By DANA TIMS/YachatsNews
Some of the most spectacular tides of the year return to the central Oregon coast this week, but they come with a warning from experts to maintain a healthy distance when viewing.
This season’s first king tides will take place just after Thanksgiving this week – Saturday through Monday, Nov. 25-27. This month’s king tides are one to two feet higher than normal high tides.
In the Yachats area, the highest tides begin about 9:47 a.m. Saturday and reach 11.2 feet; occur about 10:26 a.m. Sunday at 11.4 feet, and at 11:03 a.m. Monday also at 11.3 feet. All the high tides are followed by minus tides of at least one foot.
The tide forecast by NOAA are considerably less — ranging from high tides of 8.53 feet to 8.71 feet to low tides not quite reaching minus one foot this weekend.
Just like their far smaller “sneaker wave” cousins, the king tides can pack deadly consequences. And coastal groups are putting out more warnings as the growing interest in the high tides bring more visitors to the coast, especially around holidays.
“Viewing the highest of the high tides of the year is best done from higher up, where you can see the reach of the flooding,” said Jesse Jones, program manager at CoastWatch. “Viewing from higher up is also the safest way to watch.”
Safe viewing from an accessible beach can take place during the minus tides that always accompany king tides, according to the Oregon King Tide Project, which is run jointly by CoastWatch and the Oregon Coastal Management Program.
Minus tides occur when the tides pull far away from shore, exposing areas that are normally submerged during regular tidal periods.
The project’s aim, Jones said, is “educating the public to learn from the tides by watching and documenting how far they move water over shore and onto land.”
She said that’s important because king tides are a major contributor to Oregon’s eroding coastline.
“Wave power increases as water volume increases,” Jones said. “The warmer our oceans get, and they are getting warmer, the more volume there is.”
Role of the moon
“King tides” is a nonscientific term that simply refers to the highest tides of the year, which take place when the moon is new or full, and is at its closest to the Earth, thus increasing lunar gravitational pull, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association.
They occur when the Earth, moon and the sun are all aligned, creating an especially strong gravitational pull.
Following this week’s tides, subsequent king tides will take place Dec. 13-15; Jan. 11-13; and, Feb. 8-10.
Areas considered prime for safe viewing include Yachats State Park, the Cape Perpetua area just south of Yachats and the cliffs at Shore Acres State Park near Coos Bay.
Coastal visitors can play their own role in helping document both the king tides and the intense scouring they produce by taking part in a king tides photo contest for the 2023-2024 winter season. The contest is organized by the Oregon Coast Visitors Association and Oregon Sea Grant.
Participants may be asked, for instance, to choose features such as impeded beach accesses, cliff and bluff erosion or the impact on infrastructure.
“But don’t wait until the king tides to take photos,” according to the Oregon King Tides Project website, “as shots from the same location over time are also valuable, making it easy for scientists to analyze the direct impact of these events.”
- Dana Tims is an Oregon freelance writer who contributes regularly to YachatsNews.com. He can be reached at DanaTims24@gmail.com