C&D Canal currents

[Hayden Jones]

I am planning to circumnavigate the Delmarva peninsula next June. I'll be sailing clockwise out of Ocean City MD. When crosing the C&D I'd like to take advange of the currents but can't figure out in which direction they flow. I've found a chart www.stripersurf.com/currrents ,that show currents speed but not direction. Obviously I'd prefer to cross the 18 miles with the curent aft and pushin me along.Anyone got any ideas.Hayden

 

[Paul]

Current Predictions

Hayden,Go to the Tidal Current Prdictions on the NOAA.gov web site. They clearly indicate the direction of the current.Paul

 

[Bill]

Wacky tides

One option is to call the C & D canal and they will tell you what the current is doing on a given date and time. I can also tell you we just came up from the Bay Bridge, leaving a 6:30am with a 4am low at the Chester river, rode the current up the bay and popped out the canal into the Delaware at 2pm, just as we were losing the favorable canal current. If you try to figure it out you'll bleed from the ears and be wrong anyway. If you look at the tide chart for Chesapeake City it pretty strange looking.

 

[RP]

Both directions

The CandD currents flow in both directions. In other words, at about east of Chesapeake City Flood is west and ebb is east. If you're about west of Chesapeake City it's the other way around, flood is east and ebb is west. So, if you are traveling across, you'll be going against the current at one point or another. Try to hit the entrance of the canal at the ebb before a flood, whichever direction you are traveling, and you will at least catch some current momentum.Rp...

 

[Hayden]

Thanks for the information

Hayden