With the winter's first major blizzard bearing down on the New York area and threatening to put the kibbosh on our Caribbean vacation plans, Carole and I were vastly relieved that the storm held off until after our plane landed in
St. Maarten on a
bright, sunny and HOT Christmas afternoon!
Reports of the approaching storm filtered their way to the beach-bar where we sat sipping our first pina coladas of the trip (it being too late in the day to head for the beach), but the snow did not actually begin to fall in New York until the day after Christmas.
That day also dawned rainy and overcast in St. Maarten, so our long-anticipated return to open-water swimming was postponed (in favor of shopping in Philipsburg) until the following day, when we
reopened the 2010 open-water swimming season and spent a long, blissful day swimming endless lengths of the beach at Friar's Bay. Coincidentally, it was also my birthday, and being able to swim my heart out in the exquisite, turquoise-colored water made this birthday truly feel like something to celebrate!
Tuesday brought more of the same perfect conditions, but today (Wednesday) was another rainy, windy day, with high waves that both of us deemed too rough for swimming. Hopefully the sun will be out again tomorrow and we can hit the Salt again -- and again and again and again -- until it's time to leave on Saturday -- but not before we undertake our own New Year's Day "Polar Bear swim" in solidarity with our brethren in the cold, snowbound North!
And so the 2011 open-water season begins....! See you in the Salt!
The second major snowstorm to hit the New York area this winter dropped another 18 or so inches of snow in Huntington this past Wednesday, reminding us that Spring is still a long way off. By the weekend all of the roads had been cleared, but the gates at West Neck Beach remained closed, the lot unplowed, and the only footprints on the long path to the waterfront were the deers'....until mine. Homesick for my familiar water-home, I parked outside the gate early Saturday morning and trudged in through the knee-deep snow for a glimpse of the open water and my beloved beach, which looked both familiar and strange in its snowy, icy blanket. The brilliant sun did little to warm the 19-degree air, and a thin layer of ice extended out from the shore, covering the shallow water of the low tide and the exposed rocks of the jetty to the south. 
The air was still and silent, and except for the flock of geese bobbing in the water just beyond the ice, I was alone....Even the flag was gone from the pole, to be replaced with a fresh new one sometime soon as a result of Rob Martell's importuning the Town on behalf of our faithful, tattered friend (see Rob's story on his new blog at http://touchsomethingeveryday.blogspot.com/2011/01/day-32-west-neck-beach-essential-friend.html ). 
Standing there, watching the frozen, shimmering water, with the sun glinting brilliantly off the snow-covered sand, I felt an acute awareness of the cycle of the seasons, and an appreciation of the importance of each season to the whole cycle of life....Having been nurtured and nourished by this beautiful beach and body of water throughout the Spring, Summer and Fall, I suddenly felt ashamed of my growing impatience for a return to warm weather and the open water. I was reminded that even our Mother needs her long winter's rest, and I cannot begrudge her that....For the rest of this winter season, I resolve to honor and appreciate the winter soul of West Neck Beach and to practice patience as I wait for the days to lengthen, the sun to strengthen and the winter to melt into spring....But I'll be back to visit before then...See you on the Beach!
