Whither shall we wander?

I have been working on some trip planning software for kayaking off the coast of Anglesey. You know the problem - you can get out for a few hours tomorrow, or sometime over the weekend, but where to go given the tide times and likely weather?

 

 

The program instructions are simple enough:

Enter the time for 'High Water Dover' for the relevant day (Click [Easy Tide] to use the Admiralty Tidal prediction service) - remember to add daylight saving if appropriate.

• Enter wind strength and direction. Click [Met Office] for an explanation of the Beaufort wind scale, and on the same page a link to the Inshore Waters forecast
• Enter Start and Stop times (HH:MM) for your paddling 'window' - the program defaults to Dawn to Dusk
• Choose the type of trip - Linear (one way) or Return, and a maximum trip length
• Click [Matching Trips]

and it produces a screen like this

With basic details about trip timings, possible hazards, facilities, etc

The program can also display a graphical representation of tidal flow around the island

If you would be interested in a copy of the program, just email me kayak@adit.co.uk and I will send you a link to the download.

Although the program seems to work well, it is at beta test stage, and may contain errors of fact as well as logic, and has only a limited number of routes.

All feedback welcome.