Pacific Jules

Friday 11 February 2022 Best Swim Ever. Again

It was my goal to photograph the 6.30 swimmers in action but my camera's capability was inadequate to the task. So I had to get in their way. 

Here is one swimmer who could not believe what he saw when he turned (very expertly; with one goggle only out of the water) to breathe

And here is the architect of my blog title. His assessment and after I swam I found it to be true

Gorgeous colours - going in at 630

Where will the temperature climb stop

Sophie kindly stopped for a photo

Matthew - swimmer of the month. Captured here, swimming

Ah! elbows

Elbow close up

 

At Shelly Beach. Here is Julieanne who was having her first BB swim!!!

And Tim 

I was interested to tell him about my current obsession with Adam Walker's swim technique called Ocean Walker which is quite distinct and beautiful. I have seen some swimmers in BB who use this technique so I hope to capture them on film one day. Ocean Walker technique is taught in the UK and who knows if I will ever go there again

Happy birthday to Ben, Leisa's son



Fantastic Rob!

Management notices

Swimmer of the Month

The  Budgy Smuggler Random Swimmer of the Month for January is ... Matthew Smeal. Matthew will receive a voucher for a pair of Budgies from the Budgy Smuggler shop. All you have to do to be in the running for this month is log your swims. The more swims you do the more chances you will have to win the prize.

Turtle-riffic Thursday

What a beautiful week of swimming it's been! From Numb rays in the rain to turtle sightings everywhere!

Like many of you my week started off with the Cole Classic on Sunday. While I swam the 5km, the Mini Mermaids had their debut into Ocean Swimming with the 1km. So proud of these girls and thankful for the Bold and Beautiful - the badges and commraderie have really motivated them and improved their ability!

before

after

The visibility was good today, with Numb ray sightings (photo from rainy Tuesday - It seems I only see them when it rains).

Eagle rays about

a crested horn (rare to see this time of year)

The very rare, one of a kind Petrafish

and the turtle.   I have two turtle stories for the week, both involved our beautiful community of swimmers.  My 11 year old has been swimming before school (she has to get those 50 swims in!) with me and a mate of hers. They LOVE TURTLES (they've organsied a few bake sales for the Seabird rescue to help the turtles). We knew people had seen the turtle earlier in the week, but we finished our swim at  Bower and had gotten out without seeing it. Then we saw some swimmers diving down, could it be a turtle?  Petra ran to the corner of the pool and called out the swimmers, was it a turtle? IT WAS! The two girls and I got our caps and goggles back on and got there in time to see it. Thank you Edwina and other swimmers! You made our daughter's days!

Today, as I was swimming from Bower to Manly these ladies called out to me and showed me where the turtle was hiding!

I patiently waited, knowing the turtle would swim at any minute, and after 10 min it did! As it started to come out of the seaweed I turned on my camera and...NO BATTERIES!

It was a beautiful moment that you'll have to visualise on your own! I watched it swim, take a breath, swim some more and take another breath.  I do love the turtles and have learned my lesson re: a fully charged camera!

Hope you have a great week and get some time to swim!

Alana

Swimmer of the Month

The  Budgy Smuggler Random Swimmer of the Month for January is ... Matthew Smeal. Matthew will receive a voucher for a pair of Budgies from the Budgy Smuggler shop. All you have to do to be in the running for this month is log your swims. The more swims you do the more chances you will have to win the prize.

 

 

 

It rains in Turtles …Hallelujah

G’day from Queensland 

We are on vac on Heron island celebrating Nats birthday. It’s a slice of heaven as many of you will know. 

So many turtles abound. Tis the season.

Nests bursting open with turtle bubs (hatchlings)  busting for the ocean trying to avoid marauding gulls shrieking  ‘mine mine mine’ and lurking reef sharks as they chase their freedoms - little marvels that can power out of their eggs and sand nests across the beach and swim like mad immediately once in the sea. Extraordinary! 

In stark contrast to human bubs which need endless nurturing, endless swimming lessons, endless socialising etc ect 

Here are the bubs dashing for freedom 

Mama green turtles laying eggs then heading back to sea at dawn. This one got a rocky road as the tide had gone out in the meantime. 

Reef sharks (black tip) and shovel nose rays abound plus so many birds the island sings all day and night. 


Ray in the bay (pic courtesy of Lou as are a few of above )

Noddy terns are all over the place. Nesting and flying. Most of us have been ‘sprayed’ a few times. The most sprayed family member pays for drinks. So far Manus is winning this lark. No pun intended. 



And finally a GnT shot to end the blog 

Hambe Kahle everyone see you all next week. 
Di

x

from management 

Swimmer of the Month

The  Budgy Smuggler Random Swimmer of the Month for January is ... Matthew Smeal. Matthew will receive a voucher for a pair of Budgies from the Budgy Smuggler shop. All you have to do to be in the running for this month is log your swims. The more swims you do the more chances you will have to win the prize.

 

08/02/2022 - Grey Nurse around on a Grey Tuesday!

One of those surprisingly beautiful swims when you might have not made it down because of the rain...but are so glad you did! Added bonus of a juvenile Grey Nurse sighting between the point and shed! Water lovely and warm at 23.1!

The Drinks Express don't let a bit of rain put them off and a big bunch set off. Legend Drinks himself above.

The waves weren't as big as the last few days and the bay itself was smooth and flat. Amazingly viz was back and loads of marine life around.

Its a quick blog for me today as it's back to work and an early start. Jo above was one of the 27 'Merpeople' who went in Cole Classic winning a prize for largest team!

Roz, Pete, Dr Michele and Michael heading out for a 7am swim

Superwoman Kelly-ann after her run, before her swim, a day of work, Tuesday night volunteering on Soup Kitchen. A true legend...

 

Have a great day folks!

Monday, 7 Feb 2022 - What a great community!

Conditions this morning are still a little wild with a decent swell rolling in, providing a social bodysurf for anyone who ventured out. To start the swim, the point express rip was running well today, providing a fast trip out.   

Big congratulations to everyone who took part in the Cole Classic yesterday! From all reports it was a great vibe in town, with a touch of adrenaline rush for everyone after surviving the big swell.

Lyndall the co-editor for today described yesterday’s vibe as inclusive and fun. The team made a great day of it, also raising $17k as part of the Drinks Express team for Careflight.

Community is everything and yesterday saw many BnB swimmers and Manly Life Saving Club members coming together, volunteering for rego, bag drop, first aid, water safety, finish line and the pack down. To top off a great day, the club rewarded volunteers with a fun afternoon of drinks and frivolity. Gee we live a great life. 

Stay Safe. Lyndall & Scott 

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Swimmer of the Month

The  Budgy Smuggler Random Swimmer of the Month for January is ... Matthew Smeal. Matthew will receive a voucher for a pair of Budgies from the Budgy Smuggler shop. All you have to do to be in the running for this month is log your swims. The more swims you do the more chances you will have to win the prize.

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Another day in paradise as the 6:30 crew heads around the point 

Lyndall and her Cole Classic swimming partner Leanne! 

Leanne (left) on a post swim high chatting with Jen (congrats on the 1st place in the 5km - Jen says it’s all about navigation but she also has the most amazing swimming styles) 

Lainey the local legend!! 

Lainey, Jill and the delicious cake stall - not to be missed. 

Careflight bottoms! And a shoutout to the great Budgie Smugglers for pitching in to support a great cause.

Drinky’s (aka Andrew Drinkwater from Drinks Express fame) get into the action and raising money for Careflight after his brother Stickman (aka Mark Drinkwater) was airlifted to life saving care after a bad accident - Careflight saved his life. 

Morning watch, always great to see happy familiar faces.  

Guy, rain or sine we can count on you! 

Backing it up after a great performance yesterday! 

The wombat, always in great form!! 

Live Baby Live

In the howling wind comes a stinging rain. I see it driving nails into the souls on the tree of pain. Curl up and hide. Instead I shuffle to cabbage tree bay to revive. The worst days are actually the best days. Maybe it’s the pixie dust....I can smell the weekend.

Rising seas so I decide to see what all the FFF fun is about. Freshwater Fast Fives. Freshwater Surf Life Saving club, Five ins and outs in 30 minutes, more fun than fast.

The camaraderie is amazing. Trooper stirs us up, line up, go.

Cam’s Smoothfm tribute to Glen Wheatley for the boomers out there, in the immortal words of INXS “Live baby live”, lets go again.

I got a new sensation. Mm, perfect moments. That's so impossible to refuse

All perfect light and promises

There's nothing better we could do, than live forever

Hayley and the girls, gave us a rant about real-estate agents before leading us off for another lap.

Chris the master plumber, pumps those legs, who knows a thing or two about water flow, beat everyone by jumping in the rip, uses his express skills to the back.

For those who want to try the FFF, 6.30am Fridays. Not sure where you get the fancy budgies, but Trooper would be your man.

Off to Shelley, flat water it was like a bath. We were on a mission - to find the turtle

Gary the groper is really a pixie. He told me that you just missed the turtle. 6.15am damn. Also he told me he's never really seen Guy at the point??

The bay was full of fish! But the more fish you saw, the more lice said hello!

Old wives gossiping away under a rock. I wonder what their husbands do? Sit outside a cafe on a plastic chair, sipping espresso. The classic Italian man.

Drinksy said something here. It got a cheer so I think it was important. Today is the day I beat them to the point. Wishful thinking.

Fiona and Zig Zag enjoy their apres swim coffees.

Two of the fastest swimmers going around. Stickman and his faster brother Drinksy! Already raised $14,000 for Careflight, well done legends. Just picked out a pair myself.

Lainey models her new outfit!

Thanks for the swim & coffee team. Don't let our true love run cold!

 

Carolinebythebeach & Rusty The Fish

 

another one to crank up on your Sonos Chippo:

 

 

 

 

Thursday 3 February The temperature blog

At 5am each morning Guy Dunstan takes the water temperature for us all, here you can take a glimpse in the dark into what a huge effort Guy makes for us.

If you'd like to see the other video blogs click here: B&B video blogs

Stay happy, stay healthy, stay loved.

Pete

Wednesday 2nd february - slipping and sliding into winter.....

After the heat and humity of recent weeks, today reminded us that winter is not far away, although there was no sign of ugg boots after the swim i'm sure many are starting to think of retrieving them from their summer hibernation.   Hopefully with the cooler temperatures and welcoming, nourishing rain, everyone will get more sleep and bounce out of bed and into the water with more energy in the mornings!  

Today is an historic day for sport in Australia and I am beyond excited -  if, like me and many of us, you are missing your northern hemisphere winter white fluffy powder fix and are a fan of frozen water sports; for the first time, Australia will have a Curling Team at the Olympic Winter Games.   Curling is kind of like lawn bowls on ice but with brooms... and rocks.... & tactical calls like "hard, hard, hard".... The mixed doubles pair of Tahli Gill and Dean Hewitt managed to defy the odds and qualify against the best in the world despite the fact that Australia does not have any ice rinks suitable for the sport of curling (and yes, there is such a thing as curling ice - which i have actually experienced in Canada - thats a long story involving a torn ACL - mine - , table minding at Merlins bar at the base of Blackcomb with loaded nachos, alcohol, a spa & friendly locals).  Whilst the Games officially open on friday, the mixed doubles curling preliminary rounds commence today.    Perhaps we should campaign for a curling rink on manly beach for winter?   After all, what we lack in tall steep mountains we have flat areas in abundance...... Just a random thought... 

OK back to today:

water temp art: 20.5 continuing a downward trajectory .... 

air temp: 22.1 at 7am 

weather: moody, cloudy, slight breeze, and rain.... welcoming, cooling, nourishing rain!  

tide: high at 10:01 and its a big tide!

conditions: strong rip, not too bumpy in the bay, few sets coming in, vis OK

vibe: happy!  kind of like singing in the rain happy!  

critters sighted: wobbegong, dusky or grey nurse, rays "courting", groupers... loads of fish!  

Whilst on the sport of curling and since its summer - i decided to flip the seasons on their heads and ask swimmers which sport would be included in the winter olympics if it were held in Manly?  After all, firstly, swimming is a winter sport, secondly, if the snow sports at in Beijing can be held on man made snow, whats to stop man made snow in Manly and finally snow sport equipment is effective on sand !     Snow on Manly beach -  a challenge for the scientifically oriented!    There was a campaign back in 2002 (if you recall, the 2002 Games resulted in Australias first 2 Winter Olympic Gold Medals - the infamous Steve Bradbury in the short track skating and the inspiring Alisa Camplin in the aerial skiing!) run by Channel 7 and the effervescent Roy & HG to hold the 2010 Olympic Winter Games right here in Australia at Smiggin Holes - the hilarity was that people from certain parts of the world thought it was serious (insert ROFL emoji) .... does anyone (like me) still have that merchandise?

Chris, Stickman, Rose, Shanny & Chris would like to see Ocean luge and a biathlon involving paddle/shoot combo.     of course the shooting is not directed at our beloved sea creatures...   

Legend Jenny (who inspires us all with her overall win in the Palm to whale on sunday!) and Drinks himself (who also swam the Palm to whale with the crew) would like to see a run - slip - run with snow heaped on the beach - perhaps alternating sand and snow?

Susie and Shellly would like to see snoeshoeing on the beach - sand shoeing?  Chance would like to actually be allowed on  the beach!  come on Nth beaches council who can deny that gorgeous Chance smile?   Perhaps a new event could be the dog paddle.... 

Sue and Gayle would like to see sandcastle building...  

The Mermaids and manmaids would like to see the Olympic team outfits designed and made by Budgy Smuggler (dont these custom swimmers look great!????), and would love to see water skiing on ice, Luge down the stairs, Ice planking and snow (or sand?) angels!

Fi, Rosemary and Di would like to see Apres on the list - the competition to represent Australia in Apres would be pretty hot.... we have so much talent in that area, and especially in the B&B community, we would be an unbackable favourite to clean up ALL the categories!     

and here is Baloo - patiently waiting for human Dara to return from his swim. Baloo wanted to do the palm to whale swim, sadly there are no categories for doggy paddle - perhaps one for next year?

 Hopefully you are all enjoying the relief from the heat and humidity - get down for a swim if you can as an East Coast low is reportedly on the horizon, and GOOD LUCK to all B&B ers swimming in the Cole classic this weekend - hopefully mother nature is kind to us!

and as always, the world is still crazy so take care, stay safe and sane, be kind, look out for and after one another and have a great day!

oh, and Aussie Aussie Aussie Oi Oi Oi!   good luck to all family & friends of our B&B ers and community members competing at the Olympic Winter Games!

Jocelyn

 

 

 

 

 

1/02/2022 - Duskies, new Cozzies and Rippy Swim

 

The Duskies are back! Visibility not so good today (pic taken a few days ago). First day of Feb, lots of swimmers, warm air temp and water temp (21) rippy and bouncy swim but exciting!

 Lots of great cozzies! Here are the Manmaids and Mermaids wearing theirs! Don't they look great?! Even though in silhouette they all look the same shade of brown too! Maybe they all go to the same Spray Tanner ;-)

At Shelly beach and Andre insists I get in the pic!

Roz in the middle celebrated her birthday with a swim today :-)

Our lovely welcoming committee, Simone and Sally with Robbie in the middle.

Bruce looking very fit

Tim did the 'let's go' at Shelly

Edith, Robbie and friend

Amazing blogger, cook, voluntary life saver and master of all trades...Jocelyn!

Ian is half asleep or fed up of having his photo taken!

Rusty's Mum in England loves to see him on the blog!

Duskies are back! I did spot one today but took this one on Saturday when clearer

The above were my only 2 underwater shots from today as the viz had gone down. Some people saw a Grey Nurse though! Stars and Stripes Pufferfish above

I was very lucky to swim with this beautiful Turtle on Sunday morning. I think he is the one who was rescued twice and tagged twice and they call Brownie!

Cuttlefish yesterday out from tall palm tree

This is the tale of the wobbegong and the frisbee. He was freed by Sea Life Sydney aquarium!

Thank you again to everyone who baked, bought or helped with the Careflight Cake Stall last Wednesday. A wopping $2800 was raised with more money raised from the sale of these swimmers above and the Cole Classic. See Drinksy for swimmers!

Brendan got in the paper for his Turtle rescue with the breadknife!

Thanks Tim Ettle!

You can still enter the Cole Classic or volunteer!

BUDGY SMUGGLER Swimmer of the Year

We are happy to announce that the B&B Swimmer of the Year is ....... Jackie Leslie! Thanks to Budgy Smuggler, Jackie receives a $200 voucher to spend in the Budgy Smuggler shop. 

B&B monthly dinner – 8^th February 2022

The first B&B monthly dinner for the year will be held on Tuesday 8th February at 6.30 pm at Bluewater Restaurant. Join us for a fascinating story about the restoration of the marine environment and biodiversity, specifically the project “Living Seawalls” undertaken at the Fairy Bower pool.

The talk by Dr Melanie Bishop, the project leader of Living Seawalls, will discuss the almost 50% loss of biodiversity due to marine construction and the shorelines being replaced with hardened seawalls.

The Living Seawalls project is reviving marine life with twelve locations around Sydney Harbour and hopefully many more to come.

The cost of the dinner is great value at only $30 a head, which includes shared entrees, and a selection of mains to choose from (including a vegetarian option). Glasses of beer or wine and desserts are also available at the special price of only $5 each (please note, NO BYO). Bookings are essential, so to avoid disappointment and secure your spot please book HERE.

Have a great day 

Lainey x

 

B&B monthly dinner – 8^th February 2022

The first B&B monthly dinner for the year will be held on Tuesday 8th February at 6.30 pm at Bluewater Restaurant. Join us for a fascinating story about the restoration of the marine environment and biodiversity, specifically the project “Living Seawalls” undertaken at the Fairy Bower pool.

The talk by Dr Melanie Bishop, the project leader of Living Seawalls, will discuss the almost 50% loss of biodiversity due to marine construction and the shorelines being replaced with hardened seawalls.

The Living Seawalls project is reviving marine life with twelve locations around Sydney Harbour and hopefully many more to come.

The cost of the dinner is great value at only $30 a head, which includes shared entrees, and a selection of mains to choose from (including a vegetarian option). Glasses of beer or wine and desserts are also available at the special price of only $5 each (please note, NO BYO). Bookings are essential, so to avoid disappointment and secure your spot please book HERE.

Have a great day 

Lainey x