17/02/2016 – Swimming with Graceful Sharks and Gracious People

Another beautiful morning down in the most stunning and possibly friendliest part of the world… the Southern corner of Manly Beach between 6.30 and 8am… Around 200 of us stepped in to that warm ocean and swam in silky clear water across a bay full of fish, sharks and other HARMLESS marine life

The Drinks Express head down the ramp to test the waters. NO bluebottles today!

Candy, Henrietta and Jenny enjoying that 24 degree water.

Just to keep us on our toes the ocean got deep quite quickly, then shallow, then deep again with the odd surprise wave!

It started off quite a cloudy morning with a slight wind but as is often the case the sun appeared as we swam out, making for a most spectacular view as the light bounced off ripples of water and pink caps!

Now Marleen on the right (Veldhuis) here with her sister Susan, is an Olympic swimming champ from Holland who is now swimming with us and also operating stroke correction classes at Queenscliffe pool and Narrabeen pool. Contact her on marleenveldhus.com

Here is her impressive record taken from Wikepedia

Just love these views as we headed to The Point so there are a few!

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lf you want any larger versions, particularly of the ones you may be featured in below at Shelly Beach, just send me an email on info@whalebeachbandb.com.au

John, Kerry, Sophie and Simon

Henrietta has joined The A Team!

Ann, Jim, Dorset, Vincent, Bruce, Todd and Tim 

Candice, Lisa, Helsy, Ian, Jane and ?Monica?

Mike tries desperately to photo bomb!

Lovely to see Bella back swimming.

Ian left on his own at the ‘Let’s Go!

I swam back looking for graceful Duskies. I did see a couple but photos didn’t turn out as well as yesterdays. Hope you like my video from yesterday. I’m quite rapped as I loaded it on to Facebook and it’s got 2.6k views so far in less than 24 hours! I took it as I swam over the rocks and followed one Dusky Whaler. Then another appeared really close to me and another! It wasn’t scary at all as we know them to be harmless and usually timid. Also they are only around a metre long.They usually swim near the bottom in deeper water so I was lucky! Uploaded on to youtube click here

They can usually be spotted in between the pool and hut at Fairy Bower but this year they seem to be closer to the hut and  I did see one heading to the beach between the flags on Monday. (Probably why the shark sign was up later.) I know many of you have a real fear of sharks but these are juvenile Duskies that visit the Bay every year around this time. They are harmless and shy and are nothing to be afraid of! (The last one is a screenshot taken from my video clip.)

 

On Monday the water was really clear and there were loads of fish about. I always like diving down to look at the ‘Old Wives’ but they seemed bigger than usual and the light was perfect for a defined shot. They didn’t swim away as quickly as usual either!

I asked Jane for identification on this one. She replied 

I’d say it is a Gunther’s Wrasse, Pseudolabrus guntheri. I find they dive for cover whenever they see me  –  you did well to get this! Lovely colour green  –  sometimes even brighter than this one.

Cheers Jane  (COME BACK JANE WE MISS YOU!)

This Leatherjacket let me get close too yesterday!

We lost lovely Jennifer Wilson yesterday. After trying for 7 years to get permanent residency in Australia and spending $50,000 on courses to allow her to stay, she left to work on a cruise ship in The Bahamas. She loved our swims and picked up plastic and rubbish all the time. We wish you well Jen!

 I took these on Monday. Does anyone recognise anyone? Or did anyone have a shock when they saw me below them!

Stats:

Swimmers 160 so far but must have been at least 200

Newbies 2

Water temp 24.0 C

Staying safe

Remember that there are no badges for scaring yourself silly! While it is great to extend your boundaries, it is important to know your limits. Also, if you have a bit more experience, keep an eye out for new swimmers who might need company. Do read these excellent tips on staying safe in the surf. To read, or even download, click here.

 

RED FEB FUNDRAISING RACE –  Heart Research Australia

Heart Research Australia would like to thank all those who participated on Saturday in the Red Feb race. But the fundraising race between our two teams is just hotting up and will continue over the whole of February. The “Race” is between our own two teams: The A TEAM and TEAM OMEGA.

The collection boxes on Saturday just favoured Team Omega, who raised $150.40 compared to the A Team total of $122.35. This trend is continuing in the On-line donation, with Team Omega edging further ahead:

A Team = $310

Team Omega = $568

You can donate funds to your chosen team on the team page, or even better, you can create your own page where all your friends can donate towards the cause. Hurry up A-Teamers, jump in quickly and support your team.

To support Team Omega: http://www.everydayhero.com.au/event/TeamOmega

To support the A Team: http://www.everydayhero.com.au/event/ATeam

Also, don’t forget, our friends at Manly Beach Health Club, who are again sponsoring the RED FEB event, are offering a FREE 30 min Personal Training session to our members. This is a great way to kick start your New Years health goals.  Click here to download your FREE voucher.

Signing off

Lainey aka Elaine