21 Area Beach Swim After Work

Mr. M and I went to 21 Area and the water was a warm 70 degrees.  The beach is a bit rough and choppy outside.  This was just a feeling-out swim for the beach to get accustomed to the water there.  There is a small white buoy about 150 yards out that we eased our way out to and then we took our time coming in.  It's such a nice, wide, sandy beach that it's neat just to laze around there.
Sometimes there's things like in this picture out there that can distract one from one's swimming objectives, though. We just have to hang in there and persevere.

Low Tide Oceanside Pier Swim

The 71 degree water makes me lazy.  I swam slowly in a one-foot chop from south to north.  I studied the water for a while trying to figure out the current.  Lots of red flags were out by the lifeguards indicating inside currents but the distant current was difficult to figure.  The breeze was south.  I ended up swimming north and got it correct.  I stopped at the end of the pier and there was no current at all off the end of the pier.  Then a slight north movement inside as I came in.  I found some sea shells with the low tide.  It was a nice day out there today.  My training for the Pier swim is moving along ok.

Kayak Oceanside Harbor

I did a swim with my daughter kayaking in the Oceanside Harbor area Sunday afternoon.  Warm water again, and a beautiful day.

Rip Currents Oceanside CA

The lifeguards were on alert this evening when I arrived at 6 PM at the beach at Surfrider Way, a couple of hundred yards north of the pier. There were red flags with "rip current" signs along the beach. I studied the water thinking about which direction to swim. The muddy, dirty area at Surfrider often has rips, and there is a lifeguard station there. The rip current is a strong flow or current of water north or south. The rip tide is due to a low sand area under the water where water from breaking waves on the beach finds a low spot and follows it out to sea again. It can pull you out to sea. The rip tide can be seen by observing the water for a dstinctly different surface appearance-an uneven, bubbly, muddy patch of water perpendicular to the shore.

Saturday evening the wind was blowing south, the surface of the water was moving south, and I decided to swim that way. The first hundred yards or so out from Surfrider was rough heading out because of the north current but as I got out to the distance at the end of the pier there was a gentle south current that helped me swim along southward. Then, swimming in was rough again; I didn't feel a rip current but I felt that I had to swim hard to pull myself in.

The tide was low. Perhaps there was a tide shifting slightly. Who knows. The ocean is a mystery-powerful and ever-changing. I looked at a couple of sailboats moving north and they both had their front sails down; I think it was because they were heading into the wind.

It was warm, 71 degree water, but lousy visibility. Stirred up all the way. Silty. I'm improving and had the energy to run back along the beach to where I started from. A tough, good swim evening.

Swim 6 PM Today, July 16th Oceanside Pier

I'll be doing a pier swim tonight about 6 PM at Surfrider Street where it meets the beach at the turnaround. Park near Pappy's Market at Surfride and Cleveland Street. There is plenty of free parking with a short walk to the sand. The current should be a bit of a rip to the north inside and a mild south current far out at the pier. The water is warm. No wet suit needed. Fins welcome. Wet suits welcome.
I'll call a couple of you guys.
E-mail me if interested.