Welcome to tidepools.net, your guide to tidepooling on the California coast, the Pacific coast of North America, and wherever else your tidepooling adventures take you. If you are new to tidepooling, let us explain what it’s all about…

What is tidepooling?

Tidepooling is the activity of hopping around on rocks by the ocean, observing the multitude of plants and animals that live in the intertidal zone. The intertidal zone is the area of land that is underwater during high tide, but above water during low tide. The tide pools themselves typically occur near rocky shores. Tide pools are formed when sea water is left in hollows and crevices in the rocks, even after the tide recedes.

From a distance, tide pools may not look like much – a field of wet rock, perhaps, possibly covered in some gross-looking seaweed. But if you get up close, you’ll see an incredible amount of life, including tiny crustaceans, fish, mollusks, and all sorts of other things that will leave you asking, “what the heck is that thing?” The intertidal zone can be a harsh environment, and many of the animals living in it have adapted to these conditions in a variety of ways. Accordingly, a huge diversity of plants and animals can be found in tide pools.

Tidepooling for All

Tidepooling is simple in concept, and doesn’t really require any training. Because of this, it’s a great activity for families, older people, kids, baby boomers, disillusioned youths, yuppies, hippies, and dogs. Lots of parents like to take their kids on tidepooling excursions because kids are naturally curious about all the creatures they find, not to mention that it’s educational and can foster interest in nature, the ocean, and science in general.

If you are a photographer, you can also find an incredible amount of subject matter in the tide pools. You will definitely get a chance to try out those new macro filters you just bought.

If you read this far…

What are you waiting for? Click the topics on the left side to learn more about tidepooling. Feel free to explore all the areas of this website – you can always get back to the home page through the ‘HOME’ link at the top of the menu.