Pelican Party

I left the house early at about 6:20. After arriving in my favorite parking spot at the Strand, I head out for a 7 mile run through the harbor. I don’t think I have done this in many months - probably not since last summer or spring. It was great. The skies are overcast and it is a mild 57 degrees. As I run up Cove Road I can see the Dana Outrigger crew making their way north just on the other side of the breakwater short of Dana Cove.

Upon reaching the walkway just above the Strand, I can see the outriggers just rounding the bend around the point. After finishing the run and changing into my trunks, the outriggers are just north of the Ritz as I walk down the stairs. I wonder how far they go. I don’t see them the entire hour that I am in the water so they must pass Three Arch Bay into Laguna.

The tide is high and will be hitting a 4.3 high in about 45 minutes. The water comes up to the end of the beach but is mostly passable if you don’t mind getting a little wet. I can see the Sunday morning swim crew making their way back to shore just as I am starting to walk out. It’s a fairly majestic scene: humans are swimming to shore, a couple Dolphins are swimming South and a large swarm of Pelicans are swooshing down and heading north. Shortly afterwards a couple more Pelican groups do the same thing.

I head out into the water and it’s a Pelican party. Over the entire south bound stretch I see several large groups swoop down practically directly over me. It’s glorious. I love Pelicans. They are so large and unique and have a lot of character in their faces. I love the lines they form when they fly in groups and the grace with which they hover just inches above the surface of the water.

The water temperature is comfortably cold. It doesn’t hurt that I ran up Cove Road just before this swim which probably raises my core temperature. The buoy data is still coming in with 60 to 61 temperature readings. The water is not at all clear. With this overcast, everything looks grey as if I am swimming in a naturally black and white landscape.

As I get close to the southern end of the beach, I’m trying to keep a little further offshore than usual. Earlier on my run, I could see waves breaking just past the first large rock which is not particularly normal (but not at all unheard of). The surf has been reported at 3 to 4 in this area for the last couple days (much larger in the Trestles and Newport areas) which aligns with what I see over most of the beach but for some reason, this swell seems to be responding more on the south end of the beach and also on the south end of Salt Creek just north of the point. I’m seeing waves come in at both of these spots that look well overhead.

I see several Pelicans floating on the water about 50 feet inshore of me. When I get to my turnaround spot, I see a single Pelican coming right for me. It gets super close and I snap a picture hoping there it was a decent shot. Please let there not be a big splotch of water on the lense.

I turn around and head north. I’m keeping a constant eye on my familiar lifeguard tower on the point and trying to stay lined up. Like Friday, the current wants to toss me about today either prematurely into shore or out to Catalina. As I look to my left which is out to the horizon, the grey sky just blends into the grey surface of the water. There is not much detail or contrast in the texture of the clouds and the water is super smooth and acts like a flat mirror. Every now and then I see a cliff side make it’s way into my field of view which alerts me to the fact that I am more perpendicular to the shore than I want to be.

Those bathrooms just keep getting closer. Overall it’s pretty darn great out here. There are a few pleasant warm spots but there are also no super cold sections either. In many ways the bland and undistinguishable nature of the horizon colors the entire ethos of this swim. I’m not too cold and certainly not too hot. My thoughts are like a blank slate mostly which is kind of exactly how I want them to be. I’m just moving forward, forward, and ever more forward. Also exactly what I want. I’m just here in this delightfully peaceful setting making my way through the water.