The Incredible Hull Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 Hey Raiders, I went fishing last Friday night at Windang in the channel, I checked WillyWeather and it said high tide was at 10.11pm at Illawarra Bridge. So I expected the tide to turn easily by 12am midnight. It felt like high tide hit at 12am and the tide turned at 1am... WillyWeather automatically calculates the time difference when you are searching for the exact location, so I'm really confused as to why it was like 2 hours off... Was anyone else fishing on Friday night? If so, where were you fishing and what time did you notice the tide change? Cheers, Dave. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matyg Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 i have had the exact same problem at windang not sure it is just willy weather I check BOM and seabreeze too, they are all wrong for the bridge change just add two hours and it is close. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LungFai Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 Yeah the tide at Windang is a pain in the butt. For high Tide add on 15 minutes to the expected high. For Low add on 1 hour and 45 minutes. Which means an bloody long run out tide or a lengthy high tide....whichever way you wanna look at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Incredible Hull Posted February 3, 2014 Author Share Posted February 3, 2014 Yer thanks guys, I thought I was going crazy! I think I'll just add the 2 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krause Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 Any Lake entrance like that will be a little random. The tides on willy weather and other sites is based on tidal flow. But at sites like windang, this tidal force is balanced against an entire lake system, which will in general be quite full. The entire force of the body of water is fed through that small channel. This means that even when the tide at the coast is on the run in, the mean water level will be lower than that of the lake. Hence the lake will continue to empty, giving the illusion of a longer run out tide The same thing occurs in river systems, but is less noticeable because the drainage outlet is larger in comparison to the water body. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spaners Posted February 3, 2014 Share Posted February 3, 2014 Mate,try fishing Tuggerah Lakes,I don't think anyone can work it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Incredible Hull Posted February 3, 2014 Author Share Posted February 3, 2014 Awesome explanation Krause, makes perfect logical sense. I'm guessing Tuggerah would just be as random?! Cheers again guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rah Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 And here I was thinking there was something wrong with the APP when I was down there a few weeks ago. Thanks for asking the question and clearing it up for me too. Cheers Rah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allen M Posted February 5, 2014 Share Posted February 5, 2014 Forster breakwall is another good example Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arpie Posted February 6, 2014 Share Posted February 6, 2014 I noticed that the tides were 'off' a couple of years ago & was told that they had changed from using the people who have calculated it 'forever' and were now using a university to 'guestimate' it, with a computer program! The heights of the tide appear to be 'off' as well! The chart may say that it is a 1.5m tide, yet it is overlapping the jetties here - which would indicate a 2m tide! (tho this may also be the result of a big water event following torrential rain, as well?) These inaccuracies could actually cause accidents in 'shallow lakes' like Wallis - as people may go too fast in the wrong spot & run into the shallow sand bars that are abundant here! We get extreme 'low/lows' following the 'high/highs' following the King Tides in Jan & April - depending on where you fish, you could even be stranded if you go across a shallow area at high tide & can't get back across in the low! At Forster, you can use the Coastal Patrol Bar Cam to actually 'guestimate' the tide - check it out here: http://www.marine-rescue.com.au/bom/liveCam.html Put the cursor on the pic & on 'Scale' click the 'Down' until it shows the pond next to the breakwall. Right now (10am) it is showing pretty well 'dead low' as there is no water in the pond. Obviously, in about 6hrs, it should be full of water - or close to high! If you click on this link & choose South West Rocks - it appears to have a similar tide time to the Forster Breakwall/lake! http://www.bom.gov.au/australia/tides/ To get the actual 'beach tide', you would have to allow it being 'low' 2-3hrs earlier? A Casio Tide Watch is relatively cheap & is a great way to keep on top of the tides, once you have calibrated it to your area (tho it doesn't work way up north, with the massive tides they have there.) cheers Roberta Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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