Chris, Dave, and I scoped out Ladder #1 hoping to get a swim in at our favorite swimming hole. Unfortunately, the area around Ladder #1 was caked over with ice with virtually no open areas of water. Instead, we walked over to North Avenue Beach where the television film crews were already setting up for the “polar bear” swimmers who were scheduled to make an appearance in a few hours.
We opted to get a quick swim in before the crowds arrived, so we suited up and waded out into the lake. The water temperature was holding steady at the 32F/33F mark, and we managed to put in a quarter mile in the open water just on the inside of the wooden pylons. Ice began to crystallize on our gloves and diver’s hoods after the first ten minutes or so, and a slight breeze brought more cap ice into the swim area towards the tail end of our swim. While this proved to be somewhat of a nuisance, our cold water gear held together pretty well. Overall it was a great swim – and a great way to start off 2009!
Frozen swim area
