It’s another Laguna Beach Saturday. These have been so great and I’m looking forward to this one because our red tide has cleared up and the water is clearer than ever now. That was certainly the case at the Strand yesterday and I’m hoping this is a county wide phenomenon.

We leave the house at about 8:25 and I drop off Sunny in Laguna Canyon and then I head to Crescent Bay Beach. I really acquired a strong liking for that beach last week. I mean what’s not to like? It’s close, the parking is free, it has a gentle entry point for my swim and the shower works great. Oh and it’s crazy beautiful.

Today there is even more parking and I get a better spot - just half a block from the beach entrance. I also spot the entrance to Shaw’s cove and tuck that away for future reference.

My plan today is to swim south and maybe see if I can make it around Bird Rock at the north end of Main Beach before 30 minutes and then come back and if there is time, swim around Seal Rock.

At the restrooms, a swimmer (or snorkeler) is showering off. He says the visibility is great and said Seal Rock had lots to see. I change my plans and decide to swim around Seal Rock first and then head towards Bird Rock or at least as far as I can get.

The beach is less hectic than last week without that cheerleading thing going on. What a pretty little beach. I wonder if it ever gets any sizable surf here or if the protection of the bay obstructs most swells. Well based on the morning south county surf report, there isn’t much swell anywhere. Like last week, there are just small thigh high waves lapping into shore.

I get in the water and I think it just might maybe be warmer than the Strand yesterday. It’s hard to tell. Surfline now has both Laguna Beach and Dana Point at 62. 62 feels about right.

As soon as I start swimming I see a school of medium sized white fish hanging out on the sandy floor. I stop to take a picture. Oooh, maybe too soon to stop. I feel the cold.

I head in a straight line for Seal Rock. Wow that red cliff to the north - so cool. It is getting closer and closer. Somehow I miss the reef I encountered near this spot last week. I get super close to the northern opening of the bay. It really is much much clearer here this week. So close to the point, I’m in just a few feet of water and the rocks below me are covered in kelp. I see a Garibaldi here and there but not a whole lot else. Still it looks super cool. I’m sure if I was in “snorkeling mode” I would see more but I’m primarily out here to swim.

I soon wind up in this sort of tide pool dead end and realize I need to back track a bit to gain free passage back to Seal Rock which is super close right now. Soon I’m free. I head to Seal Rock. This rocky shelf gives way to a much deeper sandy bottom and tall kelp trees. I swim through and between the trees. Look at me, I’m flying! I swim around this small collection of rocks and reach the back side of Seal rock. There are a ton of pelicans hanging out on the poop covered surface. Mmmmmm…poop. Smells fresh.

Ok Seal Rock was super cool. I now point myself in the direction of the end of the point between Crescent Bay and Shaw’s Cove. I pass a group of scuba divers on the way. I say “hi” but the person closest to me has so much neoprene around his head, I don’t think he can hear me.

I keep going and thoroughly enjoy the view along the way. I can see the entirety of Crescent Bay Beach and the lovely houses that line the rim. To the south ahead of me I see the hills of South Laguna and Dana Point. I have looked toward this spot so many times from what is now the end of my site line and it is cool to be here on the other end of my world.

There are a few small kelp outcroppings between here and the point and as I get close to the point, things get more interesting. What is also interesting is the water temperature. Close to the points in the shallower rock infested waters, it feels a bit warmer. Nice.

There are several crevices here like valleys carved out of the rock. I see more fish here too. Eventually I maneuver around the point and into Shaw’s Cove. I recognize this landscape from a few weeks ago when I swam here from Main Beach. I can’t really make out Bird Rock but I spot the Rivian Theater. There is that ugly condo complex but I bet the view from one of those units is pretty great. As long as they don’t erect a huge offshore mirror, they’ll be fine.

I wonder where to aim towards next. I see a buoy south and in shore that I remember from the last time I was here and decide to head towards that. When I reach it, I can see the beaches of Shaw’s and Diver’s coves and also that small beach below Heisler Park. I keep swimming south. I see a few other swimmers and some stand up paddle boarders about. I also see several people walking below the cliffs around the tide pools. What a great morning to be out. There are no clouds out and the temperature is very pleasant. Also no crazy summer time crowds.

The water visibility and scenery below the surface goes from great to incredible. There are several small forests and ton of fish. I see some very large Bass larger than I ever see at Strands and some other larger fish that I can’t quite identify. It’s like a party down here.

It’s eventually past 10:00 and I should probably be heading back but I wish I could stay here longer and make it all the way to Main Beach. I’m close now and see the final point that borders the northern end of that beach just ahead. I turn around and head back to the point at the end of Shaw’s cove.

The entire trip back is amazing. It feels like there is even more light penetrating the water and I fly like super man over and through the tops of trees and stare at the schools of fish tucked away inside the dense branches.

There are several rocks that stick out just above the water on the south end of the point in front of Shaw’s and I have to swim out to get around them and then I swim back in to get as close to the end of the point as I can. I swim right up to the rocks where I see a single bird feeding off of something organic on the rocks.

I trace the edge of these rocks until I am back inside of Crescent Bay and then up to about 50 feet shy of the shore. I swim the short ways along the shore to the restrooms and showers at the center of the beach and then take the few steps to get to dry sand.

Now THAT was awesome. The visibility was not quite Hawaii grade but it was darn close in several places. The landscape is very California and different from what you would see in Hawaii. You don’t see the colorful fish and coral here but you don’t have these kelp trees in Hawaii. Well maybe you do somewhere in the 99% of Hawaii’s beaches that I have not been. But you don’t have THIS kelp. It’s only in Laguna Beach.