I'm in Laguna Beach again today. I just finished swimming now and here I am sitting on the beach with coffee and I’m pretty sure I don't need to go anywhere else ever. I've seen all I need to see. I'm totally good now. Thanks universe. Lots of love.

I'm tempted to just end this post here but then how could I merge in all the pictures? I took 100 exactly and I haven't even looked at them yet but I’m sure there are some gems. (Update: there are gems).

So me and Sunny left home at 8. I dropped him off at class and I headed to Crescent Bay beach which I have never been to before. I found a great FREE parking spot just about 100 feet from the beach.

The beach is very lovely. It's small - maybe 500 feet long. The walk way comes down right to the center where their is a restroom with showers and a lifeguard tower. There is a sign that says to stay off Seal Rock. I don't know which rock is seal rock. So I'll try to stay off of all the rocks.

To the south is the point that I swam to last time from the other side. From this side I recognize it immediately. It is one of those iconic Laguna points I have seen in so many photographs.

There is some kind of high school cheerleading picture taking event going on. I walk past the small crowd and get my bearings. It looks like right here is as good of a place as any to get in the water.

I spot a group of about 4 or 5 swimmers coming to shore right here. I figure I'll chat with them a bit first. Like all swimmers I have met, they are super friendly. One isn't wearing a wetsuit. Hey there are others like me in these parts. He shows me where Seal Rock is. It's kinda obvious really but in my defense I see no seals on it.

I get in the water. There are small waves breaking right on the beach similar to Main beach. It's almost high tide. The water is cool and about as cold as I expected given my swim yesterday.

I start swimming since the water reaches head high pretty quick. It's a nice sandy bottom here and a small school of fish are hovering just above the floor.

I aim for Seal Rock which is about 200 feet out and to the north. My plan is to swim north for 30 minutes and hope to get to the end of the next beach, emerald Bay, and then come back and continue just a little ways south to that iconic point and then back to the showers.

Have I mentioned that it is gorgeous here? I already described the southern point and the northern point is this cliff face that is nearly red. I can't see past that now and Seal Rock is just out past the end.

On the way to Seal Rock there is a reef that runs east and west. I swim along and look for as far as I can along and down it's face. I can't see much today. Then I see something kind of bright out of the corner of my eye. I take a closer look and it is large bubbles rising to the surface from below. I look down and see divers fins. I’m then nearly startled to the core when I see the full body of a scuba diver about 15 feet beneath me.

I recover quickly from this fright and continue toward Seal Rock. I see breakers over a small patch of water between me and my target rock. I plot a course around the white water which must be a spot of shallow rocks and soon I’m close to Seal Rock. There are actually two rocks - or at least they look like two rocks. I’m not sure which is Seal Rock. I’d assume the one that is slightly larger. Neither have seals. They are very cool to look at.

Everything here is very cool to look at. I’m pretty close to the northern outlet of Crescent Bay. Wow the orange in those rocks looks so neat. Do they aways look like this or is it just the angle of the sun right now? I must come back to investigate. Further north is about 1000 feet or so of cliff and I can see a glimpse of the buildings that occupy Emerald Bay. I am barely able to see the northern end of its beach. There is a large boat docked at the north end of the Bay. It’s northern point is a large bulwark of more of this orange rock covered with estates. To my south is that same famous point but from this angle it is no longer recognizable and has a completely different shape to it. There are heavy clouds in the southeast distance that make the sky look extra cool. These clouds will bring rain later in the day.

I swim inshore of Seal Rock between it and the cliffs which is what the swimmers I was chatting with before the swim suggested. They said this area is particularly scenic underwater but they also said visibility is bad today. They were correct. Once I round the corner beyond the bay, I really can’t see a thing. It wasn’t great before but it is like pitch black darkness here. It’s just a little unsettling not being able to see anything, being close to the cliffs and having never swam here before. I’m not freaked out though. I know this is a popular swim and snorkel spot and it’s high tide and low surf right now.

I maintain course alongside the cliff. I can see what look like a couple of small caves between the water and the base of the cliff. Although surf is small today, there are waves pounding the cliffs not too far east of where I am so I am not going to get any closer to them than I am now.

Soon I begin to see Emerald Bay start to open up. From what I hear, it is a private community and there is no public access to this beach. It’s a larger beach than Crescent and more densely populated. I can’t even fathom the collective property value of all that I see in front of me. It is beautiful here. I consider veering closer o the beach but I’ve been out about 24 minutes and I want to get as close to the next point as I can before turning around so I just head straight ahead. I will indeed be coming back and can explore further later.

There is a big metal buoy that I think says “Laguna Swim Area.” I reflect on this and feel like I must be exactly where I am supposed to be. This is afterall the swim area and I am swimming. What better place to swim than the swim area itself! Later I look at my pictures, zoom in and see it says, “Caution swim area.” Still doesn’t change the fact that this is the swim area.

Closer to the beach there are about three, maybe more, large round white buoys that look metal and are evenly spaced from one end of the bay to the other. I see a small group of swimmers hanging out at one of these buoys. Here we all are - in the swim area.

I hit my 30 minute mark about the same time that I reach that large boat. It looks like a nice boat but not a Super Yacht or anything so opulent. I feel satisfied with how close I got to the northern point. I can’t touch it but I could probably yell and be heard from it. I refrain from shouting.

Back I go. I can see Seal Rock like two small pebbles out in the distance. I do swim back a little closer to the shore than how I came out. Once I get back to the big block-like “Caution swim area” buoy I try to make sure I retrace my course so I’m not too close to the cliff. Now that I am swimming south, I breath on the shore side and watch that cliff the whole way down. I love it. I get back to Seal Rock and I love watching it from this perspective. There are tons of birds perched on it and flying around it. I see more breakers crumbling along side the rock.

As I re-enter Crescent Bay, the water abruptly changes color from blackish-brown to greyish-blue. It is refreshing and I can feel the algae being rinsed off of my skin. Well not really but I can certainly imagine it. I swim out all the way to the very end of the southern point of Crescent Bay. This is such a cool and beautiful beach. The fewer homes here look more rustic and some have these stairways that run down the cliff and have these fort-like structures built half way down the stairs.

Waves are pounding into this point and some of the rocks just beyond it. I look inland and spot the bathroom where I entered the water. The beach is so small that it would be hard to miss. I swim directly for it which takes me in a diagonal line along the south end of the beach.

I reach the sandy bottom. I am soon barely able to reach my toes to the floor and then about three more steps and I’m out of the water. That might be a small exaggeration but it’s how I remember it.

Ok. These showers are great. Not fancy. Looks like they have not been upgraded in some time but they have great water pressure ad you get several seconds of water with every push of the button. These buttons may have been manufactured in the same factory as those on the upper Strands showers - quality stuff.

I walk back up to my car. There are a bunch of cars that were here when I arrived earlier that are gone now. Lots more spaces now. Must have been those cheerleaders. I change my clothes in the street which I’m sure the residents appreciate. I was discrete. Everything was fit for family viewing I promise. I grab my coffee and muffin that I brought from home. The coffee I keep in this amazing thermos I was once given at work for completing some software project and it is one of the better work gifts I have ever received.

I return to the beach to relax with my coffee and start this post. That was hours ago by the way and I am no longer there but I can’t wait to go back. Crescent Bay beach everybody. Now that’s a beach!