Saturday 11 AM Pier Swim. We will probably have to cancel

When I saw the dredging barge and pipes at the pier today I decided to call the Harbor.  The guy told me that they will be spraying the outflow of the harbor drege sludge just north of the pier;  it was supposed to have begun, and he expects it to be ongoing this weekend during Earth Day.
Yuck.  I would consider it cancelled. I will update if changes.  I will also go down there Friday AM.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Wed Pier Water Report: Bad for a Swim at 1 PM

 I wanted to get in the water to get an idea what it might be like for Saturday morning.  Let's hope Sat is better than Wed.  The water was on the dirty side, with a very strong current running NORTH.  The reverse of the usual direction.  It has also turned into a construction zone with the big, ugly, 2 1/2 foot diameter pipes for transporting the muck that they are dredging from the Harbor down to the Pier area.  I did not see any outflow today, but I am suspicious because of how dirty the water seemed.
I got in with a wet suit and fins and kicked out past the restrooms on the Pier and it didn't get clean out there.  I am going to call the City or Harbor to try to get some dredging info because I do not want to be in the beach when that muck is being pumped in--quite gross.
58-60 degrees per surfline.  4 foot ugly waves at 12 second intervals.  Not surfable really.  The water was not swimmable for a Pier swim north to south.  Perhaps south to north in cleaner water would have been ok.

"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Pier Swim Sat 11 AM

One mile fun Pier swim this Sat. 27th @ 11 AM.  Meet at pay parking lot on north side of Pier. Fast or slow, wetsuits or not, fins or not.

My plan to swim north to south in a big arc. Start at bottom of Surfrider or at the brick restrooms there, then out about 75 yards past the end of the Pier and arc in to land at the pink Oceanside Beach Club Building or Seagaze St.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Possible Swim This Saturday Pier Mile for Earth Day

This Saturday from 11 AM to 4 PM, Oceanside is having an Earth Day Green Celebration (whatever that is) at the Pier Rec Center.  How about a swim from north of the Pier a bit--between the brick restrooms and Surfrider Way and out in a big arc around the Pier.  Then we come in to hit the beach at between Seagaze Drive (the steep street) and the pink California Beach Club.  That should be a good mile if we don't arc it close to the end of the pier.  I've done it a hundred times.
Contact me, e-mail me on this site.  I want to put a maximum of 12 swimmers to avoid chaos.  I'm slow and slow are welcome, fins or barefoot are welcome, wetsuits or not are welcome.
We could meet at the pay lot on north side of Pier at 11 AM.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."

Ocean Swimming With a Snorkel?

I was at the newish Tri-City Hospital Wellness Center today.  This is in Carlsbad, CA and serves as a physical therapy and rehab center for patients along with being an 'open-to-the-public' club membership.  It is a beautiful and upscale facility, not at all what I encounter in my life.
I was there to be evaluated by a physical therapist because I want nerve pain injection blocks in my neck to the right side of my cervical fusion.
But, the providers are not ready to okay this yet.
The physical therapist was excellent and took a long time with me.  The exam room looked out over a 25 meter four-lane pool below us, so we talked swimming a bit.  She is a more-than-recreational swimmer;  she's mainly a pool swimmer but also does some ocean swimming too.  As she examined my neck, discussed strengthening exercises, and showed me how to improve my neck strength to decrease future pain, she pointed out a woman below swimming with a mask and snorkel.  She pointed a few different swimmers out and talked about how their necks, heads, and shoulders were moving or not.  Her take-home lesson for me was to try the snorkel to cut down on the pressure and twisting of my neck.
She told me that the swimming was doing damage to my surgical neck fusion; this hadn't been pointed out to me before, but I believe her.
So, I will be looking in the garage for a snorkel to follow her instructions.  Maybe I will get a new life in the water.


"The first time you quit is the last time you try."