Before I get involved with ukrivers or song of the paddle, I’ll try here the font of almost all knowledge.
mate coming over from the States next year, wants an adventure. I have a kayak or canoe adventure planned and ready but it involves crossing two tideways. Ideally, both crossings on slack tides – doable as both crossings will be within an hour or so of setting off, but on different days.
Time is April/May next year and he needs to book flights By Nov/Dec.
So I’m looking to see if I can find any tide tables or calculations I can do to predict slack water times in the mornings for Apr/may next year. I’m looking to predict a high tide in a 2-3 hour window so not exactly RYA Yachtmaster accuracy, and probably not too concerned about springs/neaps, just times for high slack water.
Anyone know any web sites or ways to calculate this?
Cheers

Bit generic, should be fine for your purposes..

BBC Tide Tables

@BigBut – tell us where, as you know there are local complexities and primary vs secondary port calcultions and if we know the location we can search a bit more. Yes there are quite a lot of websites. You should be concerned about Spring/Neaps as the latter gives you more timing leeway, in stronger (ie Spring) tides you’ll have to be more accurate and the tide timing and strength gets advanced/retarded due to weather factors like wind and high/low pressure.

Tide times will only give you information on the height of the tide. What you really need to make sure is when the tidal current is at it’s minimum (or in your favour) and this may or may not be close to high/low tide.

The BBC tide table is next to useless!
Use one of the sailing/shipping ones as the bbc one is quite a long way out – from experience!

The BBC tide table is next to useless!
Use one of the sailing/shipping ones as the bbc one is quite a long way out – from experience!

Well a cursory glance at the RYA and BBC site shows almost exactly the same data (High and Low tides differ by 1 min!)

If you’ve got access to a iOS device (it may exist for android too?) there is an app for that:

UK Tide Times

Buy the Admiralty Chart for the area and a set of local tide tables. Most ports will sell small local paper ones.

UK tide times looks like a decent website.

Also, try and get local advice. Remember there will be a difference in times of HW/LW from the local port and your site even if they are close by.

Although currents will be less on neaps, the period of slack water will be longer on springs. May give you more time to get across.

Wind can also have a significant effect if blowing for any length of time in one direction, although I doubt that you would be there in a kayak in those conditions!

The best solution for you would be access to the “Total Tide” software from the UKHO. However, it’s quite expensive at about £90 for the UK. I know there are some professional mariners on here who post from work, they would most likely have access to it. Maybe they could run the dates and areas for you?

I would suggest you want to be looking at a tidal stream atlas. Just because there is high tide 10 miles away, does not necessarily mean there will be no flow where you want to be.

Where about in the country are you looking to have your adventure?

plan is to paddle up Loch Morar from Morar to Swordland and portage to East Loch Tarbet. Cross from Tarbet to Knoydart past the narrows at the head of Loch Nevis (don’t have the name of the upper loch to hand), but that’s large body of water and a narrow channel, and on to Inverie. Then to Mallaig next day crossing Loch Nevis again.
IME, slack (enough) water at springs or neaps should be around 30 mins, ample to cross the head of Loch Nevis assuming we leave Tarbet in plenty of time, starting the actual transit just before slack water, the worst that’ll happen is we get pushed into the narrows, but then out again. We stay close to shore so other than the second (longer and more exposed) crossing back to Mallaig, where getting swept out to sea and/or a wind over tide situation is possible, I can’t see any major issues which can’t be planned round.
Both RYA and BBC offer 6 day tables. My paper table is better, going to the end of the year, but I’m looking for tables for Apr/May next year, and to have the info by Nov this year. the tables I use are available from a local chandlers around Nov

Buy the Admiralty Chart for the area and a set of local tide tables. Most ports will sell small local paper ones.

got it but am looking for tides for next year. the tables i use are about £6 from local chandler and national.

would suggest you want to be looking at a tidal stream atlas.

admiralty tidal atlas doesn’t have much detail in sea lochs. but it’s not rocket science to look at the chart and work it out

Bear in mind chaps, I’m not looking for absolute accuracy. Mate is looking for when to book flights and we’ll work out the finer details nearer the time, I’m really looking at high slack water between about 9 and 11, earlier may be but not much later.

I should have the information on my chart plotter on my Boat. When I get home I will have a look and let you know. Im pretty sure I can select a date in the future that far ahead.

It will tell me the tide heights and currents as well.

try on the sea kayak forum of UKRGB

Trimix, that would be awesome – thanks.
If it’s not too much to ask, any 3 consecutive days where at least one of the high tides is between 8AM and 12 noon mid Apr-mid May would be absolutely brilliant. I can probably get what I need from there

Thanks

try on the sea kayak forum of UKRGB

Before I get involved with ukrivers or song of the paddle, I’ll try here the font of almost all knowledge

Thanks anyway

Bearing in mind that 2-3 hours makes the difference between no tide and full chat you’ll need to be more accurate but there’s bog all current comes out loch Nevis or Hourn so I’d not worry too much.

I would suggest you want to be looking at a tidal stream atlas. Just because there is high tide 10 miles away, does not necessarily mean there will be no flow where you want to be.

This ^^^. I’d be getting a proper chart and working it out. You’re potentially going very slowly on a kayak compared to the current and getting it wrong would not be good.

I use to use EasyTide. It’s pennies I think for a future prediction.

plan is to paddle up Loch Morar from Morar to Swordland and portage to East Loch Tarbet. Cross from Tarbet to Knoydart past the narrows at the head of Loch Nevis (don’t have the name of the upper loch to hand), but that’s large body of water and a narrow channel, and on to Inverie. Then to Mallaig next day crossing Loch Nevis again.

I’ve paddled a fair bit round there and tides aren’t particularly worrying as there’s always a shore away from the flow. Winds are a way bigger issue there and there’s no table for that.

http://www.ukho.gov.uk/easytide/EasyTide/index.aspx

…somewhere here I have a full set of UK charts on Memory Map – will see if I can find the disk and re-install it to check tidal streams.

Failing all the above offers, I will have a tidal stream atlas for the area on board. I am planning on heading through to the boat this weekend so if you can wait till then I may be able to give slack water in reference to Dover tides.

I used magicseaweed.com Get the tides from the two nearest points you will notice that the tides occur at differnt times. You can estimate what time the tide will turn by adjust the time. I.e. If you have a 30min difference between two point and you’re in the middle the time is going to be 15mins later than the earlier tide.

This isn’t an exact method. I used it when surfing and it works pretty well. But it won’t tell you about local currents. Especially rip currents. For that you really want to ask a local. Probably your best bet is to find a kayak forum and see if the locals are online.