28/06/2014 – What a swell swim

The advantage of being up so early is the opportunity to witness the amazing colours in the winter sunrises.

 

 

Saturday is one of the biggest attendance days for the B&B.

 

 

 

 

While the regulars are there, it is so lovely to see those who are only able to make it to the weekend swims.

 

 

It has been a week of windy nor-westers to bring down the temperature and whip up the swell.

The returning 6.30am’ers warned us it was choppy and cool.  With the water temperature at 17.6 degrees it is requiring the mindset of a yogi to plunge into the surf (a yogi feels neither hot nor cold. . .).

 

 

 

The waves provided a further distraction and a lot of fun as we made our way to the point.

 

 

 

And look at this gorgeous swimmer!   This is Alexis (hope I caught your name correctly), with her Mum.  Alexis is 9 years old!!  Is she our youngest swimmer today?

 

We may have felt numb, but below us as we cruised into Shelly was a real Numb Fish!  Jane our marine expert thinks it looks like a floating paper bag.

 

There are various ways of staying warm at the Shelly stop.  007 has developed a following as he leads the push-ups.

 

The rest of us just hang about in the water attempting to exercise the jaw muscles while waiting for JK to call the Let’s Go.

 

 

 

Not much under the water – mostly because it was too rough to spend time close to the rocks.

 

The Blue Groper was out.

And while the Cuttlefish numbers may have dwindled, I did capture these two exotic creatures as their tentacles gently touched!

 

There is a different atmosphere to the cafes on Saturday.  The post swim catch up extends into the morning, and the dogs really enjoy the chance to play.

 

And this is just in from Ian in Fiji.  Not too sure if it is a selfie. . .

 

 

Have a great weekend.

Mary

 

 

Bottom of the Blog – the very useful stuff

Just two tax deduction days left to donate

There are a bunch of brave souls doing the Winter Without Wetsuit (WWW) to raise funds for the Shepherd Centre. If you would like to encourage this madness, and it is tax deductible, then follow the link WWW for the Shepherd Centre.

Monthly Dinner – Bluewater Cafe, Tuesday 8th July at 6.30 pm

In her early life Valerie Taylor was a champion spearfisher.  She switched from killing sharks to filming them when along with husband Ron, she became fascinated with marine life. Ron and Valerie were the first people to film great white sharks without the protection of a cage or anything else during the making of the series Blue Wilderness in 1992. Valerie became a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2010 for service to conservation and the environment as an advocate for the protection and preservation of marine wildlife and habitats. Valerie will give a talk about her various experiences with sharks over the years. She will also show a short film on the marine world in Indonesia and how it has changed.

The cost will be only $20 a head and includes shared entrees, a selection of main to choose (incl a vegetarian option) and free corkage (for byo wine only) and a little thank you for the staff.

All beers, wine and deserts are an optional extra at the special price of only $5 each!!
BOOKINGS ARE ESSENTIAL, so book here now!!

 

Week 5 of the Winter Badge season

There are 14 weeks in the winter season.  To qualify for the prized Cold & Bold Badge you simply need to swim 20 times within the season ensuring you have swum in a minimum of 7 different weeks.  So, attempting to do it all in the first few weeks does not count!!  Make sure you use the i-Log to register your without wetsuit for the WWW badge.

B&B i-Log

The B&B i-Log is the best way to capture your swims!!  Log your swim ANYTIME of day using this really efficient and easy way to ensure your swim is recorded in the daily attendance and on the Pacific Challenge.. To get started, send an email to Ian Forster ugoboyo@gmail.com (This is not a link so please copy and paste into your email). He will check that your email address is activated on the attendance register then send you info on how to get started.

Staying safe

There may not be any waves just at the moment, but are you prepared for their return? 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.  Do read these excellent tips on staying safe in the surf.  To read, or even download, click here.

 

The Stats

Regulars:  lots

Newbie:

Temp:   17.6 degrees

Sunrise: 7.00 am

Sunset: 4.56 pm