Going down with the tide

It’ll soon be the season of equinoctial gales. If you keep the company of old-fashioned longshoremen and you’re having tea in their shed near high water when it’s blowing stink, one of them is almost bound to say, ‘Don’t worry, lads. The wind’ll go down with the tide.’ I expect that readers well versed in science will thumb their noses at this little chunk of lore, but hold fast! There may not be a shred of truth in the idea fifteen miles offshore, but in a river, or on a beach flanked by shoals, as the sea level falls, more and more natural shelter appears. The waves ease back, even the wind seems less with the water twenty feet lower down, and the overall impression is undeniable. If you don’t believe us, try rowing across your local river in force 9 at slack water high, then at the bottom of the tide. The old boys were right all along.