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It’s that time again! The full moon is approaching, bringing some of the lowest tides of the year and the tide pools are waiting for explorers!

Exposure at the Needle during a negative low tide
Photo Courtesy of Alanna Kieffer

Tides for the approaching week:

Friday, July 31st –  low tide: -1.4’ @ 7:18 AM
                        High tide: 6.7’ @ 1:56 PM
                        Low tide: 1.6’ @ 7:20 PM

Saturday, August 1st – low tide: -1.5’ @8:00 AM
                                    High tide: 7.1’ @ 2:36 PM
                                    Low tide: 1.2’ @ 8:10 PM

Sunday, August 2nd – low tide: -1.4’ @ 8:41 AM
                                    High tide: 7.3’ @ 3:16 PM
                                    Low tide: 0.8’ @ 8:59 PM

Monday, August 3rd – low tide: -1.1’ @ 9:22 AM
                                    high tide: 7.5’ @ 3:57 PM
                                    Low tide: 0.6’ @ 9:50 PM

Tuesday, August 4th – low tide: -0.5’ @ 10:03 AM
                                    High tide: 7.6’ @ 4:40 PM
                                    Low tide: 0.5’ @ 10:44 PM

Wednesday, August 5th – low tide: 0.1’ @ 10:48 AM
                                    High tide: 7.6’ @ 5:26 PM
                                    Low tide: 0.5’@ 11:44 PM

Thursday, August 6th – low tide: 0.9 @ 11:38 AM
                                    High tide: 7.5’@ 6:17 PM

The best times to see the tide pools at Haystack Rock are during negative low tides! This is the time when the tide pools are most exposed and there is the most to see. Most negative low tides are super early in the morning, so grab your coffee and your water shoes and get down to the beach! There are also low tides in the evening but these are not as low as the morning tides and therefore will not have as much exposure.

The West Coast of the United States experiences what are known as mixed semidiurnal tides. Semidiurnal means that there are two high and two low tides everyday. The word mixed represents that the two low tides as well as the two high tides in one 24-hour period are different heights, with one low-low tide and one high-low tide everyday.

Waning Moon on July 28, 2015 
Photo Courtesy of Alanna Kieffer 

The level of the tide is mostly affected by the moon, sun, and Earth’s position around each other. With a new or full moon approaching, the Earth, sun and moon are all aligning with each other. The gravitational pull of the moon combined with that of Earth is what to blame for pulling the water up and down our shores. With the full moon on the August 1st, the tides will be at the lowest point on this day at 8:00 AM. When the moon is not full, it is approaching the sun at an angle and the two gravitational pulls cancel each other out, therefore the tides are not as extreme.

Exposure at the Needle 
Photo Courtesy of Alanna Kieffer

So come to the tide pools as soon as possible to catch the lowest of the low tides! If you can’t make it out this week there will also be some negative tides again towards the middle and the end of the month. Plan your trip accordingly to land in the pools at the right time. Always remember no matter how low the tide is, most animals still need space, so do not disturb the birds and please use tide pool etiquette when exploring!

Happy tide-pooling!





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