Just How Smart Are Those Smart Cams?

Ahhhh. I made it into the water today for the first time in 8 days. I can’t remember the last time I have gone that long without getting into the ocean. The surf has just been off the hook and it’s gonna start getting big again tomorrow so today was my small window of opportunity. And today was by no means small either. Other than surf size, if one thing stands out in today’s swim, it was the water temperature. It was deliciously warm. The Capistrano buoy is reporting 71 degrees. All week, I have been eyeing the buoys and the temperature has been creeping up especially over the last few days. I can only look at these numbers and conclude that even if I drown in the high surf, at least I will be warm.

I wasn’t certain a swim would be in the cards today. Yesterday was still bigger than I like but today’s forecast looked promising. This morning, the Salt Creek “smart cam” - that can allegedly measure wave size - says waves are 3-4 feet, which is well within my comfort zone. I get some rituals, chores and work done and then head out a little before 8:45. I’m super eager to get in the water. I know it is going to be warm and the sun is coming out. It’s a beautiful day and I can already feel the heat of the sun on my skin. I do have questions about the surf, but the only way to answer them is to get out there and see first hand. Worse case scenario is it will be a little big but not crazy like it was in the middle of the week.

I park at the beach parking lot and it feels so good to be outside and listen to the surf and stare at the water and feel the sun as I walk down the stairs. It feels like it has been so long since I have done this. The closer I get to the bottom, the better I can see the surf and there are a couple waves coming in that I admit are larger than I anticipated but still not prohibitive. I’m puzzled over just how smart those smart cams are.

I see two guys I recognize from a regular swimming group here, but they are not dressed for swimming. We talk for a minute. They actually went in in the middle of the week but admit it may have been a mistake. Also, they brought fins. Fins!? Yeah, fins make a world of difference in larger surf. It’s like being endowed with a super power. They said the north bound current was super strong. They also said it was warm. Mmmmmmmm…warm. I continue down and get to the beach. Several things stand out. First, there is a dearth of sand. The big Jupiter rock that was almost covered the last time I was here is now standing a few feet above the sand. This is common after a big swell. Waves like sand. The other thing I notice, very much related to the lack of sand, is that there is no beach even though the tide is not at all that high. It’s just a little over 3 feet but it looks like it is well over 5.

Waves are breaking pretty far outside and I see a set come in that is well overhead but here I am and I’m not going back without going in. I’m sure it will be fine. I get in the water and it is not long at all before it is deep enough to start swimming. I dive under one wave and then I make it past the white water without incident. Other than the fact that the water is delightfully warm, I am also noticing that it is super churny. That’s probably not a word but it’s the best I can think of to describe it. It’s like someone putting one of those wooden sticks in a cup of water and vigorously stirring. Then I see a larger set of waves about to break in front of me. I make it under the first just as it is about to curl over and then swim right over the others. I decide to keep swimming west to make ample room between me and these waves just for good measure.

I’m heading north today because I have plenty of time and given this water temperature, I am eager to spend it right here. This is absolutely wonderful. That said, over the course of the entire swim, I have this dread of swimming back to shore. I try to watch and study this dread. It’s just a thought. That’s all. It provides me with 0 value right now. Regardless of conditions, I have no choice but to swim back in and even so, these conditions are well within my capabilities. I find it interesting how it literally raises my heart rate to think about confronting large waves.

It’s totally going to be ok. I will be swimming to shore and any wave breaking on me will simply get me to shore more quickly. I’m thinking these crazy thoughts like who will find and take care of my dog if I drown? I am meeting up for sushi tonight with a friend and I really don’t want to miss that. Can I rise to the surface before running out of breath? I know that all of these questions arise from an illusion. My mind is creating an alternate reality and it feels very much NOT alternate. All the while I straddle this line of being absorbed by that reality and observing it as the illusion that it is. Right now all I can do is just keep swimming and enjoy where I am to the fullest. I think I’m doing a relatively good job at that. This water is very much alive. I can feel it vigorously moving below and all around me. I am relatively far off shore and can see quite a bit of this lovely coast. The wind seems to pick up over time and what started off as fairly clean conditions are getting to be a little choppy. I feel so alone out here - in a good way. I pass by the Ritz and it looks like there might be a surf competition underway at Salt Creek.

The sun and the clouds and the water seem to be engaged in a dance and the intensity of the light and the patterns over the sky are continuously shifting. The bluff behind the shore looks dark and the wispy clouds are splattered here and there and cover the sun but leave enough for it to be seen that I am not blinded by looking at it. I imagine myself relaxing and going limp in the punding waves. I feel like that is how I should hold myself as I swim back through the surf. I feel like this swim is an invitation to do just that. It is an opportunity to give myself over to this thing that is much larger and more powerful than myself and get out of my own way.

Eventually the time comes to swim to shore. It is a total non-event. I honestly think the waves are smaller now than when I swam out which is in fact quite likely. It feels like this is perfectly timed. A set does pass over me but the force of their break is mostly inshore of where I am and I use their force to push me east more quickly. Before you know it I am standing up and it seems as though my dog will not be abandoned and I will be eating sushi this evening. Also, that was all very wonderful.