April 1st, 2025

 Avila Rock - 

It was a beautiful spring morning, 44°, sunny and clear with a light breeze. The surf was 2 to 3 feet with an occasional 4 footer. The water looked really nice.  I got in a bit after 7.

The water felt pretty cold at the start and it took me a while to get 'comfortable', but even then it was colder than Saturday. I measured 51° at the buoy line and it felt colder further offshore.  There were no bait fish or seals and very few birds about except for the pigeons roosting on the Avila Pier. 

My plan was to swim from the end of the Avila Pier to Fossil Point and back and then over to the Poly Pier and back. It wasn't long after I'd left the end of the Avila Pier that I realized how flat the water was and that this would be a great opportunity to swim to Avila Rock, so I changed my plan and headed for the rock.  

It was low tide and the swells were washing over the rock. 

It was lovely swimming out there. There were some big swells rolling through but no chop and , clean, glassy water.  Out at the rock the otters kept an eye on me. There were chunks of Styrofoam hung up in the kelp, YUCH! I grabbed as much as I could and tucked it into the collar or my wetsuit. Coming back I did a long straight line to the first buoy and timed my way in between the larger waves. 

I'll be back Thursday, Saturday and Sunday

niel