Between Storms

Looks like I have a thin window of opportunity this morning for a swim before a big storm sweeps in this afternoon. I was tempted to swim yesterday but the surf size was at the upper edge of my comfort zone and the water looked choppy and stormy and there was nobody out and I needed to be back early without ample time to over think things. I thought to myself it will likely be fine and maybe super fun. Then again what if it's not fine? It's not like a soccer game that has the potential to get rained out and, oops, we get wet and muddy. So I grab my running clothes and hope today conditions will be more favorable. And they are! I'm still a bit nervous because of this approaching storm (maybe more than a bit) and I don't see anyone in the water on the cams but I'm confident enough. Also based on the week’s forecast, this might be my only chance all week.

I leave at 7:15 - bright and early. The sky is an exquisite clear blue with lots of puffy clouds and interesting patterns of small ones. There is definitely a pre storm vibe in the air.

Both Doheny and Strands have a textured ocean surface - like a coat of stucco. No chop but you can see the current moving from the south. There is a 8 knot SE wind set to ramp up quickly through the morning.

I haven't swam in a few days and I'm wondering how the beach was impacted by the last storm which packed some pretty hefty surf. Tide should be lowish - in the 2’s - and getting lower. I've been watching the buoy data and water temperature is down maybe a degree. That is actually a relief because we were supposed to have a strong west wind blow through yesterday that didn't show up. If it had, the water would likely be cooler.

Once I see the beach I am delighted. There is still lots of cobble near the ramp but a lot more sand overall and near my take off spot. The Jupiter rock is now half way covered with cobble on the bluff side. The tide is low enough to avoid most of the rocks that are hard to balance on so I make it to my usual spot much more easily than the last several swims.

I set my pack down and lose my shirt and then head to the water. Nice. Lots of sand here. There are a few exposed boulders but it is an easy passage out. It gets deep quick and I swim for several strokes and then I hit shallow water and resume walking for a bit and then return to swimming all the way past the surf.

Well that was anticlimactic. There was certainly surf but nothing to justify my jitters earlier this morning. I pause to take a look around before heading south. It is so beautiful here and the sky incredible. The blue is so blue and the whites of the clouds are so white. The water really isn't bad either. Yesterday I was reading my post from a year ago and I was commenting on how cold it was. I'd bet it was 2 or 3 degrees colder than today.

I head south and I definitely feel that current working against me. The sun plays peekaboo behind the clouds and much of the swim seems dim with brief shiney interludes.

I turn around and the current is now very much in my favor. The water gets colder or, rather, I get colder. Near the end I see a seagull floating just a few feet from me. I stop and yell, “Jonathan!” No response. Wrong bird. However hearing my own voice in the water is somewhat disorienting. It's like realizing that this is all really happening. I am here in this single point in time and having this very experience that I see transpiring in front of me.

There is a ton of floating kelp right around here. There is so much that it takes extra effort to swim through. I try to look below the surface and plot a route around the stalks but end up plowing right over and through them. I can see that I am pretty far offshore and hope that if I swim inland on the way back, I can avoid all of this on the return leg. And that is exactly what happens. I turn around and point myself directly for the asphalt road up to Niguel Shores. This path feels aimed more east than south from my distance at sea.

I always find relief in this last leg no matter how stressful the swim. Though I must say that the vast majority of swims I would not characterize as stressful. There are definitely more this time of year with the colder water and, as I have noticed over the past few years, more frequent large swell conditions. Even today as I fight this strong current and have moments where it really feels like I am literally going nowhere, I know that I am going to make it to the end. Besides I can see patches of kelp glide past me so obviously I am moving.

The funny thing is, I have always made it. I have probably done this over 500 times now and I have never NOT made it. Of course one can’t ever get too cocky with the natural elements but I know myself well enough to understand my tendency to make a big drama out of something maybe not so big especially when fear is involved. And here I am. I was freaked out about this swim beforehand and now it has proven to likely be the gem of my day.