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Tides

Tide times at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)

Friday 4 September 2026 · Australia/Adelaide

Today's high and low tides at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)

Today Time Height (m)
Low 12:05 am -0.83
High 6:34 am 1.0
Low 12:48 pm -0.49
High 5:58 pm 0.38

Sun, moon and bite times at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) today

Sun
↑ 6:32 am · ↓ 6:00 pm
Moon
↑ 12:40 am · ↓ 10:20 am
Moon phase
Last Quarter · 54%
Sea temp
14.6°C
Swell (max)
0.2 m @ 11 s SW
Best bite
5:00 am–7:30 am

See full bite times for Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) →

Sea-level curve · today

Scaled to today's range (datum is global mean sea level).

Swell · next 7 days at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)

Day Max swell Period Direction
Fri 4 Sep Today 0.2 m 11 s SW
Sat 5 Sep 0.7 m 4 s SW
Sun 6 Sep 0.7 m 4 s SW
Mon 7 Sep flat
Tue 8 Sep flat
Wed 9 Sep 0.6 m 3 s S
Thu 10 Sep flat

Open-ocean swell at the nearest offshore model cell — expect less of it inside protected water.

Next 14 days at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)

Tap a day to open the full hourly forecast for Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats).

About Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)

Thompson Beach sits 56 km north of the Adelaide city centre and it is not a fishing platform in any normal sense — it is a crab-raking flat, and one of the two best known in South Australia.

Tide character & fortnight outlook

Today's tides at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) sit in the spring band — peak-to-trough range about 1.83 m (moon 54% illuminated).

Across the next 7 days at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats), the average peak-to-trough tide range is about 1.8 m. The biggest swing this week falls on Thursday (~2.29 m).

Across the next fortnight, the biggest spring tides at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) peak around Saturday 12 Sep at about 2.43 m (around the new moon), and the smallest neap tides fall around Sunday 6 Sep at about 1.14 m.

Best tide state to fish Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)

The order of importance is tide, then wind, then clarity, and nothing else comes close. The bigger the low, the more flat there is to walk, and the standard program is to be on the sand at the bottom of the tide and working the flood back toward the car park. A dodge tide is a day to stay home, because a flat that does not drain is a flat you cannot rake. Wind is the reason most planned trips get called off, because nothing on the bottom shows through a chopped surface. Water clarity and warmth drive the activity — a hot, sunny, still day has the crabs moving, and the peak of the raking is late summer and early autumn on the warmest water. An overcast, windless day is the sleeper option, since the glare drops away and the crabs are still there. Winter thins the blue swimmers out and the sand crabs fill the gap from about May to September.

What anglers target here

Anglers fishing Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) typically time sessions around the tide for blue swimmer crab.

Tide questions, answered

What time is high tide at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) today?
Today's high tides at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) are at 6:34 am and 5:58 pm.
What time is low tide at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) today?
Today's low tides at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) are at 12:05 am and 12:48 pm.
Is Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) on a spring or neap tide this week?
Today's tides at Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats) sit in the spring band — peak-to-trough range about 1.83 m (moon 54% illuminated).
When is the best tide to fish Thompson Beach (Adelaide Plains crab flats)?
The order of importance is tide, then wind, then clarity, and nothing else comes close. The bigger the low, the more flat there is to walk, and the standard program is to be on the sand at the bottom of the tide and working the flood back toward the car park. A dodge tide is a day to stay home, because a flat that does not drain is a flat you cannot rake. Wind is the reason most planned trips get called off, because nothing on the bottom shows through a chopped surface. Water clarity and warmth drive the activity — a hot, sunny, still day has the crabs moving, and the peak of the raking is late summer and early autumn on the warmest water. An overcast, windless day is the sleeper option, since the glare drops away and the crabs are still there. Winter thins the blue swimmers out and the sand crabs fill the gap from about May to September. Today's peak bite window runs 5:00 am–7:30 am.

Nearby tide spots