Can someone tell me which direction the current flows for ebb or flood tides off Fremantle? I can't find reference to it anywhere but know it is pretty simple.

Am interested if this has any effect on people's kiting experiences? Is is better to kite with current and wind in the same direction? I have been told that tide against wind makes for steeper chop.


Cheers

When I was sailing in the Whitsundays, the current would flow North or South depending on whether it was an Ebb tide or Flood tide (can't remember which one!). Hence it was better to navigate through channels at the turn of the tide when current flow was the lowest.

Is this a universal effect or just local??? The tide comes in at different times for different latitudes. For example low tide for today in Geraldton is 1319, Freo is 1415 and Albany is 1534. The water has to come from somewhere, so if it comes from due East or West, then is there a Coriolis effect?

I guess what I am asking is if you kite at some beach in Perth, what direction will the current flow if you are in a Ebb tide?

^^^^^^unless a sunami hits the east coast

Kite Republic

D_Meredith79 is correct.

you want the wind and tide going in opposite directions.
it make huge difference. for example
16-18 wind and tide going same way could mean that the effect would actually be 12-14knt.

16-18 wind and tide opposite could mean 20-24knts. effectively

we have to take this into concideration every time we kite at dolls point .
cheers

I think you'll find your confusing 2 completely different things Whatthe. "Ocean currents" and "Tidal flow" are 2 very different things. You will normally have a current that flows through an ocean in a steady direction, and WA is no different, it even has a name.

Heres a quote from http://www.srfme.org.au/news/mar04.htm :
"The Leeuwin originates near North West Cape in Western Australia and flows southward towards Cape Leeuwin before turning eastwards into the Great Australian Bight. From south-eastern South Australia it was known as the South Australian Current and flowed to north western Tasmania. It then turned south again down the Tasmanian west coast to become the Zeehan Current, reaching as far as South Cape - and in winter flows north as far as the Freycinet Peninsula."

Everyone is right though in regards to tidal flow. Same theory as crossing a bar:
Cross while the tide is flowing in the same direction as the wind = Smooth rolling waves
Cross while the tide is flowing against the wind = Rough as guts, steep chop