Swimming in Puget Sound

Puget Sound is not known as a good place to swim. The water is cold. Fifty to fifty-five degrees in the summer. Most people do not like to immerse in cold water. Really cold water can be painful. For a guy, Puget Sound water can actually cause discomfort in the nether regions plus, as George Costanza would say, “Serious shrinkage.” Prolonged exposure to Puget Sound water without a survival suit can result in hypothermia, then death. Yet there is pleasure and possible health benefits from a cold, brisk swim. There is the old story about Paul Newman who reportedly plunges his face into a tub of ice water each morning to keep his skin tight and give it a healthy glow. And we all know how good Paul looks on that salad dressing label. The naturopaths wax poetic on the subject of hydrotherapy, that is—repeated applications of cold, then hot which pumps blood and lymph. Fifty degree water is unarguably cold. Very cold. Yet, one can swim in it with gratification. Actually, boatwashington.org suggests that survival time in fifty degree water is around two hours. So, a twenty minute swim in Puget Sound is not an unreasonable undertaking. It’s probably easier for a fatter person to tolerate the cold and this might be the answer to why in recent years I can enter cold mountain lakes, fast running streams and Puget Sound. It helps if it’s very hot outside because your mental attitude is important. All this is a too long introduction to the report that I’ve taken a couple of Puget Sound swims this week. Both were enjoyable, refreshing and invigorating. And, each time I stayed in the water paddling around on my back like a happy otter for ten to fifteen minutes. The view from the water is good. It’s the same view of the seal, gull or Orca. I like the briny smell and don’t mind pushing some seaweed aside. From the moment you enter the water your body’s core temperature begins to drop. Stay twenty minutes and you’ll be cool the rest of the day. You start, of course, on a normal day with a body temp of 98.6 degrees and aren’t in trouble until you drop to 90 degrees. We don’t stay in that long. It will take two hours to kill you. And, like they say, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Puget Sound swimming. Highly recommended.

Comments

[Kirsten]

I am a little jealous!