Tide location for Ft. Pickens

[atagirl]

I'm looking to dive Ft. Pickens jetty on Sunday. I called the park to find out the tides and tide location to use and was told to google tides for Pensacola Pass. I am unable to find charts from my normal sources for this exact location. I can find Pensacola and Pensacola Bay entrance. Does anyone know how these times differ from Pensacola Pass? It's my understanding that it is essential to dive at high slack tide and sometimes a few miles can make a big difference in the tide times.

 

[ReefHound]

I use Pensacola Bay entrance because that is where Pickens is at. But don't expect precision. The tide chart is a prediction and can vary depending on winds and currents. Plus your dive is about an hour long. If trying to get in two dives I'll try to be in 1-1.5 hours before high tide.

I would use the term "optimal" rather than "essential". High slack tide is best for viz but I've dived it at low tide as well. In between you will have to deal with potentially strong currents.

 

[Native Spear-It]

Try this: Tide Location Selection for Florida Gulf Coast

 

[DocCarl]

Here's the next couple of days from the site listed above:


In my experience, the forecasted high tide is almost always late by an hour or more. As such, I've had the best luck arriving about 3 hours before the predicted high tide. The lets us get in two tanks before the current really starts ripping.