San Francisco Bay Swim

I did it. I got to swim in San Francisco Bay.  It was all I had dreamed it would be and it has opened me up to wanting more.

My conference ended at 11am, and my flight from SFO was at 5, so I knew I had to move efficiently to get the maximum time in the water. I took an UBER from the hotel to the Aquatic Park. The UBER driver was really friendly and also disbelieving that I was going to swim in that water!

I went in to the Dolphin Club and paid there $10 fee to use the facilities.  Changed in the locker room and was out on the beach in no time!

The water was a warm 51.7 degrees.  Or at least it felt warm in comparison to the 46ish degree Puget Sound.

The water was also VERY murky. I could barely see my hand in front of my face. But the water had barely any taste of salt.  That may be because of recent storms.

Swimming in the middle of a city I love was such a pleasure.

I stayed parallel to shore.  Swam one loop, got out and checked the time, then swam another. The hot shower and sauna after were great.

And I got to warm up with a family tradition--- Ice Cream at Ghirardelli square! (notice how many spoons they gave me!!)

Taste of the Water

In the past week I've had the pleasure of swimming in Puget Sound, Lake Washington and the pool at my local gym.  One of the things that struck me about the first swim back in the Lake, after a winter in Puget Sound, was that the water isn't salty!  It know, it isn't profound. It is definitely something I knew, intellectually.  But the realization was visceral.

I don't love the taste of Puget Sound. I know some of my fellow swimmers do. But the salt bothers me.  Lake Washington, doesn't have the salt taste, but it isn't really a clean taste either. It is always a bit "green" like there is something growing.  Which there is.

The best tasting lake I've swum in recently is Crescent Lake in Olympic National Park. The water had no taste at all.  It was amazing. So clean!  The color was remarkable too, blue, and clear deep enough to trigger my fear of heights as I came close to shore and could see the bottom again.

Crescent Lake

So although I don't try to drink the water (though I often get a face-full on a windy day) I am aware of the taste of what I swim in. Just one more reason to avoid polluting our waterways!