Teluk Bahang, Penang tide times

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived.

Model-derived from a global ocean grid. Useful indication; expect about ±45 minutes on average vs. a local harmonic gauge, individual stations vary widely. See /methodology for per-region detail. Not for navigation.

Conditions as of 06:00 local time. Refreshes daily.

Predictions: Open-Meteo Marine (MeteoFrance SMOC, 0.08° grid) — heights relative to MSL (not chart datum / LAT). Model-derived. · Not for navigation.

The angler tradition for major/minor fishing windows: major ≈3-hour windows around moon transit and opposition; minor ≈2-hour windows around moonrise and moonset. Times are Asia/Kuala Lumpur local. Folk tradition, not a scientific forecast.

Next spring tide on Wed 06 May (range 1.5m). Next neap on Mon 11 May.

Spring tides cluster around new and full moons (biggest swings). Neap tides land on quarter moons (smallest swings). See the spring tide and neap tide glossary entries for the why.

Teluk Bahang occupies the northwestern tip of Penang Island, where the road runs out and the national park begins. The village is a working fishing settlement — boats moored at the jetty, nets drying in the compound, the smell of the catch in the morning air — and it doubles as the gateway to one of peninsular Malaysia's least-developed coastlines. Penang National Park starts at the end of the paved road and continues west along a forested coast that is otherwise reachable only on foot or by boat. The tidal regime here is the same Strait of Malacca diurnal pattern that governs the whole of Penang's west coast: one dominant high and one dominant low per day, with a secondary cycle of smaller amplitude. Mean range on spring tides runs 2.5 to 3.5 m. The consequences of that range are more significant here than at the resort beaches to the east, because the national park's trail network crosses several small streams that connect to the sea — and those crossings change character entirely between high and low water. The main coastal trail from Teluk Bahang leads to two beaches: Monkey Beach, officially Pantai Kerachut, and Turtle Beach (Pantai Kerachut's turtle nesting section is sometimes called Turtle Beach in guides, but the nesting area is formally the Kerachut Marine Turtle Sanctuary). Behind Pantai Kerachut sits the Kerachut Lake, a meromictic lake — meaning its fresh and saltwater layers do not mix — that is one of only a few such lakes in Malaysia. The lake drains to the beach through a small channel that becomes effectively impassable when spring high tides back the sea up into the drainage. Plan trail crossings for within two hours of low water on spring days; neap tides are more forgiving. The trail itself is a forest path, not a beach walk — it climbs two substantial ridges between Teluk Bahang and Monkey Beach, a 3.5 km route. The stream crossings are at the low points where the trail descends to beach level. In dry season they run ankle-deep at low water. In the northeast monsoon (October to March) or after heavy rain, the same crossings can be knee-deep even at low water, and impassable at high water on spring days when the sea encroaches 50 to 100 m inland up the stream channels. Rangers at the park entrance post advice on current crossing conditions; ask before you leave. Green turtles (Chelonia mydas) nest on the beach at Pantai Kerachut from around May to September, with peak nesting activity through June and July. Nesting takes place at night, at or above the high-water line — the turtles orient to the upper beach by the receding tide. Hatchlings emerge after 50 to 60 days and orient to the sea by detecting the horizon light. Nest protection rangers operate during nesting season; access to the nesting section of the beach is managed and restricted at night. Daytime visits are unrestricted. For anglers: the shoreline from Teluk Bahang around the national park headlands holds grouper, snapper, and barramundi on the flood tide. Shore fishing from the Teluk Bahang Jetty is productive on the incoming tide in the early morning. The jetty also marks the departure point for boat trips into the park — the service is informal, run by local boat operators, and the boats navigate to Monkey Beach and Turtle Beach rather than walking the trail. At high water the boats can approach the beach directly; at low spring water the beach gradient at Monkey Beach is shallow and the skipper anchors further out, meaning a short wade. Departure times are partly negotiable around the tidal state — the operators know the beaches and will advise the best window for each destination. SUP and kayak paddlers who want to access the park's coast from the water: the sheltered bay in front of Teluk Bahang village is manageable at most states of tide. The open coast beyond the headland to the west is exposed on northeast monsoon days and should be avoided in rough conditions. The meromictic Kerachut Lake is accessible by paddling up the outlet channel on a rising tide or at high water — a genuinely unusual experience. At low water the channel shallows to under 0.2 m and is not navigable by paddle craft. Photographers: the pre-dawn light on the beach at Pantai Kerachut, with forest coming down to the sand and no resort infrastructure, is one of the few accessible wild-beach dawn shots remaining on Penang Island. Time arrival for the end of the boat trip — depart Teluk Bahang about 45 minutes before first light on a rising tide for the best access. Tide data for Teluk Bahang, Penang comes from the Open-Meteo Marine API, a gridded model product. Timing accuracy is ±45 minutes, height accuracy ±0.3 m — usable for trip planning, not for navigation.