What you should know about high and low tide
If you kite on the ocean, chances are you'll have to deal with tides. Tides can greatly impact your sessions—sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse. Knowing how to use tides to your advantage can turn an ordinary kitesurfing day into an epic one. On the other hand, if you don’t understand them, you might find yourself wondering why it’s taking forever to body drag back to your board after a crash, or why it suddenly feels impossible to stay upwind.
Not all spots have tides
First off, not every kitesurfing spot is influenced by tides. If you’re kiting in a lake or a spot without any direct connection to larger bodies of water, the water level might stay the same. However, if you’re hitting the ocean, you should definitely learn the basics of tides. This knowledge could be the key to making the most of your session—or at least avoiding a frustrating one.
Tides 101: The basics
We all know tides have something to do with the moon, but that's only half the story. Tides are actually caused by the gravitational pull between both the moon and the sun on the Earth's oceans. These external forces pull the water toward them, creating the tides we experience daily.
When the water level rises, it’s called flooding, and when it falls, it’s called ebbing. So, next time you see the water retreating, you can impress your friends by casually mentioning that it’s ebbing.
Types of tides: What’s the rhythm?
Tides aren’t the same everywhere. For instance, many spots in the Pacific Ocean have diurnal tides—meaning just one high tide and one low tide each day. Most places, however, experience semidiurnal tides, which means two highs and two lows per day. These can either be equal (semidiurnal) or unequal in size (mixed semidiurnal).
Luckily, tides are predictable, so you can plan your sessions accordingly. Tide tables and forecasts will give you the exact times and heights for each day, helping you pick the best time to hit the water.
Spring tide vs. neap tide
Spring Tide: When the sun and the moon are aligned, you get the highest high tides and the lowest low tides. This happens during both full and new moons.
Neap Tide: When the sun and moon are at right angles to each other, their gravitational forces compete, resulting in smaller differences between high and low tides. Neap tides occur halfway between the full and new moon.
High tide, low tide: What it means for your session
High tide can hide obstacles like rocks, reefs, or wrecks that are visible at low tide. If you’re new to a spot, ask the locals if there are any hidden dangers to watch out for. And don’t forget—high tide also means your launching and landing area might be a bit tighter, especially during a spring tide. Make sure you’re confident with your launching and landing skills in smaller spaces, or you might find yourself tangled in a tree.
The rule of twelfths
During a tide cycle, the water doesn’t rise or fall at a constant rate. The Rule of Twelfths is a handy way to estimate the height of the tide at any point in time. The first and last hours of the tide cycle see the least amount of water movement, while the third and fourth hours see the most.
There’s about six hours between the highest high tide and the lowest low tide. The tide’s speed increases to its maximum around the third or fourth hour. This is when you’ll feel the strongest effects of the water’s movement on your board. If the wind direction is against the direction of the tide, your ability to go upwind improves—so use that to your advantage!
Final thoughts
Become a tide-reading expert at your local spot, and you’ll be able to have some amazing sessions. Don’t be afraid to ask around—there’s always someone who knows more about the local conditions, whether you’re at your home spot or exploring somewhere new.
xox Berit