Sunday, November 8, 2020

Swimming On Sunday Morning at 7AM With Duke

My baptism by wind

I got to Avila Beach about 6:45 and started getting into my gear. I wanted to be ready when Duke arrived because he had told me that he puts on his wetsuit at home before the 3 minute drive to the beach. The surf had laid down since Saturday morning so we wouldn't be beat up getting in but the wind was already up and blowing, so today's swim would be bumpy and physical in a different way. Hey, welcome to ocean swimming.  The water was 55 degrees yesterday but swam like 53 today. Maybe it was the wind but my hands and feet were cold for the entire swim.  

The water actually looks kind'a friendly from here.

Duke and I were content to do one triangle. 

I suggested going counterclockwise because with the wind out of the NW this would give us somewhat more favorable swimming conditions along each leg.   

Niel and Duke at the first buoy facing the sunrise.

At the end of the Avila Pier

We had a nice sunrise with clouds to enjoy on the leg from the end of the Avila Pier to the last buoy on the east (left looking from the beach) side.  The wadded up paper look that the  surface of the water has tells you how hard the wind is blowing.   

Duke at the last buoy. The Avila Pier is in the background. 

The swim back to the pier was into the chop, wind and current and an exercise in patience because if you just had to do the work long enough to get to the second buoy. 

Then we were close enough to the pier to feel the way the pilings make the chop lay down so it almost felt like a coast to the finish.  

I definitly be back next Sunday.  

I'll swim Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 8:00

niel
    

Saturday, November 7, 2020

A Full Fall Experience 

I was at Avila to swim at 8AM. It had rained overnight and was still cloudy but looked to be clearing. The wind was just starting to pick up and there was storm surf; messy and closeout waves with an occasional 5' to 7' set that made for spectacular but very short rides for the small group of body surfers and boogie boarders that was next to the pier. The water temperature was 55. All of this made it feel very much like winter. Especially because the previous Saturday was one of the nicest days ever at Avila Beach.

Theresa came by to let me know that she and Grace were going to do an adventure swim so I was on my own.  I waded out and spent enough time duck diving while trying to find gap that would let me get out to the buoy line. I wished that I had a set of fins. I finally decided that I wasn't having enough fun in the washing machine and got out.

I'm going to swim with Duke tomorrow at 7AM.

niel   

Thursday, November 5, 2020

 It was pleasant at Avila Beach this morning with a hint of coolness in the air. Theresa and I swam at 9 o'clock. There were thin high clouds and haze on the water. I measured a water temperature of 58 degrees off of the Avila Pier but both Theresa and I felt that it swam colder. My hands and feet felt cold longer than they should at 58 degrees. The water was still flat, clean and clear so there was nothing to complain about.   

I swam one triangle and Theresa swam two.

I haven't been out here in a while.

Theresa and I are going to swim at 8 on Saturday, to beat the crowds and to help her make it to a conference in time to give her presentation. 

This morning there was a large ship anchored off of Shell Beach. Much too large to be a commercial fishing boat, so possibly research, government, Navy?

Did anyone get a decent look at it?    

 

niel 

Tuesday, November 3, 2020

It was nice and quiet in Avila Beach this morning. It was cooler with a bit more high overcast and larger waves than on Sunday but the water was still 58 degrees an nice and clear.  I saw Theresa. She had goetten in early in order to make a 9 o'clock meeting so I was by myself. There was a huge raft of sea birds between the ends of the Avila and Cal Poly Piers that the wind was pushing towards the buoy line on the west side of the Avila Pier. I decided to not swim in bird poo and did two laps of the buoys on the east side of the pier.      

Can you spot what is missing from the beach?

The lifeguard towers have been dragged back to their winter locations, 

so we are swimming on our own until next summer.  

Got my mile+ in and ready to head to the beach.

I have a 7:15 AM ZOOM meeting on Thursday but will make it to the beach to swim at 9:00 

niel

 

Sunday, November 1, 2020

 

Sunday was an exceptionally beautiful day at Avila Beach. It was comfortably warm, clear and calm. The water was 58 degrees and very clear. 

That is my thermometer float on the surface and you 

can see the growth on the piling 4 to 6 feet.

Niel. Hillary, Maria and Leslie got in at 9:30 and were joined later by Theresa and Brittany.

My plan was to stick to the buoy line and do a mile. Leslie went directly to the end of the pier. Hillary and Maria swam with me to the last buoy on east of the pier and then headed to the end of the Avila Pier. They went from there over to the third crossbars on the CP Pier where Theresa caught up with them.  They swam to the second crossbars and back to the end of the Avila Pier.  

Hillary at the first buoy

Maria at the first buoy

Niel at the first buoy with Leslie's cap in the background.

Hillary relaxing at the 4th buoy on the east side of the pier.

Hillary's Photos and video link:

https://youtu.be/CCakCQTygg8

Duke stopped by. Besides some impressive scars he seems to be doing well.  It was good to talk with him. 

 

Theresa, Grace and a friend swam from Avila to Pismo yesterday! That is 10k, so they deserve a big hand. The conditions were great and they had a good time, finishing in a bit over 3 hours. 

I'll hope to have photos soon.

I'll swim at 9 on Tuesday and Thursday this week but I'm going to swim earlier on the weekends. Maybe 20% of the crowd on Front Street were wearing masks or acting safely today. I can't be part of that kind of crowd. I'll post what my weekend plans are.

niel    

Saturday, October 31, 2020

 Niel's back and the swimming is wonderful!

It was beautiful at Avila this morning at 9:30. It was sunny with a slight offshore breeze. You can always tell if the wind is offshore because when it is you can smell the hot grease from the Custom House on the beach. The water was flat and glassy with one seal cruising the surfline but no sign of any whales.  I measured a water temperature of 57 degrees from the pier.  

Swimming this morning were Hillary, Brittany and Niel.

I've been out of the water for 5 weeks, 3 with pneumonia and then two traveling, so this was an exploratory swim for me. I planned to go down and back along the left half of the buoy line and be happy if that felt good. Brittany and Hillary did a triangle, Brittany dropped off and Hillary went around a second time.   

  

Brittany, Hillary and Niel getting in. 

Hillary and her flotilla heading off down the buoy line. 

Niel and Brittany at the start

Brittany and Hillary at the last buoy. We split up here, I went back to the start and they headed to the end of the Avila Pier on the second leg of the triangle.

Hillary's 5 minute video with a nice underwater segment is at  https://youtu.be/JaWSXkz2-mw

Hillary's photos:

 

I'll be back tomorrow morning at 9:30.

niel

Saturday, October 24, 2020

 By Hillary:

Grace and Teresa had an early start and were already on the way to the Poly pier when I jumped in. Leslie jumped in just after me. We all did our own thing with Leslie and I finding each other at the end of the swim at bouy 2. Leslie though she was going to get eaten by a shar... er, lifeguard. And we waved at our new swimmer whose name now escapes me (he didn't jump in today), but he is 88 and just got a new neoprene swim cap.

Flat and glassy water, my watch measured 59°F, but it felt colder with the overcast skies. East of the pier the water was a bit brown. West of the pier the water was clear, but the creek mouth smelled like not-ocean. 

There was a whale hanging out with a massive bait ball about 1,000 yards off the piers.

We all met up at the showers, none of us with hot water. 

Here is the video: https://youtu.be/74GpGwtSA5k  

Saturday, October 10, 2020

From Hillary

 

thursday, October 1, 2020

 I'm going to be out of the water for a while. In the meantime we'll start with this one by Leslie. 

Theresa and I had a wonderful long swim today that was marred by one absolutely disgusting event.    We were swimming out between the Avila and the cal poly pier and decided to check out all the cool boats out there, when we got to the first one, we smelled heavy raw sewage.  It was awful!! no way it wasn't from that boat and recently dumped, we were right there and saying how disgusting it was when the guy came out of the boat and looked sheepish according to Theresa..after the swim I drove to Harbor Patrol and reported it.  They said there probably wasn't much they can do after the fact, but they would go out there and have a discussion with him, if only to inform him that it is FREE to dump your tank there..

The boat is called the HONU and its from Sausalito.   If anyone runs across that guy feel free to let him have it.  I thought about taking our presidents advice and drinking a bottle of Chlorox or Lysol, but probably Pine Sol would taste better.  

I'll tell you our route, it was perfect conditions today, flat, warm, clear, sunny and no problems from the marine animals.    We also had a Duke sighting before we got in, its his first day back in the water since his arm injury and it was great to see him, he was swimming with Brittanys husband Chad.

We went out to the 4rth buoy at fossil point, to the end of Avila Pier, then over on the boat tour. the other 2 boats were fine, no smell and nice people on the 3rd who said hi to us.  Then we headed over to the creek buoy, back to first one, then back around the avila pier to 4th buoy at fossil point, from there we were feeling pretty good and the water was still flat and nice, so we did buoy sprints back to the pier and then took a warm down lap back to creek buoy and back under the pier to our home buoy and in.  No idea what kind of distance that was but we were in over an hour.  

Just wanted everyone to be aware of the moron out there.  

Leslie