The first weekend we spent at the cottage I learned the first of many lessons about tides. Growing up far from any sign of salt water, I was not familiar with anything greater than an elementary level oceanography degree. I announced to the rest of the family that high tide would occur at noon, since it occured the previous day at noon. WRONG. I was shocked the when at noon it wasn’t high tide, in fact, far from it. I imagined tides would be like sunsets, close in time each day varying only slightly.

Still a bit mystified and lacking the internet connection to set myself straight I wandered into the island hardware store for some hammock hardware. While checking out I noted a business card on the counter. It contained the tide times for the next several months. I returned to the cottage enlightened and proudly hung my tide table on the refrigerator door.

At work the following week I explained this tide phenomenon to a coworker a bit more experienced in all things nautical. He laughed at the notion of my low tech little tide card. He explained the concept of tides to me and suggested a website. As it turns out, high tide in St James city is not the same time as high tide in Ft Myers beach. Not only do tide times change each day, but different locations have different times. He also explained that fishing in the canal will be better during times of changing tides. As water flows in or flows out I would have a better chance of catching fish rather than more stagnant times.

Now armed with my website, I could send the boys out to the seawall at the best times to increase their chances of pulling in the big one and could plan our boating excursions more preciously. As we learned early on, It’s never safe to go “exploring” during low tide.

Several weeks have elapsed and my sources continue to evolve. We never leave shore without an I Phone. Good for many uses, but my tide table app being my new favorite. I phone offers several popular tide apps. After some careful research, we decided to go with the Tide Graph by Brainware. It cost a whopping $1.99 and has a wealth of information.

Graphs and tables organize information in an easy to read manner. After downloading the app, you simply chose the closet tide station. The main graph shows whether the tide is rising or falling, the rate per hour, the high and low tide times for the day and has a chronological table at the bottom of the screen showing the fluctuations throughout the day. Colorful graphics make the information very user friendly. This app is very simple to understand. My nine year old has no problem navigating through the graphs.

Now I am always prepared and quick to impress the family with my up to the minute (more accurate) tide announcements. We know when to fish, when to hit the beach, and what position we need to leave the boat lift in when heading out for the day.