What's a current?

A current is a moving body of water. Currents are caused by all kinds of things - temperature differences in oceans, comparative salinity, wind, the shape of the shoreline, waves. They can be vast, like the Gulf Stream, or small, like the current that runs between two rocks when the tide is going out. But we find them all over the place: they are normal in the sea.

Having said that, you still need to be aware of them. If you're snorkelling off the shore and suddenly a current catches you and pulls you out to sea, you could be in trouble. So, keep an eye on the sea floor, or on a landmark on the shore - a house or an electricity pylon. If you see it moving past you when you're not swimming very hard, it means you're in a current. If that happens, don't try and fight it: swim at right angles to the current, or diagonally,  towards the shore. Currents aren't always that wide.

We tend to think of the sea as a static thing, like a big pond: but of course it isn't. Water is usually moving in some direction or other - whether because of the wind, or currents, or tides. It helps if you know this.

You'll find currents in all kinds of places, between rocks, round headlands, in coves where it's windy, sometimes on a rolling gravel beach. They aren't usually that strong, and normally it's easy to deal with them, as long as you are aware that you are being pulled along. Be aware - that's the key to snorkelling.