Tsunami Surges at Houda Point/Camel Rock, Humboldt, CA

This shows still pictures, time lapse video, and real time video of tsunami surges and drawdowns at Houda Point/Camel Rock near Trinidad in Humboldt County, California on March 11, 2011.

We were there between about 10:30 and 12:15 and the highest surge we saw was at 10:50. Other people said that there had been some higher surges earlier. We saw three distinct drawdowns and run-ups during that time. The regular ocean swell was west 12 to 15 feet at 10 seconds. Low tide was predicted at 09:59 and 1.0 feet, but it appeared much higher and lower during the run-ups and drawdowns.

The time lapse segment is approximately 25 minutes in 25 seconds.

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• tsunami
• time
• lapse
• surges
• run-up
• drawdowns
• Houda
• Point
• Camel
• Rock
• Trinidad
• Humboldt
• County
• California

[LoletaEric]

Great footage, Mike! That was intense.

[HumboldtMike]

@LoletaEric Thanks! I just wonder whether people who have never been to that spot can see how much water it is and just how unusual it looks. From way up on the bluff the rocks and logs look pretty small. And it seems like the water is moving very slowly in that bigger surge, but it's covering a lot more distance than maybe it appears from that perspective. Anyway, glad you appreciated it...

[tetekofa]

 ... subsidence?

btw, nice work.

[HumboldtMike]

@tetekofa Thanks. Geologic subsidence in Japan might have played a part in creating the tsunami, but the ground has been relatively steady on the Northern California coast recently. Back in the 90's we had several feet of uplift at Cape Mendocino during a 7+ event, so it's definitely shifty around here...

[HumboldtMike]

@ButeoLineatus I was just thinking that the tidal bores that happen in some high latitude rivers may have been studied for effects on salmon migration. I'd guess that whatever effects tidal bores have could be the same as a tsunami surge of this size. A quick google didn't turn anything up, but I'll keep my eye out for any info on that.

[HumboldtMike]

@ButeoLineatus I don't think that a tsunami surge of this size would affect adult steelhead more than possibly disorienting them briefly. Adult salmonids seem very good at getting their heads pointed in the right direction again after a disturbance, and they are strong enough to handle a good tumble. However, steelhead will push in as the tide comes in, so a surge could possibly cue them to migrate in if it were "mistaken" for the incoming tide. In a really big surge, all bets are off...

[ButeoLineatus]

@HumboldtMike In other words you're saying tsunami surges, when they reach inland, can destroy fish habitat. and flush out young, but what about adults trying to move into freshwater.

[HumboldtMike]

@ButeoLineatus Did you see any of the videos of the surges going up the Mad River? A couple of the bigger surges looked like they were eating up some bank and moving some large wood.

[HumboldtMike]

@ButeoLineatus I'd imagine that some fish could get disoriented during the event, but they'd get back to normal pretty quick if they weren't injured. If this happened when a lot of juvenile salmon were migrating or rearing in the estuary (not right now), some fish could get killed. I don't think it would aid migration, but the disturbance could form some new habitat by downing trees or moving logs around.

[ButeoLineatus]

How would this affect steelhead migration? Is it possible that the tsunami surges might assist the fish with migration or confuse them and cause them to migrate inland?