Sarasota tide guide: New Pass and Big Pass

Sarasota Bay doesn't hold a ton of water, so the tide matters more here than it does in a deep-water port. This planner is set to the NOAA Sarasota station, so you can check New Pass or Big Pass before you commit to a crossing.

Good to know before you head out

Both New Pass and Big Pass shoal up, and they shift a little every year as sand moves around. Neither one is a place to relax on a low outgoing tide if you draw more than a couple feet. If you're new to either pass, run it first on a rising tide with some room to spare rather than testing your luck right at low water.

Sarasota Bay itself is shallow and wide, which means wind has more effect here than it does in a narrow channel. A stiff westerly can push extra water in and mask a falling tide, and a hard easterly can empty a flat faster than the prediction alone would suggest. Treat the numbers as your baseline, not the whole story.

Where boaters usually launch

Most trips out of Sarasota run through the public ramps off Ken Thompson Parkway or further south near Turtle Beach, both of which put you close to Big Pass or New Pass without much bay to cross first. If you're coming from a marina further up the bay, budget extra time on a falling tide, since some of the connecting channels get thin well before the passes themselves do.

Fishing the tide here instead  ·  How the predictions work