Somerset

The Somerset coast on the Bristol Channel has the second-highest tidal range in the world, exceeded only by the Bay of Fundy in Canada. At Weston-super-Mare the spring range reaches 12.3 m; at Minehead and Watchet further west it runs 10.5 m. The cause is the Bristol Channel's geometry: a long, narrowing funnel aligned with the dominant Atlantic swell direction, whose dimensions produce near-resonance with the 12.4-hour tidal period. The tidal energy has nowhere to go but up. The practical consequences are extreme. Harbours like Minehead and Watchet dry completely to bare mud at low water; the harbour walls retain nothing. Boats must be designed to sit upright on the bottom — flat-bottomed or twin-keeled — or laid on legs. The beach at Weston-super-Mare extends 3 km seaward at spring low water; the incoming tide covers that distance in under 3 hours, producing the fastest-advancing flood front anywhere on the English coast. For those who time it right the Somerset coast is extraordinary: the scale of the tidal flat, the exposed rock ledges for shore fishing, the dramatic views across the channel to South Wales, and harbours where the whole cycle from dry mud to full water happens twice a day in plain sight. The South West Coast Path starts at Minehead — the first and last tides seen by walkers attempting the 630-mile route.