Things to Know about Visting Tide Pools

Tidepooling is a unique way to have fun on the coast. To have a truly unforgettable tidepooling experience it does require some preparation, though. Here are some simple and easy things to know about visiting tide pools.

1. Check the tide schedule

The most important thing to remember when tidepooling is to check the tide schedule. Different bays and beaches in the same geographic region sometimes have slightly different tide schedules so be sure you check the most relevant and precise area. Looking at the schedule you’ll usually see graphs that show the times of day when the tide will be at its lowest and highest measured in feet. For the vast majority of days there are two points of high tide and low tide during a 24 hour cycle. One good thing about the tides is they are extremely predictable, so you can plan your visits way in advance.

Here’s a sample of a tide chart calendar for Carmel Cove, California.

The absolute best time to go tidepooling is during a negative tide (when the calendar shows a negative number for low tide). But you don’t have to catch a true negative tide; you can just go when the tide is low. Keep in mind that in some locations, like Northern California, negative tides won’t happen in most of the summer months. 

2. Research specific details about the terrain

Try to find detailed reviews of the tide pools you are going to and see what kind of terrain you’ll be walking on because that’ll allow you to bring the proper shoes, pants, etc. One important thing you want to find out is if you’ll need to get wet to tide pool. I’ve been to tide pools where the only way you’d be able to explore them is to get knee deep in salt water and others where I didn’t need to get wet at all. You want to make sure you are prepared for whatever area you are headed to.

Another very important reason to research is that a lot of parks do not allow you to pick up the animals or require you to maintain a certain distance from other wildlife like seals. The last thing you want is a fat $200 fine to remember your tide pool experience by so do plenty of research.

3. Do you need shoes to tide pool?

I’ve had my best success wearing old tennis shoes to tide pools. I’ve seen others wear Crocs, no shoes, and water shoes. I definitely do NOT recommend going barefoot. There are simply too many ways (barnacles, rocks, shells, etc.) to get cut up on your feet. I’ve done tide-pooling bare foot before and my feet were so raw after a couple of hours I swore to never do it again. Sandals would be better than nothing, but you’ll likely need something like an old pair of closed-toe tennis shoes to adequately protect your feet.

4. Don’t be destructive

Do your best not to destroy the creatures in the tide pool and try to fight the urge to pick up everything you see. Make sure you don’t step on rocks covered in algae. For one, it will be slippery and secondly you might end up killing something underneath the algae.

Remember, tide pools — like many other destinations worth visiting — are a great place to apply common sense. If something looks like it could sting you, it probably can. If something feels like you’ll need a crow bar to pry it from a rock, you probably just need to leave it alone. Now, if you really want to pick up something like a sea star then try to find one that is not completely attached to a rock and can easily be removed. And after you pick anything up be sure to put it back exactly where you found it.

The photo below is a great example of a sear star that can be removed easily.

5. Get wet (if you need to)

You don’t always have to get wet to have a good time tide-pooling but I like to. If you roll up your pants or shorts and venture into knee-deep waters it is often much easier to navigate the rocky terrain of tide-pools and you don’t have to worry about waves splashing your clothing. But like I said, it depends on the terrain of the tide-pool. You may not even have to get your socks wet at certain locations. That means you need to think ahead and leave your electronics in the car, or better yet find a waterproof case for your phone for some awesome photos.

6. Rogue waves

Do your absolute best to not turn your back on the ocean. Rogue waves are powerful waves that unexpectedly hit the beach with a magnitude much stronger than the preceding waves. They’ll roll in with little or no warning and can sometimes wash anything off the rocks they hit. They can be deadly to children or even animals, so you absolutely must be on the lookout for them. Also, they can ruin your camera if you are not careful so you must remain alert at all times.

If you are like me, sometimes you’ll have to turn your back to the ocean to get a shot you like. In that case, just focus on listening to the ocean. Usually, you can hear a rogue wave coming (hint: it’s loud) with enough time to quickly get to higher ground. But try to rely on your sight as much as possible.

7. Find a print-out guide to tide pools

Some tide pool areas will have websites where you can print off a PDF with pictures and info of all the living organisms in those tide pools. Others won’t but you can do a quick google search and find a generic print-out. Why do I say do this? It makes the experience more interesting when you can identify these creatures. Sure, sear stars and sea anemones are easy to point out, but there will be a lot of strange little alien creatures you will not recognize. Also, if you don’t know what to look for you probably will not be able to see them, because tide-pool creatures have some of the best camouflage defenses you’ve ever seen (or not seen).

8. For photos, get up close with your camera

If you want some interesting shots of your tide pool experience, try to get up close to what you are shooting. The details in the sea creatures and the rocks that your camera will capture will amaze you.

That’s it for now. If you have any of your own personal tips for what to know when visiting tide pools then drop them below in the comments! Thanks for reading!

Feel free to check out my Flickr account and Facebook page!