Water temp
86.5°F
NOAA CO-OPS 8761927 updated 9:36 AM
Waters · Coast · LA · Mon, Sep 21
Lake Pontchartrain tide chart today next high 4:10 PM
Bite index 6/10 — Biting — mid-morning is your stretch.
Worth a cast.
6/10
Biting
Today's bite windows
12 AM6 AMNoon6 PM11 PM
10Peak 9 8Strong 7 6Good 5 4Slow 3 2 1Dead
Minor
1:18 AM–2:18 AM
Moonset
Major
8:03 AM–10:03 AM
Moon underfoot
Minor
3:41 PM–4:41 PM
Moonrise
Major
8:26 PM–10:26 PM
Moon overhead
Sunrise 6:48 AM · sunset 6:58 PM · tomorrow's first major 8:50 AM–10:50 AM · windows on every water
Solunar · computed updated 9:42 AM
Conditions right now
Tide level
1.047ft
-0.07 ft in 24h
NOAA CO-OPS 8761927 updated 9:36 AM
Pressure
29.96inHg
steady · +0.68 hPa/12h
NOAA KNEW updated 9:25 AM
Wind
8mph N
NOAA KNEW updated 9:25 AM
Moon
76% waxing
Solunar · computed updated 9:42 AM
Nearby gauges
These sit on connected water, not on Lake Pontchartrain itself.
- Second stretch USGS 302144090052401 updated 8:30 AM
What this means
Redfish
87°F is above the comfortable band. Fish deep water and the first hour of light.
Work deep.
Lake Pontchartrain tide times
| Day | Tide | Time | Height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mon, Sep 21 | Low | 2:53 AM | 0.5 ft |
| High | 4:10 PM | 1.0 ft | |
| Tue, Sep 22 | Low | 3:28 AM | 0.5 ft |
| High | 4:44 PM | 0.9 ft | |
| Wed, Sep 23 | Low | 3:55 AM | 0.6 ft |
| High | 5:13 PM | 0.9 ft |
Predicted heights above MLLW. The bite windows above already fold these swings in.
NOAA CO-OPS 8761927 updated 9:42 AM
Lake Pontchartrain water level today
1.047 ft above MLLW down 0.07 ft in 24 hours
That sits 41% of the way up the band it has held over the last 9 days, between 0.37 and 2.03 ft. Over the week it is up0.18ft.
09-12 0.37–2.03 ft 09-21
NOAA CO-OPS 8761927 updated 9:36 AM
The week ahead
| Tue | 6 | Biting | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed | 6 | Biting | |
| Thu | 7 | Biting | |
| Fri | 7 | Biting | |
| Sat | 7 | Biting | |
| Sun | 7 | Biting | |
| Mon | 7 | Biting |
Forecast days carry solunar and the wind outlook. Pressure and gauge movement land the morning of.
Lake Pontchartrain boat ramps and public fishing access
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries lists 13 public access points on Lake Pontchartrain. These are the 8 closest to our gauge — the farthest one the agency lists sits 26 mi away.
- Bonnabel Boat Launch 1.8 miHours: 24 hours a dayRamp and parking: 2-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, brackish
- Seabrook Launch & Pier 4.6 miHours: 24 hours a dayRamp and parking: 3-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, brackish
- Williams Boulevard Boat Ramp 7.5 miHours: 24 hours a dayRamp and parking: 4-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, brackish
- Lombard's 17 miRamp and parking: 1-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, brackish
- South Shore Bait Marina 19 miHours: 24 hours a dayRamp and parking: 1-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, brackish
- Chef Harbor 19 miHours: Tues-Sun, 5:30am-4pm; closed Mondays, except holidaysRamp and parking: 1-lane concrete rampAmenities: Marina, fuel, bait, tackleFishing: Saltwater, brackish
- Lacombe Boat Ramp 19 miHours: 24 hours a dayRamp and parking: 1-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, freshwater, brackish
- Mandeville Harbor 22 miHours: 24 hours a dayRamp and parking: 3-lane concrete rampFishing: Saltwater, freshwater, brackish
This inventory carries the agency's own vintage of 2016. Lanes, docks and fees can have changed since — call ahead if a detail decides your trip.
Access data from Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries. Distances are straight-line from our gauge, not driving distance.
Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries · public access inventory
Before you go
A Louisiana fishing license covers this water — $17 a year for residents. LDWF sets the rules and is the one that counts.
What it costs, and who is exempt →Nearby waters today
- 5 Picky Biloxi MS · 83 km
- 4 Picky Grand Isle LA · 86 km
- 5 Picky Dauphin Island AL · 198 km
- 6 Biting Lake Winnibigoshish MN · 1964 km
- 6 Biting Lake Tahoe CA · 2912 km
Questions people ask about Lake Pontchartrain
Answered from the same readings as the rest of this page. Where we have no basis for an answer, there is no entry — spot-by-spot local knowledge is not something we can claim for Lake Pontchartrain.
- Is it worth fishing Lake Pontchartrain today?
- 6 out of 10 — biting. Worth a cast. The strongest stretch is 8:03 AM–10:03 AM. That number is worked out fresh each morning from the solunar windows, the pressure trend, the water level and the water temperature.
- What time should you fish Lake Pontchartrain?
- Today's major windows run 8:03 AM–10:03 AM and 8:26 PM–10:26 PM, with minor windows at 1:18 AM–2:18 AM and 3:41 PM–4:41 PM. Sunrise is 6:48 AM and sunset 6:58 PM. A major landing on first or last light is the stretch worth setting an alarm for.
- What is the water temperature at Lake Pontchartrain?
- 86.5°F, read at 9:36 AM from NOAA CO-OPS station 8761927. That is 0.7 degrees warmer than 24 hours ago.
- What is the water level at Lake Pontchartrain right now?
- 1.047 ft above MLLW, read at 9:36 AM from NOAA CO-OPS station 8761927. Over 24 hours it is down 0.07 ft.
- Are water levels rising or falling at Lake Pontchartrain?
- Rising. The lake is down 0.07 ft in 24 hours and up 0.18 ft over the week. Over the last 9 days it has held between 0.37 and 2.03 ft. Every figure here is a difference between two gauge readings, not a forecast — what the level does next depends on rain and on what the dam releases.
- Can you eat the fish you catch in Lake Pontchartrain?
- That is a health question and it belongs with the state, not with us. LA publishes fish consumption advisories through its health or environmental agency, and those are the ones that count. We give no eating advice.
- Do you need a licence to fish Lake Pontchartrain?
- Yes. A Louisiana fishing license covers this water, required from age 18. LDWF sets the rules and is the one that counts.
- What size fish can you keep in Louisiana?
- It depends on the species, and several have slot limits rather than a simple minimum. Open to harvest today: spotted seatrout (speckled trout), red drum (redfish), black drum, southern flounder. Seasons here change mid-year by agency order, so the status is re-checked every morning.
Spotted seatrout (speckled trout) limits · Red drum (redfish) limits · Black drum limits · Southern flounder limits · Check a length against the rules
Where these numbers come from
- Solunar computed 9:42 AM
- NOAA KNEW New Orleans, New Orleans Lakefront Airport 9:25 AM
- NOAA LIX gridded forecast 2:01 AM
- NOAA CO-OPS 8761927 New Canal Station 9:36 AM
The lake is brackish and tidal, so it runs on CO-OPS rather than a river gauge. New Canal Station sits on the south shore and also reports water temperature.
No one types these in by hand. If a source goes quiet, the page says so instead of showing you yesterday.