Leech phobia

We escaped the heat this weekend and went to Pigeon Lake for a respite from the city. Edmonton is seriously lacking in any good swimming holes, so we drove over an hour south of the city in search of a swimming/beach haven. Pigeon Lake is really quite large and boasted a pleasant beach area that wasn't overpopulated. However, the lake itself has a wee bit of an algae problem. It floats upon the surface, just below the surface, lower down...you get the picture. There was also a number of weeds growing on the bottom, starting right near the shore and extending farther out than I cared to explore. The water was warm, though, so I braved the weeds and algae to throw the frisbee around with Garrett and Doug, until we started talking about leeches.

Now, in my grown-up life I have never actually seen a leech in person nor had one stuck on me. But I have this irrational fear about getting one stuck on me and lakes are where they are found. Being an ocean girl in the first place, lakes are not my favorite place to swim, but when landlocked in Alberta, there is little choice. Pigeon Lake, however, had the potential to be a leech haven, owing to its murky weedy waters.

I promptly left the water when Doug started checking his legs for leeches, just to make sure there weren't any. Ick.

Anyway, the beach was great and it was fantastic to be out of the city and relaxing with friends. Here are some pictures - I didn't take many because it'd just be us in our bathing suits and sometimes that's not too flattering (especially because I am so very white and untanned!)