A wave crashes toward the shore on Hutchison Island, Florida.
Water is beautiful. It’s beautiful to watch, especially when you’re at the ocean and the waves are “high rollers”~ huge monster waves, one after another, crashing onto the beach.
It brings the board surfers and the kite surfers out to play. The ocean sparkles in the sunshine, beckoning people into the water to cool off. But water can be dangerous, as well as beautiful.
When you are at the beach it’s good to keep safety first in your mind. It’s best to choose a beach with a lifeguard. If you can’t, beware of tides, by carrying a copy of the local tide chart with you. When tides come in, and if the waves are rough, a dangerous rip current/undertow can pull you back, making it hard to get to shore. If you are caught in a rip current, always swim parallel to the shore, until you can get help, or until you can work your way to the shore. Areas that say: “Swim at your own Risk”…mean just that. There can be a severe drop-off, unseen rocks or other debris, and undertows. Always keep watch over your children and employ the Buddy system. Never swim alone. Teach your children to look for the signs/flags on the beach.
Flag warnings: Green flag: All clear for swimming, but keep an eye on the color, situations can change quickly. Yellow flag: Caution. There may be potential for strong undertows, high waves, etc. Only swim where lifeguards are present.
Red flag: Strongest, most serious warning. One red flag means the water is very rough, there are strong undercurrents, and you should only swim if you are a strong swimmer.
Once again.., keep close to a lifeguard. Two Red flags means the beach is closed and no one should be swimming.
Many people perish in our beautiful seas because they either ignore the signs or they do not understand the coming and going of the tides. Be safe! Swim smart…and enjoy our beautiful ocean water.
Judy
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Beautiful post Judy Both your photo and writing for this week topic thanks for sharing this 🙂
Thank you, Jake. I appreciate your nice comments!
I love water. We’ve lived next to a dam/lake for 27 years, and I must say I miss the water in my life. Whether it’s a stream, lake or the sea, it has a calming effect on me. 🙂
Hi zelmare! I love water too. I agree…it’s so calming and peaceful. We have a teeny 4’x5′ man made pond in our garden. 😉 That doesn’t really count. lol
The ocean waves are beautiful. They invite fun and excitement. But also with such great beauty lies a danger people often missed. A classmate of mine died while swimming in the beautiful Boracay waters. It was a devastating event. Nevertheless it reminds all of us just to be cautious and listen to what the signs and the waves are saying. Wonderful post.
Oh..I’m so sorry, Island Traveler. What a tragedy for you and his family. You’re right….the ocean is beautiful, but we need to be cautious. I like what you said: “listen to what the signs and the waves are saying.” Perfect!
This is really excellent and timely advice. I have had some close calls myself and one time had to save a kid from nearly drowning near a groin at Bournmouth beach whilst his dad say 100m up the beach oblivious!
Hi Stuart! Oh my you saved a child. How wonderful of you! That’s why I said: “Keep watch over your children.” I don’t think it’s proper to just drop kids off at the beach and think they’re okay. Yours is an excellent example of that. Thanks for your comments!
Ahhhhh….so beautiful ! I long for the ocean…I haven’t been to a beach in the last 23 years. The last time I saw an ocean was 3 years ago when I went to Portland, Maine to see Cape Elizabeth lighthouse. I want to go to Cape Cod beaches, I know the water is cold but the beaches are beautiful !
A lot of people from St-Georges de Beauce (where I live) go to Old Orchard for their summer vacation because it’s not far.
Jocelyne…I love Cape Cod’s beaches! My family camped near Brewster on the Cape for many years when I was a kid. The beaches are very beautiful, and I imagine not too far from you, right? Maine has gorgeous rocky shores. I love Maine too. Where is Old Orchard? Thanks for your comments! I always love them!
WOW 🙂 I oved your post , it is very well written. Thanks for sharing . If you have some time, do come by my blog : http://musewithcoffee.wordpress.com. I am not a photographer, but I am a travel enthusiast, a coffee lover, an avid reader and foremost an indie author. My ebook 12 Precious Anecdotes from Life is released in Amazon and I am pretty excited about it. It tells about celebrating life and has some stories that share the marvels of nature and why we should respect and love nature always. Its a fiction collection of 12 short stories. I could connect with your blog post, so I am sharing the book link with you – http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0087OXSS2. Have a great week ahead! Thank you
Hi musenwrite! Welcome! And congrats on your indie book. I have a kindle and love to read indie books. I’ll check it out! Thanks for your comments!
Thanks ! Have a great day! 🙂
Thank you. You too, musenwrite!
Loving your photo – makes me want to run into it and walk in the sand:) Happy Sunday!
I want to run in the waves and stick my toes in the warm sand too, Renee! Thanks so much! Happy Sunday back atcha! 😉
I like to watch the waves.
Oh my, Judy~ You and me, both! I can be mesmerized by waves. They can be so soothing and calming. I sure wish I lived closer to the ocean….or the Great Lakes, than I do! 😉
Very pertinent. In our place too many of the beaches are dangerous. Some of the visitors are ‘carried away’ in/by the beauty of the ocean.
Lovely pic.
Oh…your wording is very telling, Bindu. “carried away”…..sad. Yes, we all must respect the ocean, especially when we are not familiar with a place. That’s when we need to educate ourselves with the tide charts, watch the flags, etc. Great comment, Thanks.
A very tempting ocean.
Tempting it is! I want to skip into it today…..it was very hot here! 😉 Thanks, Gilly!
I LOVE the beach and especially crashing waves.
Hi restlessjo! I do too! I love the sound at night, and I love to watch them during the day. Mesmerizing. Thanks for your comments!
Great post Judy. Crashing waves …. great to watch and hear. I could stare at them for hours.
I dearly love to do exactly that too, Jim! They can be so mesmerizing. Thanks!
Loved this post Judy. growing up in Sydney i spent a lot of time on the beaches and too often people ignored the signs and did not use common sense…it often ended in tragedy.
Thanks for your comment, Jo. Unfortunately it happens everywhere. Another blogger and I were just commenting about how it happens in CA and in the Great Lakes, where I live. The Great Lakes don’t have tides, but they can have dangerous undercurrents, strong enough to pull someone away from shore. The situation is resolved the same as with a rip current. You swim parallel to shore until help comes or you swim out of the strong currents. It just underlines the fact that people need to be smart and “respect the forces of nature”. (quote by a blogger friend)
Great photography, Judy! And I love your safety tips for beach-goers. If you have a chance, swing by my post and you’ll find a similar theme…water safety for kids during the summer months. 🙂
I loved your post, Vivian. It’s absolutely a MUST read for parents and grandparents……and even teens and singles. You’ll read my story in your comments.
Things can happen way too fast. That’s why I said in my post….Keep WATCH over your children. But you said it better….the Touch Distance. Perfect.
All your guidelines were great.
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Some important things to remember when at the sea.
Thank you, Colline…you are right! Beauty can be dangerous too.
The water looks os powerful. A great capture of the water moving.
Well done, Judy.
Isadora, you are so kind. Thank you! I was quite happy with that wave! 😉
Great info. Since moving to So Cal just about a month ago, I’ve been to the ocean several times.
You would not believe how many young families allow their very small children to wade into the water, at high tide, with rip currents, with rocks between them and the water.
I watch, when I’m there, fully prepared to have to pull them out if necessary. Just amazing how little respect people have for such a tremendous force of nature.
mj…You said this so well. (of course! You’re a writer extraordinaire!) Seriously….your last line says it all: “Just amazing how little respect people have for such a tremendous force of nature.” It’s scary. Even here in the Great Lakes we see the same loss of respect. We aren’t dealing with the power of the oceans, not having tides, but we do have occasional undercurrents and people can get pulled from shore.
I remember sitting next to a friend’s 4 yr old grandson on their dock at a small lake years ago. My mom was on the other side of him. In a split second that little boy had slipped off the dock and was in the water. It was shallow and I got him back up on the dock. I’ll always remember how quickly and silently that happened, and all three of us were sitting snugly together! Things can happen amazingly fast. It puts pressure on you when you go to the beach to relax, mj, sad to say. Thanks for your comments!
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Your photo makes me want to jump right in – still haven’t done that yet this year – it’s still a little too cold. It’s true it’s an awesome power to respect.
Thank you, Sheila! It is a bit too chilly to do that yet! I can be happy with my toes in it at this point, walking in the sand at the edge of the water. Still, I haven’t done that either! 😉
I love living right by the ocean. I could sit and watch the waves and the surfers for hours on end. 😉 Great entry for the theme. 😉
Thank you, adinparadise! I wish I lived closer! I love to watch the waves too. They are so mesmerizing.