Saturday, April 5, 2014

Lake Michigan Dreaming

For the past three springs I have watched geese laying eggs and hatching goslings on the pond in Estrabrook Park near my house.  Every year two females make nests and lay eggs on the small island in the middle of the pond, and they are guarded by one male who swims back and forth.  Here is a picture from two years ago of two of the adults and a few of the newly hatched goslings.
But this year the pond is frozen solid and for the past several days the three adults have been pacing at the side of the pond apparently waiting for the ice to melt.

I empathize with the geese as I gaze over the Lake and wonder when it will be warm enough to swim again.  Six weeks?  Eight?  All the ice on the lake may mean a slower warmup this year, or maybe not.  I read in an article that even a complete freeze over has little long term impact on lake temperatures.

In the meantime I've been dreaming (literally in my sleep) about the day when we can take our first plunge.  And I've been reading the latest book by our heroine Lynne Cox, "Open Water Swimming Manual" (highly recommended).

By the way, if anyone is interested in the Big Shoulders Swim this year (Sept. 6th in Chicago) better act  fast as it is nearly full already!

P.S.  To Kevin and anyone else interested in joining us, all you need to do is show up on the beach and introduce yourself.  Watch this blog for dates and times.  If we're lucky we'll start swimming at the end of May, but June is more likely.

9 comments:

Kahuna said...

Nice blog entry Patriarch. Several of the Kru were down at Southshore half marathon today (Cap'n, McTwist, Sonakahuna, Kahuna). Nice to have a warm sunny day. The lake was looking clear and inviting. Won't be long now.

Kahuna said...

Oh, one of Lane's daughters was there, and medaled, but I'm not sure which one. Go Bucky!

Mitch_Ti said...

Hi all- my name is Mitch I've been reading your blog for about a year now and I'm a big fan! I've done a few tri's and ski but I really like to swim so I'm hoping to hook up with you guys this summer.

By the way I just finished Lynne Cox's book "Open Water Swimming Manual" its awesome!

Kahuna said...

Mitch -- Great to hear. We look forward to meeting you on the sunny shores of Lake Michigan. Can't be long now, what with nice days like today.

Unknown said...

Hey, Is this a club that swims in Lake Michigan, in Milwaukee? Where do you guys meet and when?

Unknown said...

Sweet! Thanks for the update!!

Kahuna said...

Matt -- Yes, we are gloriously blessed to be able to swim in Lake Michigan. The season has not yet begun, but it's coming up. We typically swim from the beach at Klode Park, in Whitefish Bay. Just watch the blog come late May or June, and times for the swims are posted there daily. We look forward to seeing you there!

Kahuna said...

Riding downtown yesterday, I saw a guy surfing off Bradford Beach. I think he was taunting us.

Kahuna said...

Congratulations to the Cap'n, for his 3:18 finish at the Boston Marathon!