THE COASTAL ADVENTURER BODYSURFING
William Thomson FRGS is author/illustrator of The Book of Tides and founder of Tidal Compass (tidalcompass.com)
In the natural world, there seems to be a lag between causes and effects. This is demonstrated perfectly with tides; the most powerful ‘Springs’ do not happen precisely on the days of the Full and New Moon, but 36 hours after. The same can be said with seasons – although days are longer and the sun’s rays are more concentrated on the June solstice, Britain keeps heating up all the way to August. This is partly because the sea takes longer to warm than the land, so the full effects of June’s sunshine are not felt until August. When we have reached this point, the added heat around our shores results in warm moist air rising with greater intensity, cooling to form towering clouds as it rises and giving us intense showers. So although August is peak summer holiday season in the UK, it is not all blue skies, and we need to
