Monday, January 23, 2017

Very High Tide

Which did not happen!
I should have posted this more than a week ago but I have been hibernating! - which for a Queenslander has meant staying out of the extreme heat! Here in the SE of the state the temperatures went up to 38 degrees C (about 100F)and stayed up there for more than 4 days. Then we had a respite when the temperature fell a couple of degrees - and now it is going up again but not quite so high - only 35 or 36. Of course it could be worse but with high humidity as well it is not comfortable so I have been stating inside with the air-con going!
Now about that very high tide. Every New Year there are some every high tides. Often the news media will make quite a story out of them because they can be very eye catching at times. However, just as frequently, the extreme tides just don't happen. The Bureau of Meteorology always gives predicted tide heights - but these are also not always accurate. I understand about monthly tide heights but these extreme tides are a bit more difficult and can be changed by systems of high or low pressure lying off the coast and other systems that don't always show up on the charts I consult. Each year I go out to take photos - sometimes it is worth it and other times it is a waste of time! This year was one of those wastes!  Here is the photo from that place at Crab Creek that I usually photograph and the water is no where near the concrete walkway.

 I posted about it back in 2013 Here and also showed a series of high tides taken from the same place. Anyway it was a beautiful summer day and there were lots of people out and enjoying the sunshine and the water. This photo is at the Mullens Picnic place and
here is the water just coming over on to the sand
and also flooding the track down to the boat launch

I thought I could just go out in my back yard to get some bird photos but I guess the birds aren't silly and it has been too hot for anything - including birds - to be out if they don't have to!The only birds I could find down close enough to photograph were some Masked Lapwings.
These are not my favorite birds! They can be very aggressive and want to take over the yard for their own purposes and chase me right out.  When I had my little dog she loved them! She knew they were the one kind of bird I didn't mind her chasing and she took full advantage of it!
For more scenery  from around the world visit Our World Tuesday
and for more birds visit Wild Bird Wednesday.

15 comments:

  1. Hi Mick, hope you continue to keep cool - that's far too hot! Those high tides can be elusive all right. Enjoyed your photos.
    Those Lapwings certainly can be cranky customers... they lay their eggs in the most stupid places don't they! I loved how your little dog knew she was allowed to chase them ;D) Cheers now.

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  2. Much like the warnings of a possible tidal surge we had here. Fortunately strong winds were at their worst between high tides. We even had the army erecting temporary defences just in case. Better safe than sorry anyway. Coastal flooding is bad for those involved, even worse in Winter.
    The highest temperature in the past here has been around 31C - more than enough for me!

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  3. Oh ~ how lovely ~ warm weather photos ~ thanks ~ New England is in the middle of a N'orEster ~ wind and rain ~ thanks for your excellent photos ~ ^_^

    Wishing you a peaceful and happy week ~ ^_^

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  4. That IS a high tide! Nice shots.

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  5. That's interesting about your tides. Ours are also very variable but the height almost always exectly as predicted unless there is a strong wind to make it higher. I'd love some of that warmth and sunshine, maybe not a hundred degrees but eighty or so would be lovely right now.

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  6. The beach area looks inviting from afar since we can't feel that heat and humidity (things I understand somewhat). So I wouldn't say your photo excursion was exactly a waste. But it was really interesting to compare this high tide to the earlier one you linked to. Actually no comparison! The reason for those tides was something I hadn't heard before.... I learned something new even before breakfast! That lapwing is prettier than he should be given their aggressive personality!

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  7. Lovely images butit is not my favourit bird either

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  8. I know what you mean about the heat. It 16 degrees already today :-)

    Barometric pressure effects the tide. If you take 1013 Hectopascals / Millibars as standard pressure then each hectopascal above or below that with reduce or increase tide level by one cm. So if you hide high pressure of 1043 hectopascals then the tide would be about 30cm lower than expected.

    Plenty of Lapwings down here if you want a few more :-)

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  9. Wow! that is devastating. Take care.

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  10. yep it's been hot as here too, we've had a great summer so far.

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  11. Hello, it does sound hot there. I do not like the high humidity. I learned something new about the tides today, thanks. Love the masked lapwing, it is beautiful. Enjoy your day!

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  12. I thought the Lapwing looked cool but I can understand you don´t appreciate them. :)
    I always love to visit shores with tides as we con´t have much of it up here :)

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  13. Sounds like you're sweltering while we're freezing. I just walked around a frozen lake.

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  14. We call the Lapwings "birds of stress" because of the way they panic at the slightest threat!

    Sorry about slow reply - I have been in New Zealand and blogging has taken a bit of a back seat.

    Cheers - Stewart M - Melbourne

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  15. I'm not a lover of Lapwings either, but these shots are great!

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