June 27, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Lake Monsters, Swim Reports
Believe it or not, the swim area at Ladder 1 was quite calm and sunny at 6:00am! Since I had forgotten my thermometer, I would estimate the lake temperature at 67F with some definite cold spots showing up farther away from the shore. But I went sans wetsuit and was able to do an out-and-back mile to Oak Street Beach without being uncomfortable.
We had quite a turnout at L1. Carol, Michelle, and Marion showed up as well as a bunch of new swimmers – Alya, Deborah, and Zach (if I messed up your names, be sure to let me know and I’ll correct this post ASAP!). Normally, I’d get all this information when I snapped the traditional L1 shot of everyone. However, my camera would not come alive again despite my best hopes – so nothing I shot came out 
. But the new one should be here any day, so we should be back in business by our next meetup.
June 27, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Great Lakes
Here’s a shot of Dave and his niece Jelly from earlier in the week:
June 26, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Great Lakes
As I’ve written previously, the Asian carp situation is a complex one involving numerous stakeholders with very conflicting interests. But everyone seems to agree on one thing:
It’s a good idea to prevent the Asian carp population from entering Lake Michigan via the Illinois and Chicago river systems.
And in this regard, several entities (including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental Protection Agency, Illinois Department of Natural Resources) are already working very closely with each other and coordinating their efforts to do just this – and they have been for quite some time.
Which is why I can’t understand Senator Dick Durbin’s request to have the President appoint a “carp czar” to oversee these existing efforts.
But what really illustrates Senator Durbin’s naïveté is the following excerpt from the article:
Durbin said he plans to introduce a bill next week that will ask the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to look at “hydrologic separation” between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi River, a potentially massive engineering feat that would require severing the 100-year-old, man-made shipping corridors that now link the two waterways. Durbin expects the Army Corps to deliver its report within 18 months.[ed. - emphasis mine]
First, the ACOE (along with every other stakeholder) has already explored this option quite extensively. Their current focus is on reducing or eliminating the immediate threat.
Second, while hydrological separation would certainly solve the problem, it is both a long term – and a long shot – option. Why?
Because it’s a 110-year ongoing project that cannot be reversed overnight.
If Senator Durbin had bothered to attend any of the previous subject matter hearings, he would already know that. And he would also know that there are already many various stakeholders conducting a highly organized and cooperative effort the keep the invasive species out of Lake Michigan.
It’s just that fighting against the limitless energy of Nature is often a losing battle…
June 26, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Swim Reports
Here were the stats as of 6:00am:
- 66F lake temperature
- 10 mph winds from the southeast
- Moderate chops
- Overcast
- Surprisingly cold water layers below the 2 foot mark
I did a half mile with the wetsuit and another one without just for comparison. It was definitely swimmable sans wetsuit – especially once the sun came out.
Grey skyline
June 21, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Event Alert
Today is the Summer Solstice. Get out and enjoy it!
(click to enlarge)
June 20, 2010 / by Steve / Make A Comment / Filed under Motivation
Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there!
(Source – AOM)
Also, since June is Men’s Health Month, be sure to get your dad a copy of the Blueprint for Men’s Health. Download the PDF and send it to him right away!
June 20, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Lake Monsters, Swim Reports
When the alarm clock chimed at 5:20am, I looked out the window and saw clear skies and daylight. So I hustled down to L1 and met up with Keith and new Lake Monster Jamie. We got in an out-and-back mile under near perfect conditions – 67F water temperatures, flat lake surface, clear skies, and abundant of sunshine from the east.
It’s now 8:45am and the clouds have moved in considerably. So you’d never suspect that we had an hour or two of paradise earlier in the morning. Fortunately, thanks to a heroic final effort of my dying Sony CyberShot, I have one last Ladder #1 sunrise for you all (at least until the new camera arrives):
June 19, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Swim Reports
The post-storm sunrises of late spring are some of the most breathtaking spectacles of the year. So of course they take place when my current camera is on life support (more on this later)…
Michelle, Beth, and I got in a 6:00am swim under perfect conditions – calm lake, 66F water temperatures, and abundant sunshine. Since we had the entire swim area to ourselves, I went out closer to the buoys. I ditched the wetsuit in favor of just my jammers, and I was quite comfortable throughout the swim. I did, however, notice some colder thermocline layers in several spots just below one meter of depth.
As it turns out, I could have captured this morning’s images for the OWC site. While the viewing screen is disabled (i.e. fried), my CyberShot still takes great pictures and videos. It’s just that I have no idea what it’s taking until I get home and hook it up to my computer! So essentially, I’m operating in retro mode – only I don’t have to use film or wait (and pay) to have it developed.
This is all about to change, though. I have another more advanced CyberShot on the way that’s shockproof, temperature proof, and WATERPROOF.
So be prepared for some really exciting new pictures and videos – literally in the lake itself!
June 18, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Lake Monsters
Dave’s niece, Jelly, already a veteran Lake Michigan swimmer, earned her Lake Monster stripes yesterday. Here she is “shreddin’ it” out at Ladder 1!
June 16, 2010 / by Steve / 1 Comment / Filed under Great Lakes
