Beneath The Pier

Change of venue this weekend. I am spending the weekend at my girlfriend Tracey’s place which is just south of North Beach in San Clemente. She is right in front of a surf break locally known as 204s - named after some railroad marker. Yesterday I swam from that break north to Poche and back. It was a one hour and 45 minute swim and it was fantastic. Today I plan to swim south.

I leave her place at about 10:00 and the sky here is still pretty overcast but I am guessing if you drove about 200 feet inland, you would have a sunny blue sky. Surf looks pretty calm from her balcony and the ocean surface is much more smooth than yesterday’s choppy waters. My primary concern is the tide and accessing a reasonably safe spot to enter the water.

I head down the El Portal stairs which takes you to a very small gap where one can pass underneath the railroad and scramble down to the beach. Well it is almost high tide by the time I get here and there is basically no beach at all. The waves are breaking right on the rocks that separate the water from the railroad tracks. These days that separation is pretty sparse. In fact, railway service is not running due to some damage just south of here at Cottons Point.

I wait for a set of waves to break and open a lull where I can get down to the water without incident. My feet soon meet wet sand and I quickly head west into the water and start t oswim to put some space between me and the rock wall. The water feels so amazingly good. It’s about 75 degrees - so comfortable. I swim south towards the pier. My plan to to actually intersect with the pier and maybe swim underneath it. Then I will swim north and perhaps exit the water at North Beach where there is an actual beach to land on.

It’s not long at all before this cloud cover gives way to blue sky. It is so magnificent. Off in the western distance I can see the cloud bank fading out towards the horizon. I see a stand up paddleboarder and we say hi. He comments on how nice the water is and I respond with emphatic agreement. I enjoy watching the shore as I make my way to the pier. Soon the rock wall that borders the water opens up to a beach. I pass the historic Casa Romantica and the San Clemente Lifeguard headquarters. I’m getting super close to the pier and I am wondering if swimming under it is a smart or stupid thing to do.

Once I reach just a few feet from the pier, someone standing up above on the pier yells down and asks me how the water is. I tell him it is great because it is. He comments on what a good swimmer I must be. It’s funny because while I suppose I am a strong swimmer, I just don’t think of that. I just get in the water and do my thing for an hour or so. I have been a swimmer my entire life and it just feels so normal. However, I imagine someone else who might think of swimming as rather foreign might find it almost superhuman to see someone swimming from seemingly out of nowhere to a point on the pier about 200 feet from the shore. Well I am so happy I have conditioned myself to do this. It adds so much value to my life.

I decide to go ahead and swim underneath the pier just to do it because here I am and it seems pretty safe. Is this stupid? I don’t know, but I did it and I would do it again.

Also, it’s not like if I touched a piling, I would instantly vaporize. Still, I manage to remain clear of them.

I swim back north and the water gets just a little more rambunctious as the wind rises but it is not bad at all. Still much more calm than yesterday’s swim. I’m trying to rest my mind on what is happening right now. That’s not very difficult given what is hjappening right now is super freaking pleasant. I am swimming in 75 degree water beneath a perfectly clear sunny sky and when I am done, I will see Tracey who is like an opiate to my soul. The kind of opiate that is actually good for you - kind of like good cholesterol. Wait… no she is way better than that!

I keep swimming north and eventually pass the El Portal stairs I walked down earlier and the pedestrian underpass beneath the railroad. I definitely feel like pushing ahead to North Beach is the right decision. The tide may be even higher now than it was when I started. I keep swimming and there is Tracey’s condo up on the bluff. My heart feels warm swimming by, knowing that the woman of my dreams is just up above me. I pause to look if I can see her. I think there she is on the balcony. I wave but it’s too far away and I’m not wearing my glasses to see if she is waving back.

It’s not much further from here to North Beach. I point myself in the direction of the restrooms and I pass by the lifeguard tower and soon here I am just 75 feet from shore. There are patches of beach that look sandier than others. I try to aim for one of these spots and the final swim to shore is just delightful. I walk past someone on the beach who offers me some water. I decline but that sure is nice of him to offer.

I walk to the beach trail that will take me to the stairs that lead up near Tracey’s home. I take this time to pray. I pray for guidance. I want to live the remainder of my life to the fullest. I don’t want to get stuck along the way. I know I will need help. I know that there is help available if I ask for it. So I am asking now. I want to move into the light. I want to be able to recognize where the light is. It is not always easy. However I feel like it is easier now than when I was younger.