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High Tide When?.....A Tide Watch
Comparison
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A few months
ago, while preparing for my annual Martha's
Vineyard trip, I contemplated purchasing a
tide watch. I knew these watches
existed, but until I studied them, my
knowledge was limited to a cursory glimpse
from a catalog. Like many fishermen,
I'd print tide tables from the Internet or
grabbed a table from a local shop, usually
opting to fish two hours prior to high tide
to an hour or so after high tide. It
wasn't until I gave it more thought with
safety in mind that I warmed-up to the idea
of spending more money for another watch.
.
In the past,
tables I'd printed or picked-up would
inevitably become lost, either in the
shuffle of the place I was staying or tucked
away, hidden in my vehicle. Either
way, far from me when I needed it.
After all, you just need a general idea of
when high tide is right? You can just
watch the tide come-in? As they say,
this is all fine and dandy, but try it when
it's pitch black, or when you've been
fishing around the clock for several days
and the tides begin to swim together.
And, practicality isn't digging a tide table
from underneath your chest pack and from the
inside pocket of your Gore-tex jacket at
2:00 am. Knowing when high tide is,
the tide's height and its direction can
improve your fishing odds, not to mention,
save your life.
.
Imagine this,
you own a tide watch with a graphical
display of the tide's height. You fish
a particular stretch of beach during the day
and come to realize that a certain spot
produces time and time again but becomes
treacherous at some point. You check
your watch and benchmark the tide's height
and return the following evening to fish the
same spot safely. There's no question
of whether you are putting yourself at risk.
There's no question of, "is it going to get
worse?" You know the outcome and
wisely put yourself out of harms way.
.
Tide watches can
also aid you in driving to your favorite
spots. If you drive the beach looking
for holes, sloughs and troughs, then you
know certain spots are only accessible at
low tide. The convenience of a wrist
tide table helps immensely in getting you
and your vehicle on and off the sand safely.
.
|
Nixon |
Casio |
Rip Curl |
Tide Shark |
Web
Site |
nixonnow.com |
casio.com |
ripcurl.com |
freestyleusa.com |
Web
Site Navigability |
Good |
Poor |
Good |
Good |
Model |
The
Lodown |
G-Shock Tide Surf GL 150 |
ATS
Digital Tidewatch |
Shark Tide |
Online Manual |
Yes |
No |
No |
Yes |
Water Resistant |
100
meters |
200
meters |
200
meters |
100
meters |
Pre-programmed Tide Charts |
145
Beaches World wide |
10
Locations |
0 |
128
Beaches World wide |
No.
of Personal Tides able to set |
1 |
Unknown |
2 |
1 |
Tell
Tide Direction |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Tell
Tide Height |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Tide
Chart Predicted out to |
10
years |
2039 |
99
years |
15
years |
Calendar |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes,
100 year calendar |
Yes |
Moon
Phase |
No |
Yes |
Yes,
100 year moon phase |
No |
Sunrise/sunset |
No |
Yes |
No |
No |
Time |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
24
Hour Time |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Dual
Time |
Yes |
Unknown |
Yes |
Yes |
Alarm |
Yes |
Yes,
3 alarms |
Yes |
Yes,
4 alarms |
Countdown Time |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
Chronograph |
Yes |
Unknown |
Yes |
Yes |
Light |
Yes |
Yes,
Electro
luminescent |
Yes,
Day Glow
Electro luminescent |
Yes,
Electro
luminescent |
Band |
Polyurethane |
Polyurethane |
Polyurethane,
Stainless steel or cloth |
Polyurethane |
Color |
Black, Blue, Green, Grey |
Black, Blue |
Stainless Steel,
Black, Blue |
Black, Silver |
Cost |
~
$120 |
~
$90 |
$90
for cloth or polyurethane
$160
for SS |
~
$100 |
.
Personal
Choice:
.
Rip Curl's
Stainless Steel ATS Digital Oceantides watch
was my choice. I chose this watch for
the following reasons:
.
1. The stainless
steel provides a classic look that fits in
well with the workplace environment.
.
2. Two
programmable tides, the most programmable of
any of the watches.
.
3. Ease of
reading. The watch provides a large
easy to read and easy to understand tide
chart.
..
Check Rip Curl's Oceantide watch out on Amazon
.
This purchase
gets my highest recommendation. The
watch has a clean look, is easy to use and
performs as expected. This watch is
now part of my elite list of products I've
discovered through the course of my life
that leave me feeling as if I should buy a
second as a backup. It's a feeling
that this product is perfect and could never
be improved upon, even with an updated
model.
.
Finally, how
cool is it to have a daily tide chart of
Dogfish Bar and The Gut on your wrist?
.
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