Greg and Ted (a.k.a The Patriarch and The Cap'n, a.k.a Dos Locos) will record their excellent Lake Michigan swim adventures here. We'll provide daily updates on lake conditions, and our plans for upcoming swims. In addition we'll write some observations, ramblings, rants, and wacko theories related to Lake Michigan swimming (or not).
Air Temp: 70-ish, bright sun with heavy fog Clarity: crystal Waves: like glass
Kru: Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Showgirl, Rick from Boston, Magic Mike
Magic Mike, TTL, and I met up in the parking lot and proceeded down the ramp, picking up Rick from Boston at the bottom.
Shortly after we hit the sand, TTL found the Bitch Rock, and presented it to me. Unlike Love Rock, it is portable, and I shall take it with me wherever I go.
It is adorned with a lotus flower, described as "a symbol of purity, enlightenment, self-regeneration and rebirth. Its characteristics are a perfect analogy for the human condition: even when its roots are in the dirtiest waters, the Lotus produces the most beautiful flower."
Characteristics which are also a perfect analogy for Lake Michigan swimming.
Speaking of swimming, the water was even colder this morning. I had inconveniently forgotten my wetsuit, so I did a short skin swim to sewer pipe wearing my booties and gloves. (and swimsuit) TTL went past the rock wall, Rick went skin. Magic Mike disappeared into the fog, continuing his silent protest of the cold water.
MM looking dejected about the cold water situation, enormous Bitch Rock in the foreground.
Another amazing photo courtesy of TTL.
Our new swimming friend Rick mentioned this event in Vermont, the. Memphremagog Winter Swimming Festival:
Air Temp: 70-ish, though dropping as we approached the water. Bonus beautiful fog. Clarity: crystal Waves: like glass Kru: Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Dragonfly, Showgirl, Diablo on the early shift
Shore Support: dude with a kayak
The radar looked iffy pre-6am today, but we went to the beach anyway, and as usual, the rewards were great.
We were delighted by this arrangement of yellow seahorses, arching branches, and rocks. You just never know what ephemeral art installation will appear on the beach. We were grateful to the mystery artist.
Those are yellow seahorses, with assorted other artistically arranged twigs and rocks.
Even at the bottom of the ramp, the air started to cool, and it dropped further as I stood in the water taking the temperature. 55.7.
The fog moved in and out.
Amazing layers of fog
TTL stoically swam to the Tree Massacre. Dragonfly and I swam skin through weird pockets of cold and not-so-cold water, ultimately staying in far longer than we expected. I made a last minute trip to the sewer pipe.
I think the water outside the rockpiles was closer to 60, but I'm still not sure if the cold was suggesting some bad choices.
The fog as we walked up the ramp.
There was lots of shivering as we disrobed and re-robed. In the meantime, a guy and his kayak arrived on the beach, and seemed unsure of how to manage his wetsuit and baggy shorts. I think he was relieved by our departure, so he could sort out his issues alone.
Finally.... when I got home and looked at the report of my swim, I saw this star I swam around the rockpile.
Next Swims: Sun 8am and noon Mon - Fri 6 am and 5pm
Last Swim: noon Saturday
Water Temp: 52 Air Temp: 70-ish, overcast, some significant fog Clarity: clearish Waves: pretty calm Kru: Brick, Itch, Mad Dan, Adam the Appleman, Kahuna
Shore Support: Mad Dan's compadre Janelle (I hope I have that name right).
The church bells struck noon as the Kru assembled slowly in the parking lot. Who goes there? There's Itch, there's Brick, and a new face Dan (an avuncular smiling face from Madison, with a diminutive compadre), and Adam (here for his third swim). No women? When was the last time I've been down to the beach and there were no women? As we headed down, there was drizzle, and a bit of a fog over the lake (suggesting colder water). The fog does not lie. Itch calls out "52" as we suit up, except for Mad Dan, who has come wetsuitless. We head South, with the Lake deciding to spit Mad Dan back onto shore like a watermelon pip. Itch, Adam and Brick go long (almost an hour?), and Kahuna less. After not going very far, the rocks of Klode were quickly obscured by the fog. There are a couple of times when your correspondent pops his head out of the water, looks around and thinks "hmmm, I should probably swim a wwwweeee bit closer to shore, lest I see the shore no more." As Adam comes out of the water after his return, he describes his swim without any irony as almost a religious experience. I think the Kru has hooked Adam, and I hope Dan will come back again (either with a wetsuit or to be met by warmer water), and swim with us again. Adam is a good enough man to have brought a six pack, which he is willing to share.
Water Temp: 53 Air Temp: 70-ish, overcast Clarity: poor Waves: big swell/chop out of the Southeast Kru: Showgirl, Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Mr. Anonymous, Luna Laguna, Dragonfly
Shore Support: Magic Mike
Lydia TTL suggested I blog today to warn erstwhile swimmers of the temperature drop.
To provide some historical context: It was 63 yesterday at 6 a.m. Kru was Showgirl, Lydia, Magic Mike, and Mark, a new guy. We swam south in a combination of suits and skin.
Ominous photo below from Wednesday (courtesy TTL) foretelling the coldening temps. Note birds, circling over the
carrion racoon corpse. Thanks to the intervention of TTL, such was removed by WFB. It was remained a topic of interest today, as we gave a wide berth even to the sand on which it had lain.
"It looked like a chicken, like someone had lost from the store," someone commented.
"Except for the fur and the tail. The tail was a problem," said TTL.
After an ankle check, Magic Mike wisely elected to be Shore Support. TTL put in a thermometer, but pulled it at 53, while was still going down. Mr. A and Luna took off in minimal gear (Mr. A had lava pants.) We swam north in agreement that we wanted to have a readily accessible beach. TTL, Showgirl & I all suited up. TTL had gloves and booties but wished for mittens and her long-sleeved wetsuit. I wore long-sleeved wetsuit with bare hands & feet...the water did take your breath away. The air being warm helped a lot, and the quiet beauty of the morning was a fair compensation.
Full Moon Swim wed 23, tonight, at 7:30. Full moon rises over the lake at 7:42, with a sunset at 8:35 PM. Though a day early, moon light illumination is still 98% and tomorrow is forecasted to be rainy. Swimming in the intermingling light of the full moon and sun in great conditions. Air temps forecasted in 70s and water temp in 60s.
Water Temp: low 60's Air Temp: high 50's (w t f !) Clarity: not great Waves: slow small swells, but mostly flat Kru: Lydia TTL, Pannini, Mr. Anonymous, Linda the Lamprey, Showgirl, Magic Mike and Diablo on the early shift
There were a few clouds along the horizon this morning, but the rest of sky was clear.
Photo credit: TTL
We all welcomed back Linda from her amazing END-WET swim in North Dakota. It will be lovely to have her back doing relaxed swimming with us, versus her training regimen before.
We shivered while getting ready, leaving jackets and shirts on for as long as possible. We all agreed, "it could be warmer. But it's not"
TTL took the temperature and got 61. The air and water weren't too far apart.
With the water in the chilly side, I started with low expectations. "Sewer pipe." And yet, still feeling the precious nature of every swimming day, I trailed TTL to the Two Cute Chairs.
Back at the beach we compared notes about our wonky frozen fingers.
Lately I've been trying to resist my inclination to lollygag while swimming, and just get it done. But today, I deliberately took some time to savor the amazing morning sun on the shore, lighting up every detail. Even as I did that, I wondered if my refrigerated blood might be clouding my judgement just a tiny bit.
Occasionally, there are creepy/gross things at the beach and today was one of those days. The carcass of a hairless creature had washed up. Without looking too closely, it kind of looked like a cross between a plucked chicken and a piglet. Ick. R.I.P. little creature, whatever you were.
Mon - Fri 6 am and afternoons at 5pm Sat/Sun 8am and noon
Sat 6:00 a.m. (for crazy people)
Happy Juneteenth!
Last Swim: 6am Friday, (also Mon, Tues, Wed and Thurs at 6am)
Water Temp: low-mid 63-64 Air Temp: probably close to 70 Clarity: yecchy Waves: 2 feet? Estimated Kru: Lydia TTL, Showgirl, Rosa, Dragonfly
Where was everybody this morning? Maybe they had better things to do than get tossed around in the wash cycle.
I have read that wave height estimates should always be halved, but that's for sailors not swimmers. So I have estimated on the conservative side. We probably could say 3 feet and get away with it.
Showgirl continued her winning streak of 10 swimming days.
"In a Row?" I asked.
"That's generally what a streak is," she said just slightly sarcastically.
We ventured south hoping for a nice push back. Some thunderstorms were sliding away from us, according to radar, but the sky was dramatic.
Showgirl's lime crocs in the foreground. Thanks Lydia for this great photo!
The water felt cold (quelle surprise.) The other three took off further offshore than me - I like to stay inshore as I don't like using a buoy. I kept sight of them for maybe a minute, then was on my own.
I turned at Love Rock. Sometimes swimming into the waves is actually easier than the return trip which had lots of ups and downs. I kept going off at right angles to the shore. Major exertion to time your breathing with the ups. I could see how this would not be everyone's cup of tea. Despite the general unpleasantness, I found a decent rhythm. The sun started to make a showing I got closer back to home base.
Despite the great beauty of the scene, I was happy as always to get back. Took probably a good half-hour to stop shivering.
One post-swim topic was Linda the Lamprey's upcoming ENDWet North Dakota River Swim this Saturday the 19th, "a down-river swim ultra-marathon (27 miles in 2012-13, 36 miles starting in 2014) where swimmers travel from rural ND into East Grand Forks, MN, on the mighty Red River of the North. The longest swim race in North America!" ENDWet = Extreme North Dakota Watersports Endurance Test. Linda has been training for months and the Klode Kru wishes her the best of luck!
Mon - Fri 6 am and afternoons at 5pm Sat/Sun 8am and noon
Last Swim: 6am Thurs, (also Mon, Tues, and Wed at 6am)
Water Temp: low-mid 60's (no thermometer) Air Temp: probably close to 70 Clarity: improving, but still not great Waves: mostly flat Kru: Panini, Luna Laguna, Showgirl
So yesterday there were quite a few people at the beach (Lt MJ, Tattoo Lady, Dragonfly, Mr. Bubble, Magic Mike, Sandy, Showgirl, maybe others??) And it was WAVY. We mostly hung together like a little pod of dolphins, and swam to the garage or further. At the end we got spit out on the beach in clouds of debris.
Monday morning at 6am I have heard it was really wavy and sludgy, and people got tossed around enough to exit the water early. I slept in, and swam after 7am and though it was still pretty wavy, it wasn't nearly the way it was at 6.
TODAY...... today people, it was flat and beautiful, and only Luna Laguna, Panini, and I were there to enjoy it.
I launched first. LL zoomed past me, never to be seen again. Panini and I reunited when we both returned to the beach at the same time.
I swam in the flat water, determined to see the Two Cute Chairs that Tattoo Lady has spoken of. Indeed, there they were, sitting above the rock wall north of mudslide. Indeed, they are very cute.
And then I turned around. The return trip felt faster, so perhaps there was some unobservable current out of the north.
The beach and the shore and the water were peaceful and serene.
These are the magic days of summer swimming. So if you're one of those people waiting for some theoretical perfect time to start swimming with us, THIS is the time.
And oh yeah, the sandbar is back. It is a shadow of it's former glory of maybe 7 yrs ago, but it's pretty cool to be far out in the water and be able to take a little break while standing up! Or.... at least tall people can stand up.
The beach was rather quiet and the water had a sort of other worldly mirror like quality to it, with a small well timed swell that gave a nice push on the way back, all in all it was rather serene. The water temp felt like there were little cold spots all over, but when a wave rolled over you, it was like the donning of a warm cover, interesting sensations. It seems like there should be a name for this sort of feeling.
Talking points were; a possible moon light swim with a little bonfire somewhere, recycling nicknames of those who have been AWOL the last couple years, Mr. Bubbles lack of accuracy in naming crew (omitting some and naming others who were not present) which lead to some theorizing about why? Perhaps we may need to start up the Killepitsch counter again?
Next Swims: Mon - Fri 6 am and afternoons at 5pm Sat/Sun 8am and noon
Last Swim: Monday 6 am Water Temp: 66 Air Temp: low to mid 60s Clarity: very murky Waves: OMG! mostly 4 feet or more Kru: Diablo, Magic Mike (early shift), Mr. Anonymous, Mr. Bubble, Lt MJ, Sunny Laguna, Nanook
WE INTERRUPT THIS BLOG FOR AN IMPORTANT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
Athena (Thea) Aster Kegel was born Friday morning
The story of how this Athena came to Earth is a little different than the events leading up to the first Athena's arrival. For those of you who remember your Greek Mythology:
Athena's mother was Metis. Metis warned Zeus that if she bore him a boy child, the child would be greater than him. Zeus swallowed her and started having a terrible headache. Then his head split open by an axe from help from Hephestus. Suddenly, Athena came out of his head. Athena came out fully grown, with her symbols the aegis and the famous helmet of Athena.
The 21st Century Athena's mother is Klode Kru goddess and Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge, the Right Honorable Super Hera. Her Facebook post about the blessed event does not mention anything about the father swallowing the mother or having a terrible headache, just that it was a medication free birth filled that was completed ahead of schedule.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled blog post
Just like old times...Diablo departing on his bike just as the next shift was arriving. "How was it Diablo?" "Not too bad. A little rough but no whitecaps". Of course, "Not too bad" is Klode Kru Kode for "Not too good either". But he was right, insofar as the water temp was concerned, and that's what most of us are wondering about when we ask for a status update.
Get down to the beach and there's a backpack and a pile of clothes, which is quickly identified as Magic Mike's - the red Point to LaPointe t-shirt gave it away. Within a minute or two, we spot Mr. Mike heading in to shore. "How was it"?". By now, we've inferred that Diablo must not have seen those whitecaps in the dawn's early light. Magic Mike's response - "Pretty rough! I only made it to the second garage before turning back, and then made it back in just 7 strokes" (slight exaggeration but not much). We asked if Mike was able to ride the rhythm of the waves - "Not really. You could tell that a wave was coming because the water would get darker". Hadn't experienced that before and was assuming it was because the flotsam and jetsam was being stirred up. Once I got out there, I discovered the real reason the water was getting darker is because the waves for so fricking huge that they were blocking out the rising sunlight.
So, the four of us set off, and we're all heading back from spots much closer than we usually would. Lt MJ even got out on the beach and walked back part of the way. I was sighting the rock wall and was determined to get there, until I got whacked alongside the head. Everyone else was on their way back, so it was an easy decision.
Getting reacquainted with Nanook made me think of the lead songs Frank Zappa's album Apostrophe - Don't Eat The Yellow Snow and Nanook Rubs It. Sad to say, our Nanook was not familiar with these masterpieces, so I promised to post it here so she could learn more about her ancestry.
Next Swims: Mon - Fri 6 am and afternoons at 5pm Sat/Sun 8am and noon
Last Swim: Noon Saturday
Water Temp: between 68 per brick-o-meter, 71 per mitch-o-meter Air Temp: mid 80s and sunny, very light wind Clarity: murky inside the rocks, very clear beyond that. Waves: 1'-2' Kru: We'Taco (early shift) Itch, Brick, Mr. Anonymous, Mr. Bubble, Parker, Will, Capt'n, Ziggy, Diablo, Neo, Adam (first timer)
Shore Support: Neo's kids
Most remarkable thing for me today - I thought I was dreaming or hallucinating. I'm approaching birches and I notice to my left there's somebody's head bobbing up and down - some guy doing the breast stroke! I could have sworn I took my meds this morning! I had to find out if I was in touch with reality - but I couldn't catch up with him, until he stopped and stood up on a sandbar to clean his goggles (just like I had last night). So, I called out to him and learned his name is Adam and this was his first Lake Michigan swim ever. Like me, he also just does the breast stroke. He's in training to do the Olympic at the Lake Country Triathlon on July 31. Adam had been lurking the blog and decided now was the time to go for it, after reading Dragonfly's post First Skin Swim (he swam skin today, too)
Another first timer for 2021 - Parker! Her real name is Leslie, but I gave her the nickname Parker because first time I met her, she was wearing a swim cap from her swim team at Parker High School in Janesville. Alas, that swim cap is torn now, and Leslie is experiencing an identity crisis - she no longer feels that she deserves that nickname! The torn swim cap is forcing her to undergo a personal transformation. Stay tuned for further developments in the following episodes.
Even before the torn swim cap, Parker had started undergoing a transformation to become a Klode Kru evangelist - she is looking to convert other people to our religion! Today, she brought her first novice - her friend, Will. So actually, there were two "first ever Klode swimmers" today - Adam and Will.
In other news, Diablo was out past the southern most rock, submerging and surfacing, over and over. Itch came back to join him, and they pulled up a submerged tire and brought it to the beach.
Another best swim of the season!
Second to last swim - Saturday at 8 am. Per MJ, it was "65ish and pretty choppy". Four hours later, she says "I still feel like I'm rocking". Rock on, MJ!
Third to last swim: Friday at 5
Water Temp: - different readings from different devices, between 71 and 75
Air Temp: mid to upper 80s and sunny with light wind
Clarity: Crystal
Waves: 2'-3', made Big Swell look calm
Kru: itch, Brick, Mr. Bubble, Showgirl, Synchro, Janneke, Kim G, Laguna, Stickler, Capt'n and Ziggy
Shore Support: Patriarch!
So, the warm weather and warm water just keeps on coming. This graph of the Atwater Buoy readings says it all. You can also see that the buoy was taken offline late Thursday night, when the official reading had only climbed to 67. I'm sure it would have been an even steeper asymptotic curve if it had stayed online. I wondered if the buoy was taken offline because it had overheated!
This was Stickler's first swim of the season and she seemed very happy about it! Come to think of it, everyone seemed really happy to be participating in first 70+ degree swim of the season.
Last Swim: Friday 6am, , and evening swims, people are saying
Water Temp: 65 per mitchometer, cooler near the rocks
Air Temp: 70 and sunny
Clarity: pretty nice
Waves: Mostly flat, tiny swell out of the south + southerly current offshore
Kru: Diablo and Mr. Anonymous (early shift), Linda the Lamprey, Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Lieutenant MJ, Mermaid Princess, Laguna Mike, Magic Mike, Mr. Bubble, Dragonfly
Shore support: Two teenage girls (Q: "How's the water? A: "It was warm when we got out. It's nice in the sun.")
Any kind of officiousness seems like an un-Kru-like anti-virtue, but I challenge anyone to defy the skin-like nature of today's swim! 9 stalwarts showed lots of skin as well as varying wetsuit coverage ranging from sleeveless wetsuits to sleeves alone, with swims of impressive distance and duration.
How will I ever keep track of who wore what for the blog, I thought? I tossed anxiety out the window by resolving to track none of it.
I myself opted for total skin and felt cold sans gloves and booties. However I must be acclimatizing as I swam 400 yards further than yesterday. Was cruising with MJ and Lydia, ready to turn back at 600 but they kept going so I thought, I can do another hundred, against my better judgement! Turned at 700 as they swam on. Fired the up jets on the way back, which somewhat compensated in generating body heat or at least provided some distraction. Active mental game to assure myself I was not really that cold.
Though it seemed like a long swim, I was one of the first back to shore. Several of us compared afterdrop notes as well as notes on virtual conferences we had attended in the past week. Others chimed in on this rich vein as they emerged from the water. I complained about how there were NO SCHEDULED BREAKS and since we are all used to watching videos, there was no timeline at the bottom of the screen to show how long the interesting people were going to talk, thus it was hard to time necessary bio breaks. Others complained about how some people just needed to STOP TALKING, especially after NINE HOURS OF TALKING.
A UFO (unidentified floating object) of almost swimmer-like proportions slowly made its way south, maybe 4 or 500 yards offshore. "I kind of want to swim out to it, see what it is," Magic Mike commented.
There remained much to discuss as we departed the parking lot with hopeful thoughts about a long summer ahead.
Last Swim: Thursday 6am, , and evening swims, I assume
Water Temp: 63 per mitchometer
Air Temp: mid 70's, humidity 150%
Clarity: pretty nice
Waves: Mostly flat, slight gentle amusing swell
Kru: Rachel, Mr. Bubble (early shift) Showgirl, Dragonfly
Shore support: Two 20-something blonde girls on Robin's Rock
Late shift! I woke up at 5:56 a.m. Showgirl was already at the beach. "Be there in 20 minutes!" I gasped on the phone as I flung myself out the door. For the 2nd straight day the Hoan was engulfed in a solid slab of fog, I turned on the headlights. Unlike yesterday, it cleared only slightly north of downtown.
Rachel and Mr. Bubble were only represented by piles of stuff on the beach when I arrived at 6:22 but Showgirl had waited for me.
"The buoy said 60. Mr. Bubble said 63" she announced.
"Well!"
"Well, the buoy lies?"
"Well yeah but -- Well it's skin! We have to try. Do you think?"
She did. We still garbed up with gloves & booties and cautiously waded in. Immediately you could tell, slightly more than ankle deep, the water was warmer on the few square inches of exposed shin than it has been yet this year.
We ventured out inside the rock pile, heading North. The barrier is only about a foot under water, so that was interesting. Lots of interesting rocks on this side. We conferred at Sewer Pipe...then again at Garage, then agreed to 50 more yards.
We turned back then, "Because I'm not certain as to how cold I actually am," I said.
Still, it was pretty glorious. With the fog, the underwater scene was pretty monochromatic - a sort of yellowish gray, but off infinitely to the sides, sort of a dirty aquamarine. I could see Showgirl next to me both above and under the water. We kept pace pretty well together, except she kept heading out to sea. We paused again off Sewer Pipe and she said, "How did we get out here?"
My arms and shoulders (though a little cold) felt so free. It felt so good to have the water flowing over them. Oddly, my hands and feet felt wet in their gloves and booties. Showgirl felt the water "catching" on one of her gloves. I am sure the gloves will be off soon.
We swam back around the outside of the rocks on the return journey, then around the south rocks, then around the south rocks again to make 1,000 yards. Definitely warmer and cooler patches, a little pool of fingerlings just south of the rocks.
Rachel & Mr. Bubble returned from their swim to Mudslide. They had opted for wetsuits - probably a good thing, since they complained about "getting lost" in the fog! However brief that experience might have been, it is not one I would care for.
One more thing I wanted to add (how quickly we forget) even though it was Skin-able - there was a lot of shivering on the beach afterward that continued over coffee - caveat afterdrop! Please swim responsibly.
Probable swims: 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. (?) Monday-Friday
Water temp: 53.almost54
Air temp: 80s, sunny & glorious
Clarity: Nice going with the current
Crew: Showgirl, Northshore Nancy, Panini, Handyman Hank, Kahuna, Mr. Bubble, Mr. B's friend Angelina (?) Dragonfly
Heading down, Handyman Hank found a quarter "I'm getting paid to swim!" He is definitely the Scavenger King.
Again the Bubble-ometer seemed to be running hot as everyone agreed that whatever the temp, it was still DANG cold. Despite a north-running current we recklessly swam north, skittering along to Mudslide, where Showgirl & I took stock and decided it was high time to turn and reckon with the long slog back. Showgirl took off hellbent-for-leather while I took a more leisurely approach and tried to enjoy the process. There was actually quite a lot to enjoy as the sun was plentiful and warm and the breeze, though kicking up, was sweet-smelling as yesterday.
Kahuna hustled us along with a surprise a.m. serving of Killepitsch! My standards are so low, I wasn't even out of my wetsuit. "To the Church of Lake Michigan!" Mr. Bubble added a blessing in Hebrew.
Congratulations to all the Klode Kru who made a great showing at the 2021 Big Swell Swim in Madison including Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Captain, Lieutenant MJ, Cindy (?) and Mr. Bubble. We'll show you chop!
How long the indefatigable iPhone was swimming with the fishes remains a mystery.
And finally, a memo to the KACHOW!! folks (inspired by my swim yesterday): Love Rock could use a touch-up.
Crew: Show Girl, Dragonfly Riffraff, Handy Man Hank, Moondaug, Jenny
Shore support: Squeeze of showgirl
Last swim: 8 am
Next swims: Noon and 8 am Sat.and Sun.
Great morning for a swim. It was a magnificently beautiful mid morning bright sky with smeared clouds, along with crystal clear and nicely textured water with a slight north swell. Even the sandy bottom ripples were aligned perfectly to keep one swimming in the right direction. As an added bonus, Handy Man Hank retrieved an abandoned and submerged iphone (still operating!) from just outside the rocks. Fish with iphones, what could they be doing?
Last Swim: Friday 6am, and also Thursday, and also evening swims, I assume
Water Temp: 51, but... we agreed it felt colder
Air Temp: 70ish
Clarity: better in some places, worse in others
Waves: Flat, with some riffles out of the south
Kru: Dragonfly, Panini, Showgirl, Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Magic Mike
TTL, Dragonfly, and I were headed down the ramp at the shockingly early time of 5:59. We were unpacking our gear as Panini and Magic Mike strolled in.
The water was flat and the beach was quiet and beautiful. These are the rewards of a morning swim.
Circle of light under the rain... further signs of alien visitation.
We engaged in some idle chit-chat while putting on our gear. TTL took the temperature, and though 51 seemed great, we all agreed later that it did not feel that warm.
Today was the maiden voyage of my new, 7mm booties (thanks Lake Effect!). During the swim they were nothing short of amazing, and my feet stayed warm and dry. Yes, DRY, people. Dry. But they were a total b*tch to remove after.
Anyway, we swam north. TTL and I turned back at New Mudslide, Dragonfly cruised on to mudslide. Magic Mike lapped us as usual.
On the return trip, TTL and I were slogging back and stopped to study the garage graffiti. Our first thought was... if you have a hankering to do some tagging, wouldn't you want to do it in a place where more people would see it? On the back wall, "KACHOW" in fluffy comic sans. On the outside, "UR a King" affirmed what we already knew.
As if these words didn't feel meaningful enough already, I poked around on the internet and (surprise!) found a few things:
KA-CHOW! must have been sprayed by an 8yr old, because the word features prominently in the movie "Cars." Here's a compilation, but I'm going to tell you right now, life is too short to watch the whole thing:
https://youtu.be/w9ioRZdYuD4
"UR a King" requires a bit more interpretation. UR is a book written by Stephen King. And that's as far as I'm going to delve into that one, though the intersection of oblique literary references+graffiti+ Stephen King seems about right.
Swim on, friends. It's supposed to be 76 tomorrow at 8am.
Mon - Fri 6 am and afternoons at 4 pm? Sat/Sun 8am and noon
Last Swim: Wednesday 6/2 @ 6 am Water Temp: 48 per duck-o-meter Air Temp: 59, SUN Clarity: Getting there Waves: Flat Kru: Showgirl, Lydia the Tattooed Lady, Magic Mike, IceDaug, Dragonfly
Shore support: Person in blue t-shirt with a little dog north of barrier
Pre-swim Magic Mike entertained us with a story about how, sometimes while swimming, one of his fingers felt like it had a cut on it
"you know like when you have a cut, and it has that loose flappy thing? Like it's flapping in the water. Then I get out and I see, I have no cut!"
We agreed there must be a name for this neurologic phenomenon, and that Mike should ask the next neurologist that he runs into at a cocktail party. Mike spoke for the hypothetical neurologist: "I'm taking my drink over THERE. Don't talk to that guy! He's into flappy things!"
Talk transitioned to a broken big toe that Lydia had suffered in a work accident involving a malevolent white board. "It swelled to about 4x its size and turned all sorts of colors. The doctor velcroed this cardboard thing to my foot, since I couldn't put on a shoe, and it kind of flapped when I walked."
Aha! I thought. There's the theme.
IceDaug was first into the water in a shorty wetsuit, and out by the time the rest of us finished suiting up.
Clarity definitely improving--we had a nice view of sand ripples all the way, halfway between Rock Wall and New Mudslide. There was a clearing with some chopped-down trees, and there looks to be a new staircase just before New Mudslide.
Magic Mike floated past me like I was standing still. He has the most amazing slow, even sedate-appearing stroke rate, then when you breathe again he is 30 yards ahead....like he's being propelled by some kind of invisible....MAGIC....force. Showgirl, Lydia & I all commented on it back on shore as we basked in the much-appreciated post-swim sun, but Mike had already departed.
Lydia and Showgirl declared it "Best Swim of the Season" but I felt cold. Think I was spoiled by the low-50's temp on Monday.
