May 18 2008
Tides
If you live on an ocean, you live by the tides. Tide Tables are published in the newspaper, and tide information is given at every weather report. Boaters and fishermen live and die by the tides, as if they don’t understand them, they can become stranded. Tybee Island can get tides as high as 12 feet, bringing the water right up to the Tybee road. And sometimes, when it rains and we have a particularly high tide, the water can cover the Tybee Road!
Tides move the entire ocean. If you’ve been to the beach, you have seen the water come high up on the shore and then later, way out. You may have heard people say that the tide is coming in, which is known as high tide, or that it is going out–low tide. This rising and falling is called the tide.
What causes tides? It’s the gravitational pull between the Earth, the Sun and the Moon. As the Moon rotates around the Earth the water follows it and forms the daily tides. The Sun’s effect on the tides is about half that of the Moon’s because the Sun is so far from the Earth.
Spring tides are caused when the full Moon and the new Moon line up in a straight path with the Sun and the Earth. When the Moon and Sun are in line with the Earth, they work together as a tidal team. Spring tides, which occur twice a month all year, rise higher and fall lower than normal.
Neap tides are caused when the Sun, the Earth and the Moon, in the first and third quarters, are at right angles to each other. These tides are unusually low because the pull of the Moon and the pull of the Sun somewhat cancel each other out. The Moon and the Sun engage in a tidal tug of war. Neap tides have the smallest difference between the water levels at high tide and low tide.
If you go boating or fishing on a boat, you must be aware of when the tides are high and low so you don’t get stuck, especially if you are in a marsh or creek area. Tybee Vacation Rentals has Tide Tables for 2008.
If you love to find seashells, the best time to do so is after high tides and storms (14th to 18th Streets are the best areas for this). You can also use metal detection devices to find “treasures” after high tides and storms.
You must remember one thing, though; DO NOT to go into the dune lines, or take sea oats from the beach. They keep our beaches stable and they are all federally protected.
If you like to surf, we can get some surfable waves when the tide is coming in. You can buy or rent surf boards at several places on the Island. Call Tybee Vacation Rentals Information Center for places.
