Hobbies And Interests
Undertow
When a wave washes up on the beach, it then rolls back into the ocean, draining along the bottom. You can feel this pulling on your feet when you're standing in the shallow water along the beach. If you're very young, this can even knock you over and drag you a short distance out to sea. However, subsequent waves will push you to shore; there is no risk of undertow drowning you or carrying you beyond where you can swim.
Rip Currents
A rip current, in contrast, is much narrower. While an entire wave turns into an undertow on its way out, the rip current is usually narrower and can grab swimmers and shoot them out past breaking waves coming into shore. If you get caught in a rip current, you can get a quick ride fairly far out to sea in a hurry.
How Rip Currents Form
Any shore that has breaking waves can develop rip currents, as the forces of incoming waves, water levels and the shape of the land under the sea are all contributing factors. Over time, currents can move alongshore, and waves can begin to crash more furiously in some areas than others. Once a current turns to run away from the beach, you have a rip current.
Escaping Rip Currents and Undertow
To "escape" the undertow, you just need to stand up straight. For rip currents, if you do get caught in one, work your way parallel to the shore until you don't feel the current, and then take a diagonal path back to shore. Remember, even if the rip current is strong, it will be narrow, so just moving laterally with the shoreline for several yards will get you out of the strong current, making a return to shore easier.