Grey Grey Go Away

Wasn’t planning on a swim today because I had to drop my car off in San Clemente for a repair and thought I would run home and run back in the afternoon to pick it up. However, it ended up they needed to order and wait for the part so I just drove right back home and decided to swim instead of run.

I ended up leaving at 9:15 and the skies were partly cloudy. It’s looking like the gloom just might burn off in the next hour. The closer I get to the beach, the more blue sky I see. I can feel direct sunlight - direct sunlight! - shining on my hand through the window.

When I get to the parking lot, the water looks fairly turbulent but who cares with all of this blue sky. Looking south west, it is predominately clear. Things get more grey to the north. Overall, there is much more light here than I have seen in many swims.

I get out of the car and there is a pretty good breeze blowing. The asphalt is warm under my feet.

Once I get to the shore it looks to be a medium low tide and beautiful. I can see a small army of jr. lifeguards gathered at the north end of the beach. The water looks a little choppy.

I head out in the water and the surf is pretty small today. I soon start swimming and the water seems to get warmer as I swim past the surf which is often the case. The water feels good today. I’d say it’s a bit warmer than Sunday.

I’m swimming south and I can definitely feel the rough and tumble of the water. I seem to be going with the current for now. I can feel it pushing me along. I see the sun reflecting off of the ocean surface and that is a welcome sight.

It looks like they have anchored the southern buoy this week. It sits just before the south end of the beach and it looks like the same buoy that was here last year. It doesn’t have a fun name like most of the others, it’s just labeled OCJL or something like that. There is definitely an OC from what I recall.

By the time I reach the south end of the beach, conditions seem to be getting back to the June gloom. I can see some blue closer to the horizon but not here.

Now I’m heading north and practically immediately after my turn around, the water shifts from helper/pusher to heavy weight contender and I feel like I am more on the light weight side and in full in battle mode. I’m swimming directly into and through oncoming wakes. I can feel my body pushed upward as I am pulled and swim over some of them.

The stretch from half way down the beach to the northern end feels like it takes forever. I look up every now and then and those jr. lifeguard popup tents don’t seem like they have moved. That’s ok. The water feels good and even though I really don’t have all day, I’m in a mindset that accepts the possibility that this could take all day and I’m ok with that.

Finally there it is. The Green Monster buoy is just up ahead and a bit further off shore. I veer westward and circle around and begin the journey back.

The water is at my back again. I guess it was always at my back but now I get the southern assist.

This last stretch goes by quickly and soon I am on dry land again. It’s a different, darker scene than it was the last time I was here.

I don’t need to towel off. Despite the lack of direct sun, I am warm and I head back up the stairs.

Back at the top the water has a two tone surface color. It looks like a pallid grey for the first half mile and then abruptly turns a solid blue. This aligns with the cloud line that has moved significantly westward over the last hour. Well I’m pretty happy I had that experience of sun at the beginning. I’ll take any I can get.

On the drive back down PCH I notice that the hair salon near Golden Lantern has a sign out front that says “Grey Grey Go Away.” Maybe if every store and homeowner did the same we might just see some progress.