Tides in the Cape Fear Region
If you’re not sure how tides work, see my previous post about TIDES for a good primer on the “why” of tides. In this post we’ll go into some local details, which is important to know about, as tidal patterns vary from place to place. If there were no land for the tide “wave” to interact with, tides would be pretty much the same across the globe. But it would be boring, and with no land, we wouldn’t be here to read about tides.
So in North Carolina the tidal behavior is a mixed semidiurnal tide. In layman’s terms this means there are generally 2 full tidal cycles per day, but the range (height) of the tides are not the same. So in one day, you’ll see a “High high” and a “Low high” about 12 hours and 25 minutes apart.
For kayakers in NC waters, especially in marshes, it’s always important to know which way the tide is flowing, when it will turn, and how low it will get at low tide. (Nobody really gets stranded at high tide!)
So the first important factor is RANGE. This is the total distance between high and low tide. The tidal range averages 4-6 feet in most of Southeastern North Carolina. The difference in range is due to the lunar cycle which creates a higher tidal range during full and new moons and a smaller range during quarter moons. These are referred to, respectively, as spring and neap tides. I’m not going to get all astronomical here, but spring and neap tides alternate by about a week. If you’re interested in learning more about them, Google is your friend and there are a lot of sources out there that explain it better than I can!
What should a kayaker know about tidal range? Well, if the tide is falling, your main concern should be: “How much will it continue to fall, and am I in an area where I can’t float my boat when it falls?”
If you’re not sure what will happen at low tide in a given area, your best bet is to plan your voyage during a rising tide. If you pass a shallow area during a rising tide, it will be deeper on your return as long as the tide is still rising.
If you can’t time your trip for a rising tide, be sure to stay in water that’s deeper than the expected tidal range that day. If it’s high tide and the range is 4.5 ft, any areas less than 4.5 feet will be sand, mud or oyster bars at low tide. Sand bars can be dealt with by dragging your boat across until you hit deeper water, but mud and oysters present bigger problems, so be super cautious if the bottom isn’t “walkable” at low tide.
The next thing to be aware of is TIDAL FLOW. All that water moving into the marsh during high tide has to flow from somewhere else, generally an inlet. The tidal flow will be based on the range that day. Bigger range (spring tides) means more water moving faster than during a neap tide. The tidal current starts slowly during the first hour after high or low tide, increases in velocity until the 3rd hour, then slows down for the last 2 hours before reversing and coming back in.
If the waterway you’re paddling in is very wide, you may not notice much of a current. If it’s a narrow passage, the current can be quite fast as the water is concentrated into a small area.
You can use tidal flow to your advantage and paddle “downstream” at the beginning of your trip, and after the tide turns, ride the current back to your starting destination.
The best way to find out about how the tides and currents will affect your trip in a new area is to ASK! Locals can tell you their experiences with tides, as everyone has a “boy did I screw up” story about tides. Fortunately for me my “worst” tidal mishap was having to drag my canoe through 300m of marsh grass to get to the water rather than wait 8 hours for the next tide. But that was back before cell phones and the ability to have a tide app in your pocket at all times.
If you have any questions that haven’t been answered here, contact Masonboro Paddle Company and we’ll do our best to give you the best information for the dates you want to paddle. Our goal is to get you out on the water!
If you want to do a guided "ride the tide" adventure, we've got that! We'll do all the trip planning and tide table readings. You just have to show up and enjoy the 2-way, downstream paddle!
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