Ann and I spend the morning exploring the crags on Donner summit, but never settle on a route to climb, and eventually decide to swim instead. It’s pretty windy when we arrive at King’s Beach on the north shore of lake Tahoe. Breakers are rolling in, and it feels good to put on long sleeves. Getting in the water doesn’t sound like the best idea, but we do it and find it’s not as bad as we feared. The waves are even big enough to body surf a bit, and no salty mouth. Somehow swimming in this high lake with snow still visible on the surrounding mountains makes the water – something I’ve always been ill at ease in – more attractive.