Challenge day 239
Ti Point w / The Pod. 1.8kms
I dropped Sid off at the vets super early for x-rays today. We’re ruling out anything that could be causing pain cause he’s been a bit off lately. I was expecting to have to wait around, Tanja (our vet) said it would be better to pick him up later in the day. So I just had time to race home, pick up my swim things and meet the pod for a swim. It was a small group today - Erin, Pete, MJ and Jesse and it was a great.
It was raining when got in, but Erin sang ‘swimming in the rain’ (a new version of ‘singing in the rain’) which kept us all motivated, and we also agreed that we would have coffee after as a treat. We went right out to the point and back, and I made a point of swimming the whole way (which is part of my plan to get my fitness up for summer).
There is always lots of different things to see when I follow the swim route... heaps of juvenile eleven armed star fish, a big old horse mussel and lots of mantis shrimp burrows too in some spots. I love also swimming over the colony of cockles out by the beach - you just don’t see them in those kind of numbers down by the field anymore. I was also kind of alarmed at how excited I was to see a single blue mussel on the buoy rope today. These important creatures should be in their thousands through our estuary, because they are a vital part of the ecosystem. However like the other shellfish, they have been over gathered and now there are hardly any at all.
Even with the Rahui thats been placed at Whangateau for the last few years (a Rahui is a Māori principle used to regulate or restrict human activity - in this instance, shell fish gathering - for the future well-being of the people and natural resources), this ban still hasn't been enough to see the health of the bay bounce back.
I love being in the water, but it makes me happy and sad.
There were also some cool anchor structures I hadn’t seen before and the new wharf is also coming along! All in all, a great way to spend some time today.
