A 10 year old boy takes a drag of his cigarette as we pull into the road leading to Bellambi Beach.
I doubt he is a swimmer.
One of the hardest parts about becoming swim-fit is getting used to the sensation of exploding lungs, and not quite getting enough breath.
It takes time to learn to bilateral breathe, and a little longer to tumble turn at each end of the pool in order to move continuously for 1km or two, without stopping.
During this Bellambi visit I am grateful to find a flow as soon as my face is submerged; not all pools have this affect.
Some pools are choppy and turbulent at high tide as the waves break over the rock face and toss swimmers left and right.
A gulp of water; a gift from the sea as I turn to breathe.
Then there is the high wind days that cause the surface of the pool to spray and make swimming an effort.
Tumultuous waters due to high numbers of early morning swimmers can also interrupt a flow.
There is a small group of elderly 6am Continental Pool hardcores who line up at the gates with swim caps and goggles on, chomping at the bit to be the first in the water.
Poolies Rohan and Wayne-o open the gates mindfully so as not to be mowed down by the first at the starting blocks.
These are the human-shark-tornadoes.
They tap my feet as they churn through the torrent, and before I can even begin to think that they are doing it on purpose they have lapped me, and I realise it is nothing personal.
Whether I am there or not there, these swimmers would be plowing through the water at pace regardless.
And then there’s Bellambi.
This is the quietest of the ocean pools. Maybe because all of the locals are too busy smoking.
Each time I swim at Bellambi the water is green.
Green is my favourite colour.
Today it was clear enough to see the sandy bottom, and I was happy to notice the creepy alien-like seaweed that was reaching out to grab me last time had been removed.
The water is still and calm.
Even flow.
It’s a wonderful lap pool, and appears longer in length than Towradgi, Bulli and Coledale from the outside. Is it the angle? I haven’t measured.
My flatmate Shani has been exploring the rock pools with me since COVID-19 deprived us of the Continental Pool.
She’s an avid skydiver, a runner and fitness fanatic who has recently taken to swimming laps.
In her opinion, Bellambi is the best of the unsupervised ocean pools she has visited so far (she’s swum at Coledale and Towradgi).
“I felt like all the seaweed and green stuff was hugging me,” she says.
Bellambi Rock Pool gets 8/10 in my Pool Review of ocean baths:
- 50 metres
- Panoramic view of the ocean
- Cold outdoor showers to wash off
- Kiddies paddling pool
- It’s green
Next stop… Austinmer Rock Pools.
Photo 1 “Thunderstruck” by Clint Davies
Yoga teacher, skydiver, martial artist and journalist. Yoga keeps her centred and reinforces her core belief that the greatest gift to each of us is ourselves. When Dawn isn’t teaching yoga, she works as a skydive camerawoman, grapples with her mates at Gracie Barra Shellharbour, and does media and promotions for stuff she loves.
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