Photographer David Rosen was out on Thursday morning, Nov. 29 and caught the 11.8 high tide on the Alki Beach Promenade at 6:17am.
This is actually low compared to the King Tide that will happen Dec. 15 also in the early morning hours.
King Tides which typically occur in December and January are higher than normal tides caused by increased gravitational pull when the sun and moon align.
That tide should be much higher with the level varying depending on location.
In the Seattle area it will be a 13 foot high tide. Here's a tide table we like:
http://www.dairiki.org/tides/monthly.php/sea
Here's the State of Washington's page about the phenomena http://www.ecy.wa.gov/climatechange/ipa_hightide.htm
That page carries the information about the King Tide Initiative, an effort to capture a photographic record of the tide and its effects.
It states:
"The Washington Department of Ecology is inviting residents and visitors to grab their cameras and head to the beaches to take photos of Washington’s king tides. Documenting how very high tides affect the natural environment and our coastal infrastructure will help us visualize what sea level rise might look like in the future.
The Washington King Tide Photo Initiative
The Washington King Tide Photo Initiative is in its third year. Its purpose is to:
Involve citizens in documenting high winter tides; and
Gather photos that display potential impacts of rising water levels on coastal infrastructure along Washington’s shorelines and estuaries.
The King Tides Photo Initiative began in Australia in January 2009. In 2010, Washington and British Columbia began collecting king tide photos and in 2011 they were joined by Oregon and California. The Washington King Tide Photo Initiative is now part of a coordinated effort between British Columbia, Washington, California and Oregon. Organizations and governments around the country are holding photo initiatives of their own.
In 2010 and 2011, Washington’s King Tides Photo Initiative gathered over 400 photos. You can see the photos at the Washington King Tides Photo Initiative’s Flickr Group.
