port to port
The thought came to me last summer sometime, likely in August, that it would be cool to swim from Port Stanley to Port Bruce. I measured it out on google maps. 16km from Little Beach, to the green and white pier in Port Bruce.
Last summer, this sounded so far, even knowing I was going to train to swim 52km across Lake Ontario at that time. My longest swim I had done up until that point was 10km.
So the warm water of the summer disappeared soon after, I never attempted that swim last year.
A few weeks ago, I had a 5 hour swim in my training plan.
I had mentioned to my mom, and our friends Jim and Deb while on the water one day that I’d love their support (on their stand up paddle boards), for a 5 hour swim. Jim brought up the idea of going to Port Bruce.
I thought, yes please! That’s something I’ve been wanting to do!
Turns out, the day I was planning for the swim, my mom and Deb weren’t available to come. Jim was though, and so excited to take the 5 hour journey on the shore of Lake Erie.
A few days prior, the lake was 75F. This is warm, and for me a very comfortable temperature to swim in for hours. A lesson was solidified on the day Jim and I arrived at Little Beach to set out for 5 hours on the water. My expectations were that the lake would likely still be warm, and it wasn’t.
Expecting something and receiving something else that is less appealing, can throw you off. I’ve learned it’s best not to expect anything…
Port Stanley, Little Beach looking beautiful on June 16th
Fortunately, I wasn’t thrown off for long. The mission was happening regardless. I geared up for a 5 hour swim to Port Bruce, in 54F water.
The water was beautiful this morning. The sun was shining, too. The water was mostly flat, clear and even 2km out from the shore, I could see the sandy bottom of the lake. This doesn’t happen a lot at Lake Erie!
As we went “around the corner” from where Pumping Station road is, we followed the shoreline straight to Port Bruce.
The “corner” we turned to head straight to Port Bruce. Pumping Station Road leads to this cylindrical building. This point is about 3.5km from Little Beach.
There is nowhere to stop along this route. There are small patches of beach here and there, maybe 8 feet wide.
In my mind, I knew there was no way to quit, only back to Little Beach, Port Stanley (which wasn’t an option to me) or forward to the next port, which was the finish.
Jim pictured here in a photo taken on a different day in May. This is the 3.5km stretch from Little Beach.
About halfway through the 5 hour swim, Jim pulled over to the shore to have his sandwich.
Every 30 minutes, Jim paddled right beside me, got down to his knees and opened my cooler he had strapped to his board. He asked me what I wanted, handed it to me, I ate or drank for no more than 30 seconds, put my head back down in the water and kept swimming.
I learned this day that chewing food with a numb face is hard. Holding a 1/4 of a sandwich with numb fingers was hard.
My mind that day was calm. My thoughts went from counting breaths, focusing on my technique, thinking about what I’d have next to eat or drink, and “just keep swimming” like a broken record.
Sometimes I break down the swim into chunks. Like “I’ve swam about 10km, and to cross Lake Ontario, I only have to do what I just did, about 4 more times…”
I am not a math girl and never have been, but sometimes it’s fun to do some swim math in my head. No one is judging, and I have tons of time to think about it.
The 5 hours actually went by pretty quick. Soon enough, I said to Jim at one of my last feeds, “I think I can see the pier and I can definitely see the windmills.” The pier from that distance away looked like a tiny white dot in the distance.
As we approached the beach the wind picked up in our favour and pushed us along for the last few kilometers. I swam right up to the pier and touched it, pretending it was the wall in Marilyn Bell Park after finishing the 52km swim across Lake Ontario. Visualizing like this actually helps a lot, and brings out similar emotions to how I might feel after finishing the longest swim of my life.
Port Bruce Beach and Pier. Photo taken last year.
A man with his fishing pole sitting on the pier looked down at me with no expression. In my head I was like, “Ask me where I came from! I just swam from Port Stanley!”
Ha! Nope. Not a word. That’s ok. I knew what I had done was an accomplishment, and I knew Jim was so happy with our journey, too.
I walked up on the beach. If you’ve ever been to Port Bruce, the shore isn’t as sandy as many would hope. It’s rocks. And boy, after being horizontal in the water for 5 hours and finally standing, on rocks, it’s not pleasant on the feet. But I thought hey, if my feet hurt and thats the worst of it, I’ll take it.
Jim had already gotten out, put his board back in the truck, and was heading towards me with a huge smile on his face.
Our friend and fellow paddler, Deb and her husband Dave, who I had met earlier that morning, were kind to bring Jims truck from Port Stanley, to Port Bruce for us.
I changed, dried off, put warm clothes on and hopped in the truck that Jim had already warmed up for me. I was cold.
After chatting about how cool that trek was, I asked Jim, what are you doing the rest of the day? He then told me it was his 79th Birthday, and his wife was making a peanut butter pie and they would have dinner together later.
I just about choked on air. I waited until I got back in my own car to cry.
I was so grateful that he wanted to do this trip with me. Asking someone to paddle for 5 hours along the shore without any exit points, is not an easy ask or task.
Jim spent his Birthday on the water with me, so he could support my training. I know it’s fun for him too, but I was (and still am) so overwhelmed with his kindness and generosity.
There will be more adventures like this one. Even after the Lake Ontario swim, I’d love to do this swim again, and I know Mom and Deb would love to join, too.
I also want to know, what does peanut butter pie taste like?
