Sailing in the middle Chesapeake Bay I don't worry about tides or currents. Where do you sailors obtain tide and current info when leaving your home waters? I know about Reeds. Are there on line sources that also provide this info? Think particularly about the NY/New England waters. Thanks, Joe Mullee
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Hi Joe,
The newer Garmin GPS has built in tide info or I listen to the VHF radio, a local 24 hour TV station has a marine forcast every 30 minutes or I can take a peek out a window. The latter two won't help you in New England. Good luck, Jack
The newer Garmin GPS has built in tide info or I listen to the VHF radio, a local 24 hour TV station has a marine forcast every 30 minutes or I can take a peek out a window. The latter two won't help you in New England. Good luck, Jack
N.O.A.A.'s web site...
has tables of tides and currents for the entire country, Joe. You should be able to find what you want there for free-our tax dollars pay for it so you might as well use it! I down-load the Ft.McHenry table every spring. It allows me to calculate High/Low from the location differentials in the various Bay publications. They also do it for you if you want specifics without doing the math.
has tables of tides and currents for the entire country, Joe. You should be able to find what you want there for free-our tax dollars pay for it so you might as well use it! I down-load the Ft.McHenry table every spring. It allows me to calculate High/Low from the location differentials in the various Bay publications. They also do it for you if you want specifics without doing the math.
Most New Englanders
...buy a copy of the Eldridge Tide and Pilot Guide each year. It's an invaluable reference and well worth the investment
...buy a copy of the Eldridge Tide and Pilot Guide each year. It's an invaluable reference and well worth the investment
From my GPS
Most all marine GPS units have an option for tide data in the menu system. Sure beats leaving the helm to thumb through a book...
Most all marine GPS units have an option for tide data in the menu system. Sure beats leaving the helm to thumb through a book...
www.sailflow.com
I just found this website from a reference in one of my magazines. Seems very promising with local radar, wind, current, etc. (http://www.sailflow.com/windandwhere.iws?regionID=200®ionProductID=22&timeoffset=-1) For actual hi and lo tide, I use tidesonline.com or other web sites while at home and the tide charts on my Raymarine chartplotter while on the boat.
I just found this website from a reference in one of my magazines. Seems very promising with local radar, wind, current, etc. (http://www.sailflow.com/windandwhere.iws?regionID=200®ionProductID=22&timeoffset=-1) For actual hi and lo tide, I use tidesonline.com or other web sites while at home and the tide charts on my Raymarine chartplotter while on the boat.
Got a Palm Pilot?
If so, here's a terrific freeware application I downloaded which, whenever I check it against the tide tables in the paper, is spot on accurate. It also gives other almanac data like sunrise and set, moonrise and set, phase, hours of daylight, etc. Enjoy!
If so, here's a terrific freeware application I downloaded which, whenever I check it against the tide tables in the paper, is spot on accurate. It also gives other almanac data like sunrise and set, moonrise and set, phase, hours of daylight, etc. Enjoy!
You can get a book of tide and current tables
The time of the tides change but the current and direction stay the same. So a copy of the tide and current tables will last forever and the tide tables for the current date are all that change. Also useful is the coast pilot now down loadable for free from noaa
The time of the tides change but the current and direction stay the same. So a copy of the tide and current tables will last forever and the tide tables for the current date are all that change. Also useful is the coast pilot now down loadable for free from noaa
Eldridge manual requires no batteries only brains
and eyes good enough to make out the tide times and little current arrows in their important current flow diagrams of both LI Sound and Chesapeake watersheds (NY East River and Hudson covered too). Cost is $11.50 and well worth the price every year. Read it cover to cover and you will understand many things nautical, lunar and even solar. It is also a hell of a lot cheaper than a chartplotter or other equipment that requires either ships power or batteries. That said, NOAA's website gives tide predictions for everywhere on the US coast including Alaska and Hawaii. There is a hell of a lot of other information on their website which former senator Rick Santorum wanted to privatize. Thanks Rick and enjoy civilian life! My $.02. CalebD Tartan27 #328, 1967
and eyes good enough to make out the tide times and little current arrows in their important current flow diagrams of both LI Sound and Chesapeake watersheds (NY East River and Hudson covered too). Cost is $11.50 and well worth the price every year. Read it cover to cover and you will understand many things nautical, lunar and even solar. It is also a hell of a lot cheaper than a chartplotter or other equipment that requires either ships power or batteries. That said, NOAA's website gives tide predictions for everywhere on the US coast including Alaska and Hawaii. There is a hell of a lot of other information on their website which former senator Rick Santorum wanted to privatize. Thanks Rick and enjoy civilian life! My $.02. CalebD Tartan27 #328, 1967
Another Link
Try this one! You can ask for tides for a week or more on any date in any location.
Try this one! You can ask for tides for a week or more on any date in any location.
Gulf Loop Current Forecasts?
Does anyone know of a FREE site that has forecasts for the Gulf Loop Current? I'm probably looking in the wrong places, but I cant seem to find a site that is not a paid subscription site. I need this info for 'Nice and Easy' who will soon be crossing the Gulf of Mexico. Apparently, not many people know much about it or they would have forewarned me on my trip. It can run as strong as 5 or 6 knots on a normal day.
Does anyone know of a FREE site that has forecasts for the Gulf Loop Current? I'm probably looking in the wrong places, but I cant seem to find a site that is not a paid subscription site. I need this info for 'Nice and Easy' who will soon be crossing the Gulf of Mexico. Apparently, not many people know much about it or they would have forewarned me on my trip. It can run as strong as 5 or 6 knots on a normal day.
Online source
While I believe wholeheartedly in Eldridge's, and buy a new copy every year, one online source that I refer to very often is BoatersBox (see link). It has tide and current info for the Greater NY/NJ/CT area, and much more, including regularly updated marine forecasts, etc. Well worth bookmarking on your computer. Pete s/v EmmieLou (Oday 322) Little Silver, NJ
While I believe wholeheartedly in Eldridge's, and buy a new copy every year, one online source that I refer to very often is BoatersBox (see link). It has tide and current info for the Greater NY/NJ/CT area, and much more, including regularly updated marine forecasts, etc. Well worth bookmarking on your computer. Pete s/v EmmieLou (Oday 322) Little Silver, NJ
Tide information
Quite a while ago I downloaded a free program from the internet that is absolutely great (see attached url). It is my primary source when on shore (though I also get Soundings, which has tide charts as well). I also keep an older Eldridge's for the tide current charts. Once aboard, my chart plotter has the tide and current data built in. The biggest advantage of this program (and the Soundings charts) is that it doesn't only show times of high and low tide, it actually graphs them, clearly differentiating based on the predicted height of tide. I was able to place an extra marker on the graph showing the level when I should be concerned about my local sand bar. Many publications give times of high tide and low tide, but without heights you only have half the information. I have never used the current feature very much in the program, finding the charts in Eldridge's sufficient for my purposes.
Quite a while ago I downloaded a free program from the internet that is absolutely great (see attached url). It is my primary source when on shore (though I also get Soundings, which has tide charts as well). I also keep an older Eldridge's for the tide current charts. Once aboard, my chart plotter has the tide and current data built in. The biggest advantage of this program (and the Soundings charts) is that it doesn't only show times of high and low tide, it actually graphs them, clearly differentiating based on the predicted height of tide. I was able to place an extra marker on the graph showing the level when I should be concerned about my local sand bar. Many publications give times of high tide and low tide, but without heights you only have half the information. I have never used the current feature very much in the program, finding the charts in Eldridge's sufficient for my purposes.
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