Marine, Earth and Atmospheric 

 Sciences at North Carolina State Uni- 

 versity has conducted a Sea Grant 

 study looking at the kind of weather 

 information fishermen in this state are 

 provided. Davis has published his 

 findings in a new Sea Grant technical 

 report. The report includes a listing of 

 the marine weather services available 

 in the state, an evaluation of these ser- 

 vices and recommendations for im- 

 proving the delivery of weather data to 

 fishermen. 



To obtain a copy of this technical 

 report, write UNC Sea Grant. Ask for 

 publication UNC-SG-81-07. The cost 

 is $1.50. 



You're swimming in 

 the surf when suddenly 

 you're pulled out to sea 

 by a rip current. What 

 do you do? Many swim- 

 mers panic and try to 

 swim against the power- 

 ful current, an effort that sometimes 

 results in tragedy. Rip currents along 

 the Outer Banks killed five people last 

 August and one this June. 



Common in North Carolina, rip cur- 

 rents form when water which normally 

 moves along the shore rushes out to sea 

 in a narrow path. These currents can 

 extend as far as 3,000 feet offshore, 

 reach 90 feet in width, and travel up to 

 four feet per second, which is faster 

 than the average swimmer. 



How do you spot a rip current? 

 Watch for these telltale signs: a dif- 

 ference in color from surrounding 

 water, a gap in the breakers where the 

 rip is moving seaward, or a floating ob- 

 ject that moves steadily to sea. 



If you do get caught in a rip cur- 

 rent, don't panic and don't try to swim 

 against the current. Swim parallel to 

 the shore until you can get out of the 

 current and then swim back to shore. 

 If you can't get out, float calmly with 

 the current until it dissipates, then 

 swim diagonally to shore. 



For more information on rip cur- 

 rents, write for Sea Grant's colorful 

 poster, "Rip Currents." The poster is 

 available free from Sea Grant, Box 

 5001, Raleigh, N.C. 27650. 



For sports fishermen 

 ready to lure in dolphin, 

 wahoo, tuna and marlin, 

 UNC Sea Grant has 

 some suggestions for a 

 new kind of bait. Sea 

 Grant agent Dennis 

 Regan on Roanoke Island, along with 

 R. C. Harriss of the N.C. Division of 

 Marine Fisheries, worked out a 

 method for preparing hickory shad to 



be used as a trolling bait for some of 

 the large gamefish. Regan and Harriss 

 tested the hickory shad by asking fish- 

 ermen to bait their lines with the fish. 

 The results were good. 



Now Sea Grant has a Blueprint, 

 "Using Hickory Shad as a Trolling 

 Bait," that will tell you how to gut, 

 brine and rig your own hickory shad 

 for use as bait. For a free copy of this 

 leaflet, write UNC Sea Grant and ask 

 for UNC-SG-BP-81-5. 



Coastwatch is published monthly 

 except July and December by the Uni- 

 versity of North Carolina Sea Grant 

 College Program, 105 1911 Building, 

 North Carolina State University, 

 Raleigh, NC 27650. Vol. 8, No. 7, 

 August, 1981. Dr. B.J. Copeland, 

 director. Neil Caudle, editor. Kathy 

 Hart and Cassie Griffin, staff writers. 

 Second-class postage paid at Raleigh, 

 NC 27611. 



Coastwatch is a free newsletter. If you'd like to be added to the mailing list, fill 

 out this form and send it to Sea Grant, Box 5001, Raleigh, N.C. 27650. 



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