Low and High Tides

By Bobbi

For those of you who don’t have much experience with being around an ocean, today’s story is for you.

I remember way back in grade school learning a little about tides during Science class. The moon has such a pull on the ocean that it causes high tides at its strongest and low tides at its weakest points. This occurs in about a twelve-hour cycle. As most of us know, learning something in the classroom is one thing, but having real-life experience with that same subject is quite another.

Spending time at the beach is a wonderful way to find out about the ocean, especially if you can stay at a hotel overnight. This would give you time to walk out on the beach at both low and high tide levels. During low tide, there is more sand to play around on, sometimes as much as 20+ feet. Likewise, during high tide that same sandy beach is nearly covered in water.

A person used to be able to drive on any of the beaches here. Daytona is especially famous for having hosted automobile races on its shores long before NASCAR got its start. I have heard many tales of people parking their cars on the beach and leaving them to explore the area, only to come back and find them floating away due to the tide coming in. My husband recalls seeing tourists frantically trying to grab suitcases and other belongings out of trunks and back seats in an effort to salvage something. Maybe this is one reason why parking is no longer allowed on most beaches. That, plus knowing people have gotten run over by careless drivers would be a deterrent.

Personally, I’ve almost lost a lawn chair and blanket to the sea. I guess lounging at the beach is just so relaxing to most people it’s easy to let your guard down.