Round Trip Treasure Island - Drew Downs

I have been asked to describe this little swimming venture. Planning started a year ago to try to find a way to navigate the currents of the San Francisco Bay in order to start swimming from Aquatic Park at Fisherman's Wharf, circumnavigate Treasure Island and Yerba Buena Island, and return back to Aquatic Park. I poured over current maps and tide tables in an attempt to find a way to thread the needle. Several people said it was impossible, and I know that people were tired of hearing about this ridiculous swim that was only a pipe dream. The problems are a southerly current coming around the top of Alcatraz, which has pushed swimmers into the west side of Treasure Island. This is compounded by the need to swim through the max flood current in order to make it to the southern tip of Yerba Buena Island before the tide turns, or risk never making it around the island. Bob Roper, my pilot, at first thought it couldn't be done, then changed his mind after thinking about it for a few weeks. But, he said, it could take all of 5 - 5 1/2 hours for the trip. He was right on.

We left at 6:30 am on Saturday, June 16. There would be no lollygagging on this trip because the timing was critical. To make things worse, I stubbornly refused to wear the fins that Roper insisted on. I took them along in case I became desperate to get across a channel in time, but this was never a necessity. We crossed four shipping lanes and did battle with four freighters. I swam due north and the current carried us east of Alcatraz. We then headed north east for awhile until Roper headed us due east into the sun. I was still leary of the southerly current and didn't want to miss the north end of Treasure Island, so I kept fading north when Roper wasn't looking. But, without Roper I would have been way north and probably would have never made it around the east end of the island before being caught by the ebb. Thanks to Bob for a wonderful piloting job.

We threaded through a bunch of fishermen at the north end of Treasure Island. They must have wondered where the heck this guy came from. My arms were feeling really heavy at this time and my right leg started to cramp up. I tried to pull out the cramp and asked Roper for food, but he insisted that we keep driving for a pillar that marked the northern point of the island. I kicked out of the cramp and made it to the pillar at 2 hours 10 minutes. The first leg of the trip was done. I ate bananas, V-8 juice, Poweraid and Power Gel about every 25-30 minutes, except on this first leg when I only ate once. Eating was particularly important to me because my diabetes medicine kicks in and my blood sugar drops like a rock after about an hour of swimming. Each time I ate, I felt bloated and uncomfortable, and had to fight regurgitating it. But, renewed energy kicked in in about 15 minutes.

The east side of Treasure Island was like a mirror. It is, of course, shaded from the wind. I would have liked to sightsee a little, but Roper kept pushing to make Yerba Buena Island before the ebb kicked in. I would stop to tell him what a beautiful sight it was and he would yell "Hurray, hurray, keep swimming, we're running out of time!" But it WAS a beautiful sight. You could look over the isthmus connecting Treasure Island with Yerba Buena Island and see the Trans America building glistening in the blue sky. Yerba Buena Island is beautifully wooded with little houses and a lighthouse standing up on a hill. The waterfront is the home of ships and boats and shipyards. I stopped for a moment and touched the first stanchion of the bay bridge on the east side and noted that I was being pushed backwards. The tide had turned. With a yell from Roper, I headed toward the rocky southern point of the island. The trip along the east side took about 1 1/2 hour. The trickiest part of the trip was complete. I enjoyed another Power Gel and banana as we contemplated the last leg.

We still had to get across the channel before the current kicked in too strongly or we would end right back at Alcatraz. I was headed across and couldn't understand Roper's yells to turn me north. I knew I had to get across quickly or the trip would be blown. Roper finally came over and pointed out a big freighter coming in. That turned me north quick enough. We went under the first span of the Bay Bridge on the Yerba Buena side and skirted the west end of the island until it was safe to cut west. By this time the wind had kicked in and we were fighting big waves from the freighter, chop and whitecaps. The spans on the Bay Bridge to my left seemed to pass ever so slowly. When we made it 3/4 the way across, Roper gave the victory sign and the tension let up a little. We got across at the big grey ship and headed for Pier 39. This was the most dangerous part of the trip. I stuck my head up once to find myself surrounded by three ferries, three very large boats, and numerous speed boats and sailboats. I don't know how Roper threaded us through that mess.

I had come in a little too close and had to swim out again to get outside the breakwater. By this time the ebb was pretty much gone and it was a very fair and long swim into the cove. I was beginning to look forward to the end. On touching the sand of the beach, Roper blasted again and again on the fog horn. The swim had taken 5 hours and 25 minutes. We followed an almost perfect course with perfect timing. And I was feeling fine - able to walk and not too cold. I immediately started to wonder what the next swim would be. There are so many swims and so little time. And none of this is even remotely like what Kristine Buckley is doing. My face was puffy and swollen, my eyes deep set with the wrinkled impression of the goggles, my lips cracked, my tongue swollen and my neck chafed from the hat. But Kristine has been doing this same time in the water for weeks. And yesterday she swam for EIGHT hours. Kristine, it is incredible what you are doing. She needs all of our support for her upcoming English Channel swim.

And hooray for the Grandpa's of the world. I have two more grandchildren coming in the next three weeks. What a life!

 

Grandpa Drew