tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-15406158781260539642024-03-13T22:33:36.289-07:00Swim Around BainbridgeExploring the wet underside of Bainbridge Island, near Seattle.Mark Powellhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08121566220326246265noreply@blogger.comBlogger57125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-68539222761299655002010-06-27T21:05:00.000-07:002010-07-21T03:55:56.497-07:00Day 38, Finish Party at Fort Ward ParkJune 27, 2009. We did it, we finished the Swim Around Bainbridge and had a fantastic party to celebrate!!! I haven't been able or willing to write a finishing blog post, that will have to wait. But here's the basic news, I'm done and it was a fantastic trip. BTW, I'm keeping this post at the top of the blog, page down for some more recent swimbi doings. air 66Fwater 51Fwind variable 0-5 Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-34157257369135424632009-09-22T22:44:00.000-07:002009-09-23T10:51:25.789-07:00day 42 lytle beachWarm late summer day with glassy-calm water. Perfect for following the dance of the light waves on the sandy bottom of Lytle Beach. Ah........ (see photo at right). And I can think of no better way to join the World Wildlife Fund's "What a Difference a Day Makes" tweet-fest. I'll tweet this post and join the fun. I swam around Bainbridge Island to encourage people to get connected to their Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-75710177249557923932009-06-25T09:35:00.000-07:002009-06-25T09:40:25.802-07:00Day 37: Lytle BeachI can smell the finish now, and I'm ready for the finishing party June 27th at Fort Ward State Park at noon. Come join if you can. How fitting to approach the finish line on a grey northwest day, this time in June. Much like day 1 back in October 2008. I've seen a lot of grey this winter, both above and under the surface. You might say I've become a connoisseur of grey. The water and the Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-66661167152968991192009-06-10T15:29:00.000-07:002009-06-10T21:20:18.181-07:00Day 36: Pleasant BeachGreat swimming off Pleasant Beach, the fun continues. The nearshore ocean bottom is covered with a thick bed of 3-dimensional plant life, including some of the most magnificent eelgrass beds I've yet seen. The thick tall eelgrass beds are easily 6 feet tall in places, and so thick it's difficult to part the leaves and see the bottom. Fish and all the other eelgrass animals are plentiful and Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-91932882944502547502009-06-08T20:25:00.000-07:002009-06-08T21:05:31.962-07:00Day 35: Point White 2Just another lousy day in paradise, and a bald eagle perched on a rock near Point White. Today I saw more wonderful bottom and shore on the southeast side of Point White. Kelp, algae, and non-native wireweed make a thick bed of plants that are a great home to crabs, fish, and other animals. The bottom slowly changes from rocks and boulders to gravel to sand and eelgrass replaces the other Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-74202501802639766892009-06-01T20:49:00.000-07:002009-06-01T20:56:08.564-07:00Day 34: Point WhitePoint White is my new favorite spot. I found a huge kelp forest covering the bottom and the scattered boulders. Wow. Thick kelp provides a nice 3-dimensional living habitat. Here's a kelp crab on...kelp (left). I saw more fish than anywhere else, a lot more, including the hugest school of shiner surfperch that streamed past me for minutes. It seemed like there were many, many thousands of Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-8118423253905738002009-05-27T08:27:00.000-07:002009-05-27T08:42:04.919-07:00Day 33: Crystal Springs 2This is the land of murky water, at least right now. My lowest visibility swim yet, if not for a family fun plan I would likely have stayed out of the water. But then again, spring plankton blooms are a part of life here, so why not swim through a soupy spring day in the Sound? Today's low tide is -3.4 feet, one of the lowest tides of the year. With today's high of 11.8 at 6:52 pm, that's a Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-49633838772124007902009-05-25T20:27:00.000-07:002009-05-25T21:36:41.864-07:00Day 32: Crystal SpringsAnother beautiful day in paradise. Here's the Crystal Springs shoreline as I walk north from where Crystal Springs Rd is along the shore, to my entry point. Ah. The weather and water are warming up for the summer, the wind is dead calm, and the beach is gorgeous with big trees right down to the waterline. Does the water look a bit cloudy to you? Yes, unfortunately there's a new plankton Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-13110910649917399452009-05-08T16:33:00.000-07:002009-05-09T20:23:05.152-07:00Day 31: Gazzam Lake PreserveToday I swam one of the least developed shoreline areas on Bainbridge, the shore of Gazzam Lake Preserve. Access was difficult, I had to bushwhack in my wetsuit, but it was worth the trouble. Here's a picture of the shore (left) showing gigantic trees growing undistirbed all the way down to the high tide line. Fantastic. Another calm day, and I found myself noticing something very small, a Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-17047679613878492402009-05-04T16:34:00.000-07:002009-05-04T21:39:40.353-07:00Day 30: Fletcher BayHooray, the plankton bloom has faded enough so that I can see! The visibility isn't great, but I can see the bottom while swimming in water 8-10 feet deep (my typical swim depth). I found some nice bull kelp (left). This one was very disorganized hanging from it's float in the absolutely still water (zero wind, zero waves, no motion at all). This stillness is incredible. The photo at right Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-539949408906716332009-04-30T23:02:00.000-07:002009-04-30T23:10:04.725-07:00Day 29: Battle PointNice scenery on the beach here on Battle Point. Unbelievable Pacific madrone tree (left), with the bark peeled off (normal) and a spiral pattern in the wood. Also a very pretty lagoon (right). I swam this stretch on a super low tide, -2.5 and the day's high was 11.4 making a 14 foot tidal range. Clam diggers were out, I must have seen 10. That's the most beach traffic for any of my swims, Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-90343385894949004512009-04-24T20:29:00.000-07:002009-04-24T22:03:01.056-07:00Day 28: Battle PointThe westernmost point on Bainbridge Island, Battle Point (left). Named for a famous battle between two tribes that took place well before European discovery. Swimming down the beach to Battle Point today was a lazy, hazy experience. Sunny and calm, warmer weather, no need to hurry, and the walk back on the beach was delicious and warm with the sun on my back.The plankton bloom is now turning Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-65834515990876542902009-04-22T12:16:00.000-07:002009-04-22T12:23:54.525-07:00June 27-finish date for Swim Around BainbridgeI have big news...I will finish my Swim Around Bainbridge on June 27, 2009 if all goes well. On June 27th, likely around 2pm, please come to a Swim Around Bainbridge Big Event at Ft. Ward Park on the southern end of Bainbridge Island. Everyone is invited to join the last small section of the swim, and you can walk, wade, swim, paddle, boat, or otherwise join in as I do the last little bit of myUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-37010705964742774212009-04-19T19:54:00.000-07:002009-04-19T20:01:00.724-07:00Day 27: Arrow PointManzanita Landing to Arrow Point. You can't get there from here. I set out with a bad plan today, beceause I couldn't make a good one. The water is thick with the spring plankton bloom, and visibility is down, so I can't go deep into Manzanita Bay and hope to see anything. I'll need to cross open water, and since there's no way to walk the shore on this leg, I'll have to cross the open water Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-22912079414121731482009-04-11T14:24:00.000-07:002009-04-15T20:19:27.251-07:00Day 26: ManzanitaA beautiful, blustery day and some strange magnetism drew me to what promised to be a murky swim. The wind was blowing alongshore and the sandy bottom was stirred. With the ongoing spring plankton bloom, I expect murky water and that's what I get. Enjoy the sublime beauty of the day from the beach (right). Below the surface, the conditions match my mood (left). Regardlesss, I want to plow Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-23106199481307563602009-04-08T22:01:00.000-07:002009-04-08T22:06:31.575-07:00Day 25: SeaboldTwo new visitors today, I saw a harbor seal following me and a nice sea run cutthroat trout under the Agate Pass bridge. Riding the current out of the passage and along the shore was fun, until a huge eddy put me against the current for about a half mile. The day was perfect, sunny and getting warmer. I wasn't cold getting out of my wetsuits. The drive to my parking site at the exit and my Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-17678905029904396392009-04-05T21:14:00.000-07:002009-04-05T21:23:36.434-07:00Day 24: Agate PassageToday I rode the current through Agate Passage. Here's a picture of the eelgrass bowing to the current (left). It was beautiful, calm, sunny, and the first warm day of Spring around Seattle. It was fun to zip along through the narrow passage, riding the flooding tide into the channel that leads to Bremerton, along the west side of Bainbridge Island. I've really turned the corner past halfwayUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-90455360132622121512009-03-30T20:32:00.000-07:002009-03-30T20:37:42.327-07:00Day 23: West Port MadisonAn interesting day and a fantastic new find for me, sea butterflies (see photos at right). Hard to believe they're real, these little molluscs are less than an inch long and they flap around slowly like lazy gelatinous butterflies of the sea. It's Corolla spectabilis, the spectacular corolla, a type of sea butterfly or pteropod. The wing plate is flapped down in the upper photo and flapped up Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-60257413241352538862009-03-26T21:14:00.000-07:002009-03-27T08:31:21.027-07:00Day 22: Madison BayI never expected to see a shark in little Madison Bay. So imagine my surprise when I saw this big shark bearing down on me with it's mouth wide open. I managed to get my camera pointed in the right direction and I got one picture of the shark zooming at me with it's mouth open (left) and then another one of this big shark chewing on my leg (right). Fortunately, I came through the attack with Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-55458370278857606102009-03-13T20:45:00.000-07:002009-03-13T20:49:10.045-07:00Day 21: Port MadisonThe swim from the sandspit to Port Madison begins the crossing from the east side of the island to the west side. Around the northwest corner of the island is Agate Passage where the tide roars through a narrow opening between the mainland and Bainbridge Island. photo: looking northwest across the mouth of Madison Bay, with Agate Passage in the background, about 2 miles away. Today's swim Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-44160738392046687912009-03-11T22:22:00.000-07:002009-03-12T20:43:09.378-07:00Day 20: Point MonroePoint Monroe on maps, the Sand Spit to locals. It's the northeast corner of Bainbridge Island and it forms a shallow lagoon. The lagoon warms up in the sun, and today was no exception, it was probably a nice 50F compared to the 45F of the open water. image: beloved Fay Bainbridge logs. Kids climb and float on these for HOURSThe high point of today was riding the flooding tide into the lagoonUnknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-84693472120487793542009-03-04T22:24:00.000-08:002009-03-04T22:30:47.450-08:00Day 19: Fay Bainbridge State ParkToday I reach the northeast corner of Bainbridge Island, after starting Oct 12 on the southwest corner. The distance may not be quite halfway, but it feels like halfway. I'm going to make it around, and my target date for finishing is July 4, 2009. I hope to get others to join me to finish the Swim Around Bainbridge on that most American of days (and likely a warm day!). I crossed massive Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-74036103531422033672009-02-28T22:31:00.000-08:002009-03-01T21:45:25.487-08:00Day 18: Rolling BayThe saddest shoreline I've yet seen on Bainbridge has to be Rolling Bay. It's the scene of a devastating mudslide that took the lives of 4 people, a couple and their two young children, 3 months and 2 years old. Right: photograph of the slide by Teresa Tamura,The Seattle Times, as published in The Atlantic.This slide is not really an ocean event, but I must bring it up. Getting in and out of Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-3209398342141471802009-02-23T22:56:00.000-08:002009-02-23T23:41:35.451-08:00Swim around AkumalAkumal is a lovely coastal town in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, south of Cancun. I spent 11 days there on vacation, and explored the area's shallow reefs. Here's a view from above water, looking out to Half Moon Bay from the Yool Caanal condo (right). This area has a lot of shallow coral reefs, easily accessible from shore. The reefs block most of the waves and make for very sheltered Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1540615878126053964.post-53567606862098782792009-02-01T07:24:00.000-08:002009-02-01T07:25:43.910-08:00Bainbridge underwater on TV and videoSee Puget Sound like never before, and learn about the world-class ocean diving available right off the beaches of the Seattle area. And while you're having fun, learn about what makes our ocean so special. All brought to you by Still Hope Productions with an underwater TV show, and a travelling event that will be on Bainbridge at Islandwood Feb 1, 2009 and REI in Seattle April 2, 2009, 7-9 pm.Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0