond to wind more than to the moon, and this gauge shows it first for the Nags Head–to–Rodanthe stretch.
USCG Station Hatteras (sound side, station 8654467). Hatteras Village harbor. The classic sound-side surge gauge for Hatteras Island — during Dorian in 2019 this is where the water came from, off the sound, not the ocean.
When this page matters
Most days, nothing here is exciting. The days it matters: a multi-day northeast blow, a nor’easter, a tropical system offshore, or the strong southwest winds that tilt the sounds. Water stacked by wind doesn’t follow the tide tables — it can hold high water on the beach for hours past the predicted high, and it’s the reason NC-12 floods when the chart says the tide should be falling.
This page is not a storm warning. For coastal flood advisories, evacuations, and official forecasts, use the National Weather Service at weather.gov. These gauges show what the water is doing, not what it will do.
Data: NOAA CO-OPS, updated every 6 minutes, MLLW datum. Predictions are astronomical only.
Related guides
Understand the gap between observed and predicted with our guide to tide anomalies, and how wind and barometric pressure push water around. When a system is offshore, see storm surge and storms & nor’easters. For access impacts, check current beach closures.
FAQ
What does it mean when observed water is above the prediction?
Wind or storm surge is adding water on top of the astronomical tide. Expect a narrower beach, higher water at high tide, and sound-side flooding sooner than the tide tables suggest.
Which gauges does this page use?
The three Outer Banks NOAA gauges that report live observations: Duck FRF Pier on the ocean (8651370), Oregon Inlet Marina (8652587) and USCG Station Hatteras (8654467) on the sound side. Data updates every six minutes.
Why is there no live ocean gauge for Hatteras Island?
NOAA’s ocean-side references for Hatteras Island are prediction-only stations without live sensors. The Duck gauge is the nearest live ocean measurement, and the sound-side Hatteras gauge captures the surge that actually floods the villages.
Is this a storm warning?
No. These gauges show what the water is doing right now, not what it will do. For coastal flood advisories and official forecasts, use the National Weather Service at weather.gov.