People have asked me how I knew the tides were going to be weak over the weekend of March 6-7th.
It is real simple, and let me take the mystery out for you.
The general rule is the NEW moon and the FULL moon are "spring tides" which means the Earth bulges and the water level is higher [causes 3 degree tilt]. When more water comes into the river, the water creates a force on it's exit [strong ripping current]. THIS is a great thing for shrimp to get them moving.
Several of us went out on March 6th and 7th, and the current was weak. Yes. WHY????
The reason is the last quarter moon phase was on the 7th this weekend, and the First Quarter moon coming on 23rd cancel out those forces that surge water into the river system leaving us with the weakest of tides. So I knew going out on the 7th was going to be a weak current and it did NOT disappoint. My frame net would not even open. We always hope for a little wind to compensate for the lack of current. With a weak tide, I had to find some compensation for this and chose to go South to CM 9 and 9a in a position where I knew some shrimp would move off those wide open flats. The larger shrimp are able to locomote themselves quite well in weak current. So, on a night like this...it is still worth going but you are not going for quantity, you are going for larger quality ones [troop stragglers]. The large populous of smalls tend to bury up on weak tides. So, you get more mediums during a weak tide if your near the mouth of the flats. This is strictly from my own experiences.
So, if you go out during any Quarter moon, expect a weak current which does NOT motivate them to run. The next moon event coming is on the 15th, it is the ebb tide flood tide which producs a nice strong out going current [full moon and new moon produce the same strong strength of current]. So a few days before and after a full/new moon should be great days if we decided to go shrimping based on moon events only. The week of the 23rd of March, is going to be weak current times because of the FIRST QUARTER moon, not the best time to shrimp in unless we have a strong South wind. We have a 30th of March FULL moon to enjoy, basically 3 days before and about 2 days after a NEW/FULL moon work out just fine!
With this knowledge, you can plan your sick days better & INCREASE YOUR PULLS BY GOING ON A BETTER MOON TIME OF MONTH!
Always go shrimping when you can, it is NOT always about moons, winds, water temps, salinity issues. But, if you want to be selective and have to plan in advance..check the tide charts for the tide changes and see if the times are do-able for you, and then go right to the moon phase around that day. Pray it is a few days before or after a NEW or FULL MOON. My tide charts for you are in the tide forum off the main menu, I NOTE the moon quarter days and NEW/FULL moons.
Ahhh, that is why she notes them for us ...
Just a little intel' from me to you.
RECAP FOR MARCH:
LAST Quarter ---------- March 7th, very weak outgoing current
NEW MOON ---------- March 15th, very strong nice outgoing current, few days before and couple days after
FIRST QUARTER ----- March 23rd, very weak outgoing current
FULL MOON --------- March 30th, very strong outgoing current, few days before and couple days after.
BTW, Shrimp are more spooked in slow current, they seem to see us better to. They can feel the water you push towards them on the dip. The larger ones tend to be the pinkies, and if you notice, they have long-long-long antennae. They feel everything! *BAM* their gone and we all know this to well, " ...'Zilla left the house"
It is real simple, and let me take the mystery out for you.
The general rule is the NEW moon and the FULL moon are "spring tides" which means the Earth bulges and the water level is higher [causes 3 degree tilt]. When more water comes into the river, the water creates a force on it's exit [strong ripping current]. THIS is a great thing for shrimp to get them moving.
Several of us went out on March 6th and 7th, and the current was weak. Yes. WHY????
The reason is the last quarter moon phase was on the 7th this weekend, and the First Quarter moon coming on 23rd cancel out those forces that surge water into the river system leaving us with the weakest of tides. So I knew going out on the 7th was going to be a weak current and it did NOT disappoint. My frame net would not even open. We always hope for a little wind to compensate for the lack of current. With a weak tide, I had to find some compensation for this and chose to go South to CM 9 and 9a in a position where I knew some shrimp would move off those wide open flats. The larger shrimp are able to locomote themselves quite well in weak current. So, on a night like this...it is still worth going but you are not going for quantity, you are going for larger quality ones [troop stragglers]. The large populous of smalls tend to bury up on weak tides. So, you get more mediums during a weak tide if your near the mouth of the flats. This is strictly from my own experiences.
So, if you go out during any Quarter moon, expect a weak current which does NOT motivate them to run. The next moon event coming is on the 15th, it is the ebb tide flood tide which producs a nice strong out going current [full moon and new moon produce the same strong strength of current]. So a few days before and after a full/new moon should be great days if we decided to go shrimping based on moon events only. The week of the 23rd of March, is going to be weak current times because of the FIRST QUARTER moon, not the best time to shrimp in unless we have a strong South wind. We have a 30th of March FULL moon to enjoy, basically 3 days before and about 2 days after a NEW/FULL moon work out just fine!
With this knowledge, you can plan your sick days better & INCREASE YOUR PULLS BY GOING ON A BETTER MOON TIME OF MONTH!
Always go shrimping when you can, it is NOT always about moons, winds, water temps, salinity issues. But, if you want to be selective and have to plan in advance..check the tide charts for the tide changes and see if the times are do-able for you, and then go right to the moon phase around that day. Pray it is a few days before or after a NEW or FULL MOON. My tide charts for you are in the tide forum off the main menu, I NOTE the moon quarter days and NEW/FULL moons.
Ahhh, that is why she notes them for us ...
Just a little intel' from me to you.
RECAP FOR MARCH:
LAST Quarter ---------- March 7th, very weak outgoing current
NEW MOON ---------- March 15th, very strong nice outgoing current, few days before and couple days after
FIRST QUARTER ----- March 23rd, very weak outgoing current
FULL MOON --------- March 30th, very strong outgoing current, few days before and couple days after.
BTW, Shrimp are more spooked in slow current, they seem to see us better to. They can feel the water you push towards them on the dip. The larger ones tend to be the pinkies, and if you notice, they have long-long-long antennae. They feel everything! *BAM* their gone and we all know this to well, " ...'Zilla left the house"
