The Last Weekend of Winter

Early today I set off for my final swim of winter in thick fog. As I arrived at Coogee, the sun had just begun to burn off the worst of it, but it was still a little misty out on the ocean.

The water is back to 17°C again after dipping down to 16°C last weekend. The water seems to have stayed warmer this winter. These temperatures are so mild, that we've even had some bluebottles (portuguese man of war) drifting in on the unseasonal onshore breezes.

The water was very clear. There were scores of small fishes swimming alongside and below me. I did 20 beautiful lengths avoiding the occasional  bluebottle.

A Wintry Day At Wylies Baths

Yesterday, it was blue skies and bright sunshine, and a perfect Winter's day in Sydney. The baths were gorgeous, and some people were even sunbathing on the wooden decks.

Today is a different story. The skies were grey, the breeze was cold, the rain drizzled down and the top temperature for the day was 15°C. 

According to the board, the seawater temperature was 17°C, but it seemed cooler than that. After I finished my 25 lengths, the hot shower felt like it was scorching my skin. I haven't had that feeling since the 14°C water in San Francisco last year.

Winter Swimming At Last (and only three weeks left)

The notice board at Wylies Baths tells the story. The seawater temperature has finally dropped down to a winter level. Last weekend it was 18°C; this weekend it's 16.5°C. I doubt that it will drop much below this temperature now. In a little over three weeks it will (officially) be Spring.

I swam my twenty lengths in clear, sparkling water. Though the temperature is a bit cooler than recent weeks, it's still mild enough to swim in just a pair of speedos and no swimcap.

There seem to be a lot more people swimming right through the winter these days. There also seem to be fewer people using wetsuits.