There are five major
tidal whirlpool found around the globe. The largest and most
powerful whirlpool in the world is the Moskstraumen Whirl Pool
located in the Lofoten Archipelago, Norway. The second largest in the world
is the Old Sow Whirlpool between Eastport, Maine USA and Deer Isle,
New Brunswick Canada.
While the other three are Saltstraumen Whirlpool near Bodø,
Norway, Corryvreckan Whirlpool near Argyll, Scotland and Naruto Whirlpool located near Awaji
Island in Hyogo, Japan.
Edgar Allen Poe has romanticized whirlpools in literature and Jules
Verne used it as a model for one of his adventure
books. In 1947 George
Orwell nearly lost his life, when he and several of his friends
took his boat through the Moskstraumen passage and he miscalculated
the tide. It is understandable why fisherman and sailors of the
past would fear this natural phenomenon.
Folklore has it that the name
“Old Sow” comes from the “pig-like” noises
the whirlpool makes from the churning waters. Most people are looking for a
single large funnel shape when looking for the Old Sow but what you
will find is a huge area of many kinds of fascinating turbulence.
The Old Sow comes in the forms of fast currents and eddies,
standing walls of water, “boils,” “spouts,”
“troughs” or “dishes,” “holes,”
and numerous medium-size and small gyres called Old Sow
Piglets. In rare cases
when the tides are just right you will find spouts, major funnels
or deep non-vortexing depressions. These are generally associated
with especially high tides or tidal surges that accompany storms,
along with strong winds.
A combination of the
waters depth, unusual bottom features in Passamaquoddy Bay and the
extreme tidal range of the Bay of Fundy causes the formation of the
Old Sow. The Old Sow is considered a true tidal whirlpool because
of the tidal currents that come together to form the
whirlpool. The forces
come from three directions. When the rising tide passes both
sides of Indian Island, it takes a sharp right turn around the
southern tip of Deer Island to flood the Western Passage.
Additional significant current comes from between Campobello Island
and Indian Island, turning northward and addition to the waters
pressing through the narrow straight, the waters are forced along
the peaks and valleys of the ocean floor – a trench as deep
as 400 feet, followed by a reduction in water depth to 119 feet and
then drops to a depth of over 350 feet. While, the current of
inflowing tributaries within the Passamaquoddy Bay add to the
already busy waters. The turbulent force is created by almost ten
billion cubic feet of water rushing past these objects, which forms
the Old Sow's diameter of approximately 250 feet.
The tide activity
will determine what you may be able to see, two to three hours
before high tide on the incoming tide is usually best with action
for about three hours. The closest sensing station is the Eastport
tide sensing station, which is just one mile away from the Old
Sow.
During low tide there is not much to
see. And remember the
Old Sow wanders around a bit, when active.
Tide
Charts
To log this cache,
it would be nice to post a picture of one of the smaller whirlpools
(gyre) called Old Sow Piglets in the
background. Then send
me an e-mail describing the vertical size of the whirlpool and how
it moved through the water. Make sure to include the date and
time of the tide. Please be sure to respect the landowners and do
not cross the rope.
Any other photos of unusual turbulence at the surface of the water
would be great for others to view. The ferry is perhaps the best
place to observe the Old Sow.
For more information
try,
In the Eye
of the Whirlpool or Old Sow
Whirlpool