How to detect a rip-tide / rip-currents / undertow?

Question

ok. i found some websites where it teaches me how to survive a riptide/rip current if you are in one. but how do i detect a riptide or rip currents?

Answer 1

When you start to feel you getting sucked under water.

Answer 2

There are two ways. The first is to watch the water as it flows over the shore. The water typically flows up or down ( to the left or right ) on the beach. But, if the waves come together then it could mean that there is a rip tide. Not sure if that makes sense. The other way is to look out past the waves and see if there is sand or dirt being kicked up to the surface of the water. This can indicate that there is an undertow drudging along the bottom. This eventually sufaces so you can see it.

Answer 3

You can sometimes see a riptide getting built up if it is the sand bar trap type.  The strongest rips form between the shore and an offshore underwater sand bar.  The sand bar lets water accumulate by the shore (the waves get in over the sand bar but not all of the water manages to get back out because of the incoming tide).  The water bulges a little compared to up shore and down shore of the bar.  When the sand bar fails (washes out) the stored water will rush out taking people with it.

There are 2 other good clues for a strong undertows.  If the wave retreating from the sand goes straight out and not up or down shore a bit it is going to be going out stronger and faster.  Strong undertows remove the finer sand particles.  At these spots of the beach there is more cobble and visibly coarser sand.  In some spots there may be no fine sand at all, just rock and cobble.

It is always a good idea to notice the texture of the sand before entering the water and if you have children or are not a good swimmer stay in the areas where the sand is very fine and the waves move along the beach, not just up the beach and then straight out.