Okay, so this is a half-hour drive out of Union City, but worth it! This is the closest Bay fronting swimmable beach to the Tri-City area without having to pay bridge toll. To get there, take I880 North, exit at High St. Make a left on High St., go over the drawbridge, and welcome to Alameda. DONT SPEED. Make a right on Otis St., then follow signs to the beach area. Go about three miles along Shoreline Blvd., and eventually you'll hit the park at the intersection of Otis and Shoreline. Park in the neighborhood and walk in. You'll see the bathouse/restrooms housed in a brown building. Continue walking north along the beach to get to the other side of the breakwater. This is the best part of the beach to start your swim.
Amy and I went here for the first time today. I estimated the water temp to be high 60's within 100 yards of the shore, and mid to low 60's past that. The water is very shallow near the shore, drops off slowly. Even at about 300 yards out, the water was only about 5 feet deep. This makes a nice safety factor if you get tired or overcome by the cold. You need to swim out far to get the feel of the real bay, which is important when training for the Alcatraz Swim
Judging by the swim time and the trail map, a straight line drawn from the edge of the breakwater straight across the cove is about 200 yards. (I added the breakwater in the above image, its approximate location is the black line above the text) If you are training for serious open water, you need to swim about 100 yards past the edge of the breakwater to get to the cooler water. Then, swim south as far as you feel comfortable, and then turnaround and head back to the beach. KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR BOAT TRAFFIC, do not get close to the Marina entrance. The morning is better as winds are lower, and there will not be as many windsurfers and kitesurfers.
Congrats to Amy today, who did her first 2600+ yard workout at the San Leandro 24 before we went to check out Crown Beach. Double congrats to Amy for braving the cold and no wetsuit!
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