Watch for King Tides this Christmas!

Actual water levels will be strongly affected by winds. In Fisherman Bay, a southwesterly flow of 20-30 mph over Christmas could add a foot to the astronomical high tide.

Tides will again reach +9 feet or greater on January 21, 22, and 23, also a little after sunrise.

The highest winter tides we have recorded since 2010 were in the range of +10 to +11 feet in Fisherman Bay, and were driven by southwesterly winds to levels 1-2 feet above predicted tide heights. These tides flooded most of Fisherman Bay Spit and Weeks Wetland, and also covered the lawns of some homes.

Kwiaht has been studying the effects of wind on tidal flooding in Fisherman Bay and elsewhere around Lopez Island. We would welcome your photos of Christmas tides to help us benchmark annual changes in flooding and erosion patterns on Lopez.

Send your high-tide photos to: info@kwiaht.org and we will post the best of them here!