Tuesday, October 6th, 2026

67° -

That is 19.5 C / 67° F on my thermometer.

Since 1992, that is as warm as I have known the water at Avila Beach to be.

At 7 AM the rest of the numbers were a 56° air temperature, 2 foot surf, no wind, overcast skies with fog coming and going, glassy water with a small swell and as I was leaving, CalFire  was unloading their PWC's for some training. I'm glad we did not wind up sharing the water.  

There were no rafts of birds off shore so I swam around the reef and out to the end of the Poly Pier.  I did not see any dolphins, otters or other mammals out there with me. 

I'll be getting in on Thursday at 8.

 niel

Saturday, October 3rd, 2026

The Fall Can Be The Best Time - 

Today was a summer day in October. Avila was again a hold in the early morning fog  with a light offshore breeze pushing the fog offshore leaving a cloudless sky and a nice sunrise.

At 7 it was 556° and the water temp was 64° - 65°, with a small swell, 2+ foot waves and clean water.  We decided to swim back and forth between the Avila and Poly Piers. 

Swimming this morning were Katie, Hillary, Jodi and Niel. The warm water and the sunshine made for very comfortable swimming conditions.   

Katie, Hillary and Jodi at the Avila Pier

Niel near the first buoy

Katie at the 4th buoy.

Niel and Katie planning the route 

to the second crossbars on the Poly Pier.  

When we were at the end of the Poly Pier there was a huge raft of birds another 1000M offshore that were feeding. We could also see dolphins that were getting in on the action. 

I will enjoy these swimming conditions as long as they lasts. 

I will be back at 7 on Tuesday, at 8 on Thursday and 7 next Saturday. 

niel

Friday, October 2nd, 2026

Tom L's Friday Swim Report - 

Foggy, glassy and calm. That was Avila at 9:30 AM. The air temperature was mid 60s, and the water temperature was low 60s. It was an excellent Friday morning swim.

In the unexpected and unfortunate side effects department: an explanation for all the dead birds on the beach.  As per animal rescue via one of the regulars I see, the dead birds are a result of the extended warm water. Apparently the birds cannot dive deep enough to get to the fish which normally would be closer to the surface but due to the warm water have gone to deeper depths, and they are slowly starving to death and washing up on shore.  I have seen these birds while swimming, and have wondered why they look so lethargic and do not move when I am nearby. And now it all makes sense. Nature being nature, if this trend were to continue long-term, the birds would work it out and go further north. Nature's window.

Thursday, October 1st, 2026

The Other Side - 

This morning Hillary and I did my Tuesday Nested Triangles swim on the opposite side of the pier. I've felt that the distances between the end of the Avila pier and the buoys on the west side was shorter than those on the east side.  Today was a good day to flip over Tuesday's swim and see what the difference was. The answer was that the route on the west side was 263M shorter.

Unlike Tuesday there was no offshore wind this morning so the overcast/fog was solid. The clouds were not down on the deck so visibility was good but gray with the buoys without colors or shadows disappearing into the flat light. 

For numbers we had an air temperature of 57°, the water was 63°- 64°, the surf was 2 foot +/- and there were no large groups of birds, one seal and no otters or dolphins.  There was a small SW swell.            

The swimming was nice and the water comfortable.  I've found a way to get my watch to upload to the Garmin app immediately: After stopping the app and saving the data, I go back to the watch face. When I want to upload the new data I open the Garmin app and hit the the buttons on my watch that is at 2 o'clock and open the event screen where you select Run, Pool Swim, Bike etc. As soon as any event screen opens the watch begins downloading to the app. No more waiting for an indeterminate time for the download. 

Hillary and the bus are back. She is holding a blue doggie toy I found in the sand that is going to join the other found sand creatures on her party boat with the GoPro camera. 

We'll swim Saturday morning at 7. 

niel

Tuesday, September 29th, 2026

Sunshine! -

This morning there was thick fog from San Luis Obispo to Cave Landing Road where it opened up to clear skies and sunshine.  Avila's offshore breeze was keeping the fog well off the land and creating a nice sunrise. At 48° it was a bit cooler than it has been, the surf was 2 foot +/-, the breeze had put some texture onto the water. The water temperature was 63°.   

My route looks a lot like a Yo-Yo but I'm calling this Nested Triangles. I began by swimming from the #1 buoy to #4, then to the end of the pier and returning to #1. Then to #3, the end of the pier and back to #1, then a third triangle by going to #2 and the end of the pier and back and finally from #1 to the end of the pier and back to #1 for a two sided triangle. The chop wasn't much but it was different enough on each leg from a buoy to the end of the pier so there were nice changes to the conditions.

The distance was the same as a Yo-Yo. Maybe I'll try this route on the other side on Thursday.

niel

Saturday, September 26th, 2026

Warm and Sunny -

It was a lovely morning in Avila Beach. The air was 58° and warming up, the water was 63° with warmer spots, there were blue skies and sunshine breaking through the clouds and a rocket launch from Vandenberg.

We had a new swimmer this morning, Kate Kate has just moved here from Michigan to teach at Poly and has been swimming in their big lake, yes, in the winter too. She joined us this morning, is new to swimming in the ocean and based on today's swim will be a regular on Saturdays.   

We did a loop around the buoys, Paula and Kate were ready to come in so we all called it a great start to the day. 

Niel with Paula and Kate

That's not a hiccup, we from the #1 buoy we swam out a ways to avoid 

crossing under the pier beneath where they are making repairs. 

The Cal Poly Ride A Wave fundraiser for the Poly Collegiate Rodeo Team was held on the west side of the beach on Friday and Saturday. The bleachers face the ocean and the events take place on the hard sand at the water's edge. 

This coming week I'll be swimming at 7 on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

niel 

Thursday, September 24th, 2026

Swimming Around the Rodeo - 

I had a lot of Blue Water Task Force tasks this morning and I didn't get in the water until 9.

Tom Lorish got in at the same time but we each did our own swim.

At 9 AM the overcast was clearing, it was still calm, the surf was 2 to 3 foot, it was 66° and the water was 64°.  I swam short because I was meeting Tom Lorish and Duke Parmelly at 11 for pastries and stories. I stayed in close because the anchovies are in and with them are the waterbirds. There was a raft of birds offshore that extended from the far side of Fossil Point to almost the Avila Pier. Thousands, tens of thousands? I don't know. Avoiding the birds is a prudent thing to do. They use the water as a toilet and the bait fish attract seals, which will be attractive to sharks, so I avoid an area where everything is either eating or being eaten.       

With the water in the mid-60's it was very easy and pleasant swimming.    

This year the Cal Poly Collegiate Rodeo team is putting on their fall fundraising show in Avila Beach. The event will be at 4 on Friday and Saturday afternoons. They have set up bleachers for 3,000 spectators between the pier and the creek and it looks like a very professional undertaking. In the middle of the photo is the #2 lifeguard tower. I'll get a better photo Saturday morning.  

I'll swim Saturday morning at 7, then to Pismo Beach, north of the Grand Ave. ramp, for the Surfrider annual Hands Across The Sand protest against offshore oil drilling. 

niel 

Tuesday, September 22nd, 2026

More of These Please -  

I had a very nice swim this morning. Things started out well, I felt relaxed and I never felt tight, tired, bored or anything other than enjoying being in the water.

Avila was gray with overcast skies, 59° and calm. The water was 61° to 62°, glassy with a SW swell and 2 foot surf.  

My plan was to swim over to and to the end of the Poly Pier and figure it out from there. I kept going around the loop and back to where I began.

At the end of the Poly Pier.

Here and at the Avila Rock it is far enough offshore 

that I feel like I'm out in the ocean.

I'll swim at 8 on Thursday and meet Tom Lorish and Duke on the Avila bluff at 11 for our occasional Old Guys Talking About the Ocean meeting.

niel   

Saturday, September 19th, 2026

A Yo-Yo on the East Side -

The morning began with a nice sunrise but the clouds quickly moved in over Pismo Beach and changed it into a gray day. There was no wind, the water was glassy with no chop and a swell out of the SW, the surf was 2 to 3 foot, the air temperature was 55° and the water was 61°.  The water looked like it was getting cloudy but that could have been caused by the lack of sunshine.  

It was just Jodi and I today. We decided to do a Yo-Yo on the east side of the Avila Pier.

Niel, Jodi and the #3 buoy with seagull

On the first leg from the end of the pier to the #4 buoy I spotted on the #3 buoy, I'm blaming the grayness and the swell, and had to swim over to #4 to meet Jodi. 

We enjoyed a nice swim and a good start to Saturday morning. 

I'll swim Tuesday at 7, Thursday at 8 and Saturday at 9. 

The CP Rodeo on the beach is Avila is next Friday and Saturday at 4PM, so it should not interfere with our morning swim.     

niel

Thursday, September 17th, 2026

More Coolish - 

This morning the water felt colder than it had on Tuesday, more chilly getting in and it took longer for me to get even with the water temperature. I measured a temperature of 60°+/- this morning which matched how it felt. Some summers the water doesn't even break 60° so this is a very nice water temperature for Avila Beach, but a 5 degree drop in 5 days is requiring some getting used to.

It was overcast and 56° with some cotton ball clouds and a peak of sunshine, no wind, a smaller swell than Tuesday and 2 foot surf. 

A four buoy Yo-Yo on the west side sounded right. 
  

The water has stayed clean and plankton free since early in the summer. It has been a treat to have nice clean water with good (for Avila) visibility at this time of the year.

I'll be back on Saturday at 7.

niel  

Tuesday, September 15th, 2026

When 61° Feels Coolish -  

The water temperature was 61° today and after Saturday's 65°+/- the water felt cool as I waded in.  Of course 61° was very comfortable but the 3 to 4 degree drop was very noticeable.  Avila was overcast and 56°, there was no wind, knee high surf and a SE swell that would give some variation to my swimming.   

I felt really good. I relaxed and just enjoyed myself 

and had a nice float at the finish. 

I'll be back at 7 on Thursday and Saturday.

niel

Saturday, September 12th, 2026

Very Warm Water - 

Before we got in I measured 63° water temperature off of the Avila Pier, the water was a degree or two warmer most everywhere we swam today. When we were at the  Poly Pier the water temperature reading was 65°.  (I checked this on their website after the swim at  https://www.ndbc.noaa.gov/data/realtime2/CPXC1.ocean).    

Jodi, Avery, Tom and Niel

at the Poly Pier

The surf was 2 to 3 foot, the water is was nice and clean with good visibility, it was overcast and 60° on the beach.  January's mid to low 50's water temperatures seem a faint memory now, but in November the ocean will begin changing to winter conditions.  I'll be happy if the water temperature stays in the mid 50's this winter, instead of the low to below 50° of previous winters.     

We swam a tour of the water between the Avila and Poly Piers, finishing up with the 1000M leg from the end of the Poly Pier to the beach. 

For this coming week I'll swim Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 7.

niel 

Tuesday, September 8th, 2026

A Quick Start Followed By Great Swimming - 

When I arrived in Avila at 6:40 it was calm, sunny, 55°, and looked like the start of a beautiful summer day. I had checked the surf report and a large south swell was predicted but the water in Avila was pretty flat with 2 to 3 foot waves. When I walked in the water felt warm, I'd measure a 63° water temperature while I was swimming. When I was chest high a 3+ foot wave came through and the next one had a face that was taller than I am. I swam under it, surfaced and found that that one had a bunch of friends.  I think there were 5 or 6 5 to 6  footers before the waves went down and I got out to the buoy line.  Today's waves were not packing the energy typical of waves from winter storms so it was easier to swim under them.

I swam down the buoy line to the east. When I was at the 4th buoy Jim swam up next to me. We swam to the end of the Poly Pier. Jim swam in to the beach and I went to the end of the Avila Pier, to the second crossbars on the Poly Pier, to the 4th buoy on the west side and along the buoys to the #1 buoy on the east side.         

Niel and Jim at the Poly Pier

Sunny skies and 63° water was a very nice way to start my day. 

I'll not swim on Thursday morning but I will be back at 7 on Saturday. 

niel 

Saturday, September 5th, 2026

Summer Isn't Over Yet - 

There were eight people in the water this morning; Paula, Claire (Paula's daughter), Tom I., Illiene, Jodi, Niel, Jim and Hillary.  We are still enjoying summer swimming conditions; low clouds, no wind, a 55° air temperature and 61° water that is nice and clean. The swell from tropical storm Marie had pushed up the surf in Avila Beach to 4 to 5 feet. There was a long period between the sets and the waves were not carrying a lot of energy so getting out was just a matter of timing.

From the left is Jim, Claire, Niel, Tom L. with Paula and Eileen behind him, 

Jodi in the background and Hillary on the right at Buoy #1

Tom and Eileen went bareback and were planning on going short. After we got out through the surf and grouped up at Buoy #1. We swam to Fossil Point and came back to the #2 buoy, not getting too close to the pier to avoid the fishing lines. Clare, Eileen, Paula and Tom went in while Niel, Hillary, Jodi and Jim swam to the end of the Avila Pier, to the #2 crossbars on the Poly Pier, to the #2 Buoy on the right side of the Avila Pier and came in.   

This coming week I'll swim Tuesday and Saturday at 7 and maybe slip in one more as a make up for not swimming on Thursday because of a 9AM appointment. 

niel

Saturday, August 29th, 2026

Swimming With Silly People - 

The conditions this morning were favorable for a swim to the Avila Rock, so Hillary, Tom and Niel took the tour.  I measured a water temp of 62° from the Avila Pier. It was 58° under low clouds with a chance of sunshine.  The surf was 2 to 3 feet and there was a small chop on the water.   

Niel, Hillary and Tom with the Avila Rock in the background 

Hillary's party boat with Niel, Hillary and Tom

The party boat has flags, a GoPro camera, a hula doll, a shark hula doll, 

a figure of Jesus that was found on the  beach and a yellow ducky to tow behind. 

The swell was hiding the smaller Avila Rock so I was swimming

 towards the much larger Bird Rock which is another mile further.   

I'll be swimming on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday at 7 this coming week.

niel