Open Water Swim FAQ

I wrote this FAQ for my Open Water Swim Facebook group.

Welcome to the Western Washington Open Water Swim Facebook Group.  The FAQ below is to help you get started in Open Water Swimming. Feel free to read it and then ask questions that aren’t answered here.  We are a social group with a swimming problem and always happy to meet new swimmers or potential swimmers.

Where do I swim?

Almost any body of water can be a swimmable body of water.  Some of the more popular places to swim around Seattle include:

Alki beach- start at the bathhouse and swim to the lighthouse and back

Golden Gardens- beware of strong current around the point to the north

Greenlake- Start at the bathhouse and swim to the rec center and back, or vice versa

Lake Smammish

Lake Washington- Madison beach is popular, swimming south, away from the 520 bridge. People also like to swim around the Seward Park peninsula. Much, if not all of Lake Washington is swimmable

Martha Lake

Wherever you swim, start out swimming parallel to shore and don’t go too far from your exit point. You can always do “laps” if you want to swim longer.

What do I wear?

At a minimum a bathing suit, cap and goggles are necessary.  Brands and styles of all of these are a matter of personal preference. Buy what you can afford, and don’t sweat fashion too much. Once you are in the water, no one really sees what you are wearing. The exception to that is the cap. A BRIGHT colored cap makes you more visible to boaters and other swimmers, and adds a degree of safety to your excursion.

Additional gear you might like:

Wetsuit- buy a suit designed for triathletes so you have the most mobility possible while swimming. These are usually thicker (3-5mm) on your torso and thinner (1-3 mm) on your arms. Some people think a wetsuit is essential for the temperatures in our waters here, others find them too restrictive to swim in.  It really is a matter of personal preference and no one can decide for you if a wetsuit is needed or not. Long or short on the sleeves and legs is also personal preference. Buy what you can afford and what makes you feel safe and comfortable. Blue Seventy is a local to Seattle company. Xtera also makes triathlon wetsuits.  One swimmer said this about wetsuits: “For me wearing a wet suit makes me feel warmer and I swim faster. Going skin makes me feel tough, strong and determined. Both choices are good things.”

Neoprene booties and/or gloves- like the wetsuit this is a matter of personal preference. They are pretty easy to find at the local dive shops, and often are made by major wetsuit manufacturers. Blue Seventy for example.  They will keep your feet and hands marginally warmer.  Booties also will protect your feet from all but the sharpest of debris on the ocean or lake floor.

Neoprene cap- some like to wear a neoprene cap to keep their head warmer. These also are available in dive shops, and often have a strap that goes under your chin. Most neoprene caps come in black, so folks still wear a brightly colored latex or silicone swim cap over them for visibility.

Earplugs- for some reason earplugs can help with both warmth and potential motion sickness for swimmers, and are therefore highly recommended. They also may help prevent some types of swim related ear infections. You can buy waxy ones at local drug stores (Bartells, Wallgreens) or you can buy swim specific earplugs from swim stores.  The goal is to keep water out of your ears. They do reduce what you can hear while they are in.

Swim Buoy- This is a brightly colored inflatable buoy that you wear tethered to a strap around your waist. The goal of the buoy is to increase your visibility in the water, so boaters, other swimmers, and/or your friends on shore can spot you more easily. Some buoys come with a dry bag feature, so you can take valuables (car keys, phone, etc) with you and not leave them on the beach. These buoys are inflatable, so are not life saving devices, but can be used to support a swimmer who needs to adjust equipment or take a brief rest.

Anti-chaffing cream- Body Glide, Vaseline, zinc oxide or similar may be useful for you if you are going for longer swims and/or swimming in salt water. Put it any place your skin might rub with other skin or with your gear. Wetsuit swimmers often have issues with their necks. Skin swimmers with their armpits.

How do I handle the cold?

The best tip for handling the cold is to take your time to get used to the cold.  That means starting with a shorter swim than you might think—10-15 min without a wetsuit, 15-20 with—and working your way up. You may easily swim an hour in the pool, but the outdoor waters in the Pacific Northwest are much colder than your typical pool, most of the year. Your body will, over time, acclimatize to colder waters, and you will be able to swim for longer and longer.  Start slow.

The second tip for the cold is to get out of your wet gear as quickly as you can after you get out of the water.  Don’t plan to drive home in your bathing suit. If there aren’t changing facilities around, wrap a towel around you and do a “deck change”. Staying in the cold wet suit (especially women’s one piece suits) will continue to chill you.

Everyone has their own routine for re-warming after a swim. Many enjoy hot beverages, hot showers or baths, small microwaveable or chemical heat packs (like you would use for an injury) placed on their core, or exercises for the large muscle groups (squats, burpees, etc).

How do I stay safe?

There are no promises of safety in Open Water Swimming.  These are things you can do to reduce your risk:

Swim with a friend, or have a friend spot you from shore.

Swim parallel to shore.

Wear a bright colored cap and/or tow a buoy to stay visible.

Let wildlife have the right of way- we are visiting their home turf, don’t pursue or touch animals.

Be ready to re-warm when you get out of the water.

Use your best judgement, when in doubt, get out (of the water). If you think you are too cold, the animal is too close, the waves are too strong, or whatever, turn back and get out. Better to live to swim another day.