How’s the water?
Happy summer, everyone!
Years ago, there was a chalkboard at Race Point Beach with the actual water temperature for the day. It was something for the lifeguards to do - and actually pretty useful, back in the days where we could swim in the ocean without fear of sharks!
Getting an accurate swimming temperature for our beach at Cranberry Hill has always been a challenge. The nearest weather buoys are way out in the middle of Cape Cod Bay or in the frigid Atlantic, too remote to be relevant for purposes of our coastal microclimate.
Open water swimmers know full well that conditions off our beach are highly dependent on current, wind direction and sunshine. Happily, our beach will almost always be warmer than the Provincetown Harbor reading on the Home page of this website.
On a calm, clear day, the sun warms the shallow water at low tide. Tides and wave action mix in the surface layer, creating ideal conditions for swimming. A gentle, southerly current and westerly wind direction hold that nice, warm water in position.
Northerly and northwesterly winds and currents swing the cold water around from Herring Cove into our snug harbor, resulting in significant variability from one day to the next. Easterly winds are worst of all, carrying the surface layer right out into the Bay, allowing the icy water that always lurks beneath to well up to the surface.
Winds shift, currents shift, the sun returns, the cycle repeats.
This week our visiting family - art teacher sister-in-law and craftsman brother, with trenchant direction from our five-year old niece - created the sign you will see at 27 Fishermans Road. With the help of a pool thermometer, our hope is to post the actual morning swim temperature from the bottom of the beach stairs as often as we can during the high season.
I hope this helps you with your daily decision: To swim, or not to swim?
Enjoy!
P.S.: Today’s observations (Sunday, June 26) disclosed a four-degree (!) temperature increase during the course of the day, from 72 to 76 F. Sunny and warm conditions providing significant daily heating…