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Brent Ferrantelli [mailto:bsferrant@EARTHLINK.NET] said:
> ...
> I am currently a great lakes sailor (lake superior)
> with little more than one or two inches of water level change either way,
> but I am soon bound for Newport, RI and would greatly appreciate further
> discussion of methods of East Coast tides/currents prediction.

When you get here, pick up a copy of the _Eldridge Tide and Pilot Book_
(known simply as "Eldridge"). It's the near-unanimous choice among New
Englanders for tide & current tables, hourly current charts, and lore.
In particular, read the reproduction of the letter from the book's
original author on the way the start of the flood in Vineyard sound can
set you onto the Elizabeth Islands, and the article  on holding a fair
tide between Eastern Long Island and Nantucket.

Duncan & Ware's _Cruising Guide to the New England Coast_ contains some
good advice from the days before radar and LORAN for current allowances.
It also recounts a priceless story (also included some years in Eldridge)
of a savvy old schoonerman and his nervous mate as they approach Nantucket
in fog using only soundings.

Paying attention to the tidal currents is not only important for the way
they speed or slow your passage, but also how they effect the height and
steepness of the wind-driven chop. Buzzards Bay and The Race south of
Fisher's Island can change radically when the wind and tide oppose each
other. Also, some of the passages between islands, especially Woods Hole,
can get pretty exciting in a small boat when then tide's running hard.

   

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