Seymour Narrows question

[ravenjls]

Does anyone know if The NCL Sun goes thru Seymour Narrows on their NB?

 

If so, high tide is at 9:28 (slack 10:40) will the Sun make it at around this time or would it be more likely at low tide around the 2 am low tide.

 

2015-06-22 Mon 9:35 PM PDT Sunset

2015-06-22 Mon 10:40 PM PDT -0.0 knots Slack, Ebb Begins

2015-06-23 Tue 2:03 AM PDT -8.8 knots Max Ebb

2015-06-23 Tue 5:11 AM PDT Sunrise

2015-06-23 Tue 5:29 AM PDT 0.0 knots Slack, Flood Begins

[Kamloops50]

Does anyone know if The NCL Sun goes thru Seymour Narrows on their NB?

 

If so, high tide is at 9:28 (slack 10:40) will the Sun make it at around this time or would it be more likely at low tide around the 2 am low tide.

 

2015-06-22 Mon 9:35 PM PDT Sunset

2015-06-22 Mon 10:40 PM PDT -0.0 knots Slack, Ebb Begins

2015-06-23 Tue 2:03 AM PDT -8.8 knots Max Ebb

2015-06-23 Tue 5:11 AM PDT Sunrise

2015-06-23 Tue 5:29 AM PDT 0.0 knots Slack, Flood Begins

 

They probably will try for the high tide at 2 AM. The earliest we every went thru was 11:30 northbound this last May.

[Budget Queen]

You can ask at the information desk, also should be able to tell where you are by the ship map on the tv.

[Putterdude]

Does anyone know if The NCL Sun goes thru Seymour Narrows on their NB?

 

If so, high tide is at 9:28 (slack 10:40) will the Sun make it at around this time or would it be more likely at low tide around the 2 am low tide.

 

 

Yes it will.

 

I had promised myself that I wouldn't start looking at tide and current charts again but you have received some incorrect information based on someone's cruise in May that has absolutely no bearing on what is going on June 22nd. On that date the high tide in the narrows is 13.5 feet at 21:28 and the current will be at or just under 2 knots...therefore you will enter the narrows just before or just after 21:30....which is absolutely a perfect for current, tide and daylight on one of the longest days of the year. As the Narrows are about 90 miles from Vancouver your captain will be anxious to leave Vancouver on time.

 

Cruise ships and indeed all vessels prefer to transit the Narrows on a high slack tide or at least have the current on the bow. With currents reaching 16 knots in the Narrows there is the concern of loosing steerage if the current is on the stern.

 

Be sure and wave as you sail pass my front door, I am about an hour after you pass under the Lions Gate Bridge and am on the starboard side....I'll be watching for you.

[ravenjls]

Thanks so much for doing the calculation! NCL will probably cut me off from the UBP when they see me waving and screaming "Thank you Putterdude" by the upper deck railing an hr after the Lions Gate bridge! haha

 

How wonderful it must be, to be able to see the beautiful screnery right outside your front door and watch the ships sail by!

[bonvoyagie]

On her last SB trip she went through in early evening and it was still very light (I watched the bridge cam). The Disney Wonder was chasing her and a HAL and Celebrity ship were waiting to go the other way. I did not check the tide chart - I know my bad.

 

I have watched ships (on the tracking websites) go like crazy just prior to that area - both NB and SB - then slow way down to get back on schedule.:D

[Putterdude]

On her last SB trip she went through in early evening and it was still very light (I watched the bridge cam). The Disney Wonder was chasing her and a HAL and Celebrity ship were waiting to go the other way. I did not check the tide chart - I know my bad.

 

I have watched ships (on the tracking websites) go like crazy just prior to that area - both NB and SB - then slow way down to get back on schedule.:D

 

Then on Monday we watched the Wonder and the Sun race north, the Wonder overtook the Sun again. We call it "cruise ship races" as they race to meet the optimal tide and current in the Narrows; then on other days they will just float by as there is no point in rushing to the Narrows. It's our summer sport.:)

[LEtue]

Then on Monday we watched the Wonder and the Sun race north, the Wonder overtook the Sun again. We call it "cruise ship races" as they race to meet the optimal tide and current in the Narrows; then on other days they will just float by as there is no point in rushing to the Narrows. It's our summer sport.:)

 

LOL, that is awesome! It must be wonderful to watch them all sailing by :D

[Mercruiser]

We will be on Celebrity Millennium on the Friday June 19 Northbound cruise with a 4:30 p.m. departure. My question for the Seymour Narrows watchers, will Millie's captain want to transit Seymour Narrows during the 8:37 p.m. slack tide?

 

Making the 90 miles in 4 hours would require a speedy run (22.5 mph). I know from my Panama Canal cruise GPS tracks that Millie can cruise all day long at 22 mph in open water. That's what she did along the Baja Penninsula between Cabo and San Diego. But I don't know if it's feasible to average that speed all the way from Vancouver to the Narrows given the traffic and confined areas.

Here is the tide/current table for the day.

Seymour Narrows, British Columbia Current 50.1333° N, 125.3500° W

2015-06-19 Fri 1:49 PM PDT 0.0 knots Slack, Flood Begins

2015-06-19 Fri 5:06 PM PDT 12.6 knots Max Flood

2015-06-19 Fri 7:08 PM PDT 13.9 feet High Tide

2015-06-19 Fri 8:37 PM PDT -0.0 knots Slack, Ebb Begins

2015-06-19 Fri 11:41 PM PDT 9.1 feet Low Tide

2015-06-19 Fri 11:46 PM PDT -11.3 knots Max Ebb

2015-06-20 Sat 3:01 AM PDT 0.0 knots Slack, Flood Begins

2015-06-20 Sat 5:37 AM PDT 7.1 knots Max Flood

2015-06-20 Sat 8:28 AM PDT -0.0 knots Slack, Ebb Begins

Edited June 13, 2015 by Mercruiser

[Mercruiser]

Interesting. The http://www.tides.gc.ca web site shows slack tide an hour earlier than the other web site I was using. But it also says the Timezone is PST (Z+8). We west coaster people know local DST is GMT - 7. Looks like a Daylight Savings Time issue. There is no way Millie could make the Narrows 3 hours after sailaway. That would require an average 30 mph. If only the SS United States was still sailing. She could make 40 mph.

 

I'm still confused if slack tide is at 7:37 p.m. or 8:37 p.m. I guess I'll know when we get there. Millie will be going really fast or really slow, depending on the answer.

 

Source: http://www.tides.gc.ca/eng/data/table/2015/curr_ref/5000#s4

 

2015 Current Tables

Timezone: PST (Z+8)

 

June 2015

Turns Maximum Day Time Time Knots

19 12:49 PM 4:07 PM 12.6

19 7:37 PM 10:46 PM -11.3

20 2:02 AM 4:38 AM 7.0

Edited June 13, 2015 by Mercruiser

[Putterdude]

I am seeing an ebb current at between 4 to 6 knots in the 9 to 9:30 time frame, I think the Millie will transit the Narrows at that time, however I am not the captain whose officers do these calculations on an daily basis and have very up to date computer information available to them.

[Kamloops50]

I think that 9 to 9:30 PM would be to early. Doing 90 miles in 4 fours is not enough time.

Tide tables usually don't take in consideration daylight savings changes. All tides are based on standard time .

weather forecasts are also based on zulu time not local time.

[Putterdude]

hmmm, let's see ship leaves Vancouver at 4:30 arrives Seymour Narrows at 9:30 that is 5 hrs not 4 hrs. The distance travelled approximately 90 miles which means the vessel needs to travel at 18.5 mph, or 16.1 knots....easy peaze, BC ferries between Horseshoe Bay and Nanaimo travel at 19 knots. Even allow for the lower speed departing Burrard Inlet 5 hrs is a ton of time. Oh, and the predictions I use are corrected for DST.