Automatic – open-weather

2025-03-31 12:58:00

Goownown Growers The Seaweed Institute

CAST, Helston, Cornwall, United Kingdom

United Kingdom

NOAA-18

It’s forecast to be an astrological 0m tide in Falmouth – one of the lowest of the year. These extreme tides always sit relatively close to the equinox and, with the high pressure, the tides will creep even lower than expected. We clear the day and head to one of our favourite spots on The Lizard peninsular. This spot is very familiar to us, a tidal pool that offers calm water even when the sea is choppy and rough. The breeze today disrupts the sea and a swell is hitting this part of the coast – we find the pool to be the sanctuary we always hope it to be. Spring brings beautiful rock pooling – no seaweed has become large enough to swamp out other species, most are in their main growing season, so there is lots of beautiful fresh fronds. The sun-bleaching we see later in the year, as the temperature and UV increase, hasn’t yet happened. The water is still cool, not warm enough to support many fouling organisms. The results are clear diverse healthy-looking rock pools. Kelp semi-drys splayed over rocks, waiting to be freed by the incoming tide. Ruth, inspired, partially dries her Sea Lettuce harvest on a bolder. This sky is so blue, with just the wispiest clouds high above – a blue that makes any other weather seem implausible. On this little spot of coast its hard to belief there will be any visible weather systems on the image we receive today,- but there is lots, you can see The Lizard though, sitting under a pool of clear sky. We were here on the equivalent low tide in 2024, the 12 March. It was so cold we had to bring flasks of tea, hats, gloves and thermals so we could last a few hours out here. Today we bath in the sun, agreeing, with relief, that we’ve made it through winter. Sometimes on days like this we do surveys and try to document what we see – today we just enjoy the space. We wonder how we can incorporate more days like this back into our lives. The Seaweed Institute

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