Birdy wrote:
Hi all, I'm due to visit California in August from the UK and want to get an idea of where's good for open water swimming. It's an RV roadtrip and will be visiting San Francisco (aquatic park cove), Lake Tahoe, Santa Barbara and Santa Cruz.
Is it safe to swim in the sea at the coastal bays? Mindful of what might be in the water with me during what is meant to be a nice relaxing recovery period as I'll have done a 140.6 just before we fly out.
Many thanks
I normally swim with others, making sure I'm next to someone fatter than myself. If solo I'll swim where it's shallow or reef. Risk is low (in Australia), but you want to swim relaxed and not stressing about losing your legs. Some people where those ankle anti-shark device. I'm skeptical, but if it helps someone relax then go for it. You do get the odd person swimming quite far out, always puzzles me when you know 1 week ago there was a tracked 5m Great White in the exact spot they're swimming in....but as I said low risk. Sharks will eat you, but they don't hunt us. They know where to find their food, they'll hang around seal colonies, if they really wanted to eat us, they know exactly where to find us!