The town of Palm Beach alerted residents Monday that the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration is predicting extreme high tides to peak 2½ to 3 feet above the average lowest tide height a number of times through November.
Low-lying coastal areas are susceptible to flooding from these exceptionally high tides, sometimes called king tides. Lake Trail, the popular walking and biking path along the Intracoastal Waterway, is susceptible to high water because it’s so close to the coast.
According to the South Florida Water Management District, the variation in strength and direction of the gravitational pull of the moon, especially during the new and full moon phases in the fall, contributes to king tide occurrences.
The full moon that occurs Monday is a so-called super blue moon , because it is a rare alignment of a super moon — the largest and brightest of the year — and a blue moon, the third of four full moons in a single season.
The tidal garden at Bradley Park off Royal Poinciana Way was built by the Garden Club of Palm Beach to help manage the effects of high tides. The garden, which opened in March 2021, features mostly native plants and a drainage system that redirects rising waters from the annual king tides.