Crystal Lake is nestled in the north west corner of Michigan’s lower peninsula, USA. Around the lake, about a hundred yards off shore, the lake drops from a depth of 10 feet of depth to 30-50 feet. There the water changes color, from a bright turquoise to deep blue – the blue line. That’s the domain of open water swimmers and free divers. Swimming from shore to the blue line is a daily practice for many lucky lake front families during the summer months.
The Blue Line Swim Club includes anyone who loves to get in and under the water, including folks who might be willing to support swimmers and divers that venture farther and deeper, like paddlers, rowers and human powered boaters of every stripe. Gas powered vessels are not optimal around swimmers and divers, as carbon monoxide reduces our blood’s ability to uptake oxygen.
Hard to know when the Blue Line Swim Club started. The neighbor kids and I were out there in the 60s, but certainly we were only following in the wakes of avid swimmers from the 20s and before. Perhaps even the native peoples explored the drop off, as that’s where our big fish hang out, our brother and sisters of the blue.
If you’d like to find a swimming buddy, become a better swimmer, or even learn to swim, give a whistle. Water is a universal solvent, dissolving differences of age, gender, politics, and whatever keeps us apart. Leave all that on the land and just have fun!