Angel Island - Swimming Once Around!

Swimming around Agnel Island, with Racoon Straits on the left side. Photo by Save the Bay Blog

What seemed beyond insanely misguided yesterday seemed reasonable and within reach today.

Our swim club, the South End Rowing Club (SERC), had planned a late October swim from Angel Island to San Francisco. I felt confident I could complete the swim and estimated it would take me less than three hours. I had mentally committed to the experience.

And then SERC canceled the swim.

I conspired with my swim buddy Sarah about other swim options. We thought it would be fun to swim around Angel Island and invited a few of our pod mates to join the adventure. Darlene, Elizabeth, Laura, and Vanessa all (willingly) agreed to swim with us.

Most phenomenal swim buddies: Back (L - R) Laura, Sarah, Darlene. Front: me, Vanessa, Elizabeth

We picked a date and booked the swim with Pacific Open Water Swim Company (https://www.pacificswim.co/). This would be my second swim with Sylvia and Bryan. You can read about my first swim with them here:    https://funmusings.blogspot.com/2017/12/an-alternate-sauna.html

After booking the swim, my biggest concern was the water temperature would quickly drop and I wouldn't be able to tolerate the cold water for an estimated three hours. I'm the person who goes swimming and then shakes, shivers, chatters, and struggles to warm up. Take one look at me getting out of the water, and there's no way you would ever consider swimming in San Francisco Bay. This frail state has been my reality until this past summer. This year, I decided to push my limits, and slowly acclimated to swims greater than two and a half hours, peaking with an Alcatraz round trip swim. Here's a blog about the adventure:    https://funmusings.blogspot.com/2019/09/alcatraz-being-comfortable-made-me.html

Carpooling to the Ft Baker! Sarah's at the wheel with Vanessa behind me and Laura behind Sara

I continued training by including longer swims. Before we knew it, the day of our swim arrived and we were carpooling to meet the boat at Fort Baker, near the Golden Gate Bridge's northern towers in Sausalito.

After a complete and thorough safety and swim briefing, we headed over to Angel Island. Bryan had told us the actual currents have differed significantly from the tide book predictions, but he and Sylvia had accounted for the variances. All we needed to do was follow their guidance and pay attention to their sighting instructions. Pacific Swim Co provided two safety boats to optimize coverage for all six of us.

When we arrived at the jump site, the sun shone brightly, the winds remained calm, and the air temperature hovered in the upper 60s. We applied one final coat of sunscreen, put on our caps, goggles, and earplugs, then jumped in.  I felt remarkably calm and dove off the boat into the water. I NEVER dive off the boat, so I knew my head was in a good place.

And it was.

About to start swimming near Point Simpton

We started swimming. At first, Sarah and I pulled ahead. Bryan sent us back to the group. I settled down and then podded tightly with Elizabeth and Laura at the perfect pace. Sarah caught up with Vanessa, and they started to pull away - staying about 100 yards ahead of us. Darlene planned to swim the second half of the route and agreed to take photos until she jumped in just before Racoon Straits.

Swimming along the Guard House. Elizabeth in pink, Laura on the Left, and me in front

I felt very comfortable with my swimming except my goggles were really foggy. Other than Elizabeth's pink cap, I couldn't see very well. The shore was fuzzy, the sky was fuzzy, but I kept swimming. We fed after forty-five minutes and I drank a few ounces of my protein-based electrolyte drink. I also ate a chocolate Cliff Shot. My body felt typically chilled, but not cold. I didn't want to stop for the feed longer than necessary.

Sylvia pilots the inflatable and gives us our first 2 feeds

We kept swimming, and before we knew it, we fed again. Sylvia and Bryan anticipated we would be swimming into the shore current through Racoon Straits which separates Angel Island from Tiburon. Accordingly, they gave us our feed early to ensure we wouldn't get pushed too far backward while fighting our way through Racoon Straits' current. Racoon Straits is the narrowest and deepest channel separating Angel Island from Marin County's mainland. It's known for having the fastest moving currents anywhere in the San Francisco Bay.

Beautiful and calm waters as I approach Point Blunt

Shortly after my second feed, swimming started to feel difficult. My stroke felt labored, my legs sank, and I still couldn't see through my foggy goggles.  I felt on the edge of getting cold, but not cold. Although I wasn't yet aware of it, my mind was no longer in a good place. Darlene later told me she had prepared a pep talk (or perhaps a stern talking to) and wasn't going to let me get out of the water. She could see I was struggling from her vantage point on the boat.

I continued to swim until the next feed and had already decided nothing bad would happen if I got in the boat. My mind had gone to all the negatives of open water swimming - cold, shivering, hungry, impatient, and generally grumpy. All I could think to do was change out my goggles. I swam up to Bryan and likely barked out I wanted to change to my back-up goggles. I threw the pair I wore at him with all my might. By this time, my might wasn't so much, so he likely laughed at my misdirected energy.

The water became more active as we approached Racoon Straits

After putting on the new goggles, I could see clearly - finally! Seeing clearly should have been a really good experience because there are so many interesting buildings and harbors to see along Angel Island. Sadly, my psyche remained in a bad place and I no longer wanted to feed or stop, let alone take in the magnificent views. I just wanted to finish the swim. I guessed we had another hour of swimming. However, I refused to look at my watch because there was no benefit from counting the clock.

Swimming past the former military base

By this time, I had regrouped with Sarah. Elizabeth was 50 yards behind us. I could see Sylvia in the second boat another 150 yards behind Elizabeth. Bryan asked us to turn around and swim back to the group. I stopped, looked at Sarah, and may have uttered several expletives. Sarah calmly and nicely smiled back at me before turning around and intercepting Elizabeth. I floated for a few seconds, said a few more inappropriate four-letter words, and then also headed back to Elizabeth. Sarah later referred to this as my grumpy period.

After having another Cliff Shot, I started to feel a bit better and my mind calmed. However, I wasn't interested in drinking any more fluid. Bryan (and likely Sarah too) suggested I swim closer to the shoreline but still stay far enough from shore to remain in the sun's warm rays. The sun felt great, and no doubt helped me relax a bit more.

By now, my swimming felt solid again. I emerged from the grumpy period and started to enjoy the swimming tremendously. We rounded Point Cambell, and I just put my head down and swam. Sarah remained in front of me with Elizabeth just a few yards behind. We continued to power through the rest of the swim. I could see Darlene, Laura, and Vanessa as they swam alongside Sylvia. The waters felt warm, my stroke felt relaxed, and my body seemed to glide through the water.

Me sighting while breathing - I'll need to work on that :-) . Photo by Pacific Open Water Swim Co

Brian positioned the boat where we would climb out and complete our swim. Sure enough, we all completed the swim, climbed on the platform at the back of the boat, and enjoyed a nice hot freshwater shower before drying off and heading off for a celebratory feast.

I swam for three hours and 20 minutes, stopping no more than 5 minutes during the 5.5 mile course. During the swim, I consumed 4 Cliff Shots (chocolate) and 35 ounces of fluid.

While the journey around Angel Island had some challenges, I couldn't be more pleased with the experience. I absolutely loved and learned from it all. It allowed me to enjoy the highs, fight through the lows, and share an experience with wonderful friends.

After three hours and twenty minutes, 

I want to give a special thanks and shout out to Pacific Open Water Swim Company. Bryan and Sylvia planned and piloted our swim perfectly. They ensured our safety, guided us through the best course, and kept us safe and secure from the many many boats nearby.

I have no plans for 'what's next', but still very much looking forward to whatever it will be!

We started our swim near Pt. Simpton