80th day of swimming! It was a sunny warm afternoon at the Berkeley Marina where Arwen and I met for a swim. First, we spent a long time relaxing on the dock, soaking in the sun, struggling to make ourselves get into the water when we were so lovely and warm on land. A group… Read More Strange Cold (Day 80)
It was another mountain bike race weekend, this time down near Monterey. Kevin and I spent the morning watching Hazel killing it on the track. And then, while she cheered on the rest of her team (mountain bikes races are ALL day affairs), we snuck away for a few hours to find a place to… Read More Lover’s Point Beach and (Not) Facing Fears (Day 79)
We arrived at the bulb before sunrise in hopes of repeating the magical full moonset/sunrise swim from last month. The sky had other plans for us. Dramatic plumes of clouds greeted us: gray on gray, light on dark, swirling and changing moment to moment. Sheila, Arwen, and I were swimming this morning and we didn’t… Read More Dramatic Sky (Day 78)
Sometimes when I’m swimming in the bay at the Albany Bulb it’s all so familiar I don’t see it at first; I’m just there, doing what I do day in and day out, a body moving through space, changing clothes, plunging into cold water, feeling and not feeling the sensations. Then I remember I have… Read More Paying Attention (Day 77)
I celebrated Saint Patrick’s day this morning with a wild swim with my favorite wild, Irish swimmers, Sheila and Angie. I can’t get over how radically the bay changes from one day to the next. Yesterday was as calm as it gets; all soft rippling water in bright colors, sunlight pouring down, the gentlest tickle… Read More Happy Saint Patrick’s Day (Day 76)
All traces of yesterday’s storm were gone this morning, except for the flotsam and jetsam bobbing around on top of the water. The air quality wasn’t looking great; a murky brown haze clung to the city when I arrived at the Albany Bulb. But the water was luxuriously flat; silky ribbons of silver, green and… Read More Solo Swim (Day 75)
I was so excited to wake up to the sound of rain against my window this morning. The relentless drought in California is like a constant pressure in the back of my mind; a niggling worry that never lets up. To hear that spattering of water filled me with relief and joy. Unfortunately, it didn’t… Read More Rain (Day 74)
After my glorious weekend of swim adventures, today was a good day for the inward focus of lap swimming in a pool, guarded by this rock star: Since the pool doesn’t give me a lot to write about or photograph, I’ll take this opportunity to recommend “The Swimmers” by Julie Otsuka. This slim volume is… Read More “The Swimmers” (Day 73)
My friend, Angie, comes from a family of swimmers. She grew up in Ireland swimming in the River Shannon with her brothers and sisters and in the sea with her grandmother, who swam every day. Her sister, Darina, who kindly put us all up for the night at her lovely house in Sebastopol, is also… Read More Doran Beach (Day 72)
Today started early. It was the first of a two-day swimming getaway with Angie, Arwen, and Sheila and we headed for Palomarin trailhead on the Coast Trail where the plan was to hike a few miles to Bass Lake, swim, and hike back. The lake is along the same trail as the extremely popular Alamere… Read More Bass Lake and Tomales Bay (Day 71)