Day 4= 4K Day.
Today was the big day! Our final day of camp and one big swim to wrap everything up! You could either walk to the top of the lake or take the van. I opted for the latter.
I wandered down to a bench by the lake to put on my swimskin and some kids started talking to me when they heard me speaking American English. They said their dad is American and their mom is Czech and they live in the Czech Republic. They asked me what I was doing there and I told them I was at a swim camp and we were going to swim to the bottom of the lake. One of the boys asked me if my legs were sore…
I knew what he really wanted to ask me: is all that swimming why you walk so weird?
I smiled and said a little bit, but that is not why I walk like I do.
Oh, ok.
It looks kind of funny doesn’t it? I asked him. The older boy said, no it looks pretty normal to me. I told him no, it doesn’t and explained that there is something wrong with my legs that makes me walk that I do, but its ok because it doesn’t hurt and I can still swim. Then mom showed up and she did not look happy. She had been cleaning up the younger boy’s sleeping bag because he had an accident in it the night before. She barked some Czech at them and they went chasing after her.
Before the start of the swim we took a group photo and then we were off!
My shoalmate and I were at the back of the pack the whole way, but we kept up and we were right in sync with each other. It was nice to have a partner especially when my shoulders got sore. We had regular stops, this time along the beach so we could have a proper pause, drink water, and eat sugar snacks to keep our energy up. Gummy bears have never tasted so good!
When we talked about our plans for 4K day everyone said they were going to try to swim it. Myself included. What I meant by try was that I was going to do it. It never crossed my mind that I would not finish. There were a few who chose to drop in at the halfway mark and just do a 2K swim. When we arrived at that point our guide explained this part was the mental part, keeping going and not letting ourselves quit. I have no idea if the others had any sort of mental challenge to complete the swim, but I know I did not. You just keep swimming. When I swim, I have no fear that I will hurt myself. I cannot fall. What is the worst that can happen if I get tired? Well, I know that the WORST would be that I cannot keep my head above water. But I also know that is not going to happen to me out on a regular swim with just getting tired. Patrick has a saying with the runners in his training challenges: I could do this all day. I cannot say that phrase about walking. There comes a point where me walking while tired is just an accident waiting to happen. But swimming. Now that I could do all day.
We did not have to swim all day to get to the bottom of Bohinj. It only took us 2 hours. Thanks to a few breaks on the beach for a quick refueling, and even the mere presence of my shoaly, we wrapped things up successfully- even if we were the last ones in! We had a great cheering squad to welcome us.
We had our usual tea and biscuits followed this time by lots of photos.
Then we wrapped things up in the hotel with coffee, cake, and certificates. I accidentally left mine, but we at least have picture proof of it.
Needless to say I think I will both be back in Slovenia- partially because my family was super jealous of our pics and they want to go now too, and also because it was so spectacular I need to go back for more, and I will go on another Swim Trek swim vacation. The only problem will be deciding which one!
Oh Yes She Cane! 