Grayson: A Memoir

By Lynne Cox

Part mystery, part magical tale, this is the story of a miraculous ocean encounter that happened to the adventurer, swimmer, and bestselling author when she was seventeen and in training for a big swim.

It was the dark of early morning; Lynne was in 55-degree water as smooth as black ice, two hundred yards offshore, outside the wave break. She was swimming her last half-mile back to the pier before heading home for breakfast when she became aware that something was swimming with her. The ocean was charged with energy as if a squall was moving in; thousands of baby anchovy darted through the water like lit sparklers, trying to evade something larger. Whatever it was, it felt large enough to be a white shark coursing beneath her body.

It wasn’t a shark. It became clear that it was a baby gray whale—following alongside Lynne for a mile or so. Lynne had been swimming for more than an hour; she needed to get out of the water to rest, but she realized that if she did, the young calf would follow her onto shore and die from collapsed lungs.

The baby whale—eighteen feet long!—was migrating on a three-month trek to its feeding grounds in the Bering Sea, an eight-thousand-mile journey. It would have to be carried on its mother’s back for much of that distance, and was dependent on its mother’s milk for food—baby whales drink up to fifty gallons of milk a day. If Lynne didn’t find the mother whale, the baby would suffer from dehydration and starve to death.

Something so enormous—the mother whale was fifty feet long—suddenly seemed very small in the vast Pacific Ocean. How could Lynne possibly find her?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group
• Release date: May 4, 2011
• ISBN: 9780307495754

Lynne Cox

Lynne Cox (Boston, Massachusetts, 1957) es una nadadora de larga distancia, escritora y oradora estadounidense. Es conocida por ser la primera persona en nadar entre los Estados Unidos y la Unión Soviética, en el Estrecho de Bering, una hazaña reconocida por aliviar las tensiones de la Guerra Fría entre el Presidente de los Estados Unidos Ronald Reagan y el líder soviético Mijail Gorbachov.

Book preview

one

There’s something frightening, and magical, about being on the ocean, moving between the heavens and the earth, knowing that you can encounter anything on your journey.

The stars had set. The sea and sky were inky black, so black I could not see my hands pulling water in front of my face, so black there was no separation between the sea and the sky. They melted together.

It was early March and I was seventeen years old, swimming two hundred yards offshore, outside the line of breaking waves off Seal Beach, California. The water was chilly, fifty-five degrees and as smooth as black ice. And I was swimming on pace, moving at about sixty strokes per minute, etching a small silvery groove across the wide black ocean.

Usually my morning workouts started at 6 a.m., but on this day, I wanted to finish early, get home, complete my homework, and spend the day with friends, so I had begun at 5 a.m.

There were vast and silent forces swirling around me: strong water currents created by distant winds and large waves, the gravitational pull of moon and sun, and the rapid spinning of the earth. These currents were wrapping around me like long braids of soft black licorice, and I was pulling strongly with my arms, trying to slice through them.

As I swam, all I heard were the waves, rising and tumbling onto shore, the smooth rhythm of my hands splashing into the water, the breaths that I drew into my mouth and lungs, and the long gurgling of silvery bubbles rolling slowly into the sea. I slid into my pace, and I felt the water below me shudder.

It wasn’t a rogue wave or a current. It felt like something else.

It was moving closer. The water was shaking harder and buckling below me.

All at once I felt very small and very alone in the deep dark sea.

Then I heard a sound. I thought it was coming from the ocean’s depths.

At first it seemed to be a whisper, then it grew louder, steadily, like someone trying to shout for help but unable to get the words out. I kept swimming and trying to figure out what was happening.

The sound changed. It became stranger, like the end of a scream.

In my mind, I quickly went through a list of the ocean sounds I knew and compared them with what I was hearing. There were no matches.

The hairs on my arms were standing straight out.

Whatever it was, was moving closer.

The ocean was charged with energy. It felt uncertain and expectant, like the air just before an enormous thunderstorm. The water was electric.

Maybe that was it; maybe the water was warning of an approaching squall. Maybe energy from distant winds and torrential rains was being transmitted through the water.

I checked the sky above and the distant horizon.

Both were dull and as black as ink and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky.

I lifted my head to see the wave height. The shore break wasn’t increasing and there weren’t any wind waves. Not even dimples on the ocean’s surface. There was no sign of a storm.

It didn’t make sense. The energy in the water was intensifying. I felt like I was sitting on a tree branch beside a nest of angry, buzzing bumblebees.

All at once, the sea’s surface erupted nearby. There was a rushing and plunking sound.

Like raindrops hitting the water. But nothing was falling from the sky. This was wrong.

Very wrong.

Out of the darkness, things were flapping into my face, flicking off my arms and head. It was like swimming through a sea of locusts, and with each impact my muscles tightened. I was tingling with fear, and all I wanted to do was to turn and sprint for shore.

But I told myself, Stay calm. You need to focus. You need to figure out what this is.

Taking a deep breath, I looked down into the deep black sea.

Thousands of baby anchovy were darting through the water like lit sparklers.

Blinded by panic, they were frantically tearing away from their schools and leaping out of the ocean like popcorn cooking on high heat. They were trying to evade something larger.

Light was exploding around me like hundreds of tiny blue flashbulbs constantly firing.

When I turned my head to breathe, something leaped into my mouth, wiggled across my tongue, and flapped between my teeth. It was larger than the water bug I once inhaled on a lake in Maine, larger than an anchovy.

Without thinking I spat it back into the sea. It had bright silver sides and was about six inches long. It was a grunion, a fish nearly twice as large as the baby anchovy. The grunion were chasing the anchovy, snatching them from the water and swallowing them whole.

More grunion were swimming in, bumping into my thighs, raking their pointy fins across my shoulders, but I smiled. The grunion had returned. Every year the grunion return to California in the spring and summer. They wait just offshore for the full moons or new moons when the tide is high, so they can swim ashore and lay their eggs. It always seems to be a miracle that they return every year and know exactly where and when to swim ashore.

A lone male grunion, a scout, swims ahead, and if the coast is clear, hundreds of female grunion follow him in, each with as many as eight male grunion swimming alongside. They choose a special wave, one that is on the receding tide so that it will carry them higher onto the beach, and the female’s eggs will not be washed out to sea.

Once a female reaches the beach, she digs a hole in the sand with her tail, then wiggles back and forth, drilling herself down into the soft wet sand until she is buried all the way up to her lips. There she lays up to three thousand eggs, and one of the male grunion arches around her and releases his milt to fertilize the eggs. Then the adult grunion swim back to sea while the eggs incubate in the warm sand for ten days. Then the baby grunion hatch and ride the tide back out to sea to begin their lives in the ocean.

I loved to watch them come ashore and I loved to go grunion hunting. It was a big event in Southern California. In summer, I would meet friends on the beach on moonlit nights and wait for the grunion. We’d spread our large bright-striped beach blankets on a berm, at the crest in the beach, beyond the reach of the incoming waves. We’d sit wrapped up in more warm woolly blankets, sometimes alone, or sometimes snuggled up with friends to stave off the cool, damp swirling ocean breezes. We’d talk, in muffled tones so no one would scare the fish away, about boyfriends and girlfriends, about summer plans and BBQs, about our lives and our families, our dreams and how we felt. We’d explore our lives, and sometimes touch hands under the blanket. We, too, were restless, awaiting our own high tide.

Someone in our group would whisper excitedly, There he is!

We’d jump to our feet, scanning the beach for a single fish. When we spotted one flopping on the sand, we’d watch and wait for what seemed like forever. Then a few minutes later, a wave would lift hundreds of grunion up. This wave would be so heavily laden with fish, it would rise more slowly than any other. As it curled, its dark glassy face would be altered by hundreds of grunion heads and tails protruding at all angles.

The wave would crash onshore and the grunion would spin and tumble across the sand, flipping, flopping, and pulling themselves beyond the water’s edge. Their gills would beat in and out as they gasped for air. It seemed amazing to me that they could hold their breath for two or three minutes, and that they had to leave the sea and return to shore to continue the cycle of life. In utter fascination we’d watch this dance.

As soon as the grunion finished laying their eggs, they’d flip and flop back toward the water, and at that moment we’d charge across the sand, kicking mud on the backs

Reviews for Grayson

[pnwkatie · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The goodreads synopsis was better than the actual book. Read it instead!

[caseyadamsstark · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

There are good things to say about this little book about a young long distance swimmer from Seal Beach, Ca and her amazing encounter with a lost baby gray whale. The writer/narrator brings the ocean world to life and paints a picture of teaming biodiversity off the shores of Southern California. She weaves in educational snippets for young students who might have an interest in marine biology, and she does it by telling a story that is sure to pull the heart strings of some readers.

That having been said, I really thought that this short 150 page story could have been shorter. I am personally not a fan of writing that attempts to outdo itself with its expressions of creative imagery. What do I mean by that? I mean finding multiple different ways to tell us the same thing, and this happened often enough for me to want to skim to get past it. One example came when the narrator expressed how hungry she was, then proceeded to list a literal menu of options that could have satisfied that hunger. I got the point halfway through the list and didn't need more.

Still, it's a nice little book to add to one's collection, especially if you are familiar with the little community of Seal Beach, California.

[librolindsay · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a mellow, soothing audio to listen to on short road trip.

[squeakychu · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This heartwarming story might leave you short of breath. It follows competitive swimmer Lynne Cox on a practice swim as she discovers a baby gray whale that was separated from its mother in ocean waters off the coast of California. She knows that she cannot come ashore since the baby whale might follow her and end up dying on the beach. Instead, she heads offshore to an area of oil rigs in hopes that she can spot the baby whale's mother. Cox makes multiple deep dives when the baby gray whale seems to have disappeared. The baby gray whale cannot survive without the nutrition and protection provided by its mother.

This book is a lovely tribute to mother nature in all her glory - with a tip of the hat to the mighty ocean, her thriving plants such as kelp, and the magnificent creatures which abound in the sea.

[lisapeet · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was on the bookshelf at the guest cottage where I'm staying, and it was pretty enough to be irresistible (I'm easy that way). Not particularly well-written—more like an extended version of one of those heart-warming/amazing animal stories people link to on Facebook—but it was short and the story was quite charming, and I enjoyed the ocean life descriptions.

Here's a good example of a book I would have put down after the first few pages if I were reading it as an e-book, but I loved holding the object in my hands—it was small, nicely designed, deckle edges—and happy to pick it back up again whenever I'd put it down.

[matthewbloome · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a truly interesting book. The author is a long distance swimmer who during the course of an early morning swim was taken to by a young abandoned right whale. The author stays in the water throughout the entire story coaxing the whale about and observing it, trying to find a way to reconnect it with its mother. She gets attached of course and names the whale Grayson since she swims about with him while the morning reflects a gray sun. It was a simple story, highly addictive, even if it's not your typical fare. I thoroughly enjoyed myself as I listened, and I would recommend the experience to anyone with a few hours to kill and a tolerance for happy endings.

[casabooks · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

If you're a swimmer - this may be even better read for you.
Descriptive prose is enjoyable and paints a picture of the ocean that I would never have been aware of.
Fast read and worthwhile for this accounting of a real & magical encounter with baby whale.

[wassilissa · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Die Extremschwimmerin Lynne Cox erzählt die Geschichte, wie ihr eines frühen Morgens beim Training im offenen Meer ein junger Wal folgt (klein ist er mit fünfeinhalb Meter Länge eigentlich nicht). Der Wal hat seine Mutter verloren und das siebzehnjährige Mädchen schwimmt nun stundenlang mit ihm im Meer und hilft ihm sie zu finden.
Es ist eine einfach erzählte Geschichte voller Kraft und mit einem rührenden Ende.

[melissarochelle_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is a quick and easy read about Lynne Cox' experience reuniting a baby gray whale and his mother. If you're looking for something inspiring (and a book that will make you feel like a fat slob) then this is a great choice!

[whisper1_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Long on the to be read list, this was recommended by some in our 75 challenge group. When the author was 17 years old and preparing for long distance swim races, while swimming in the ocean in Seal Beach, California, she was followed by a baby gray whale.

The baby whale could not find his mother. Realizing it was up to her to rescue the whale, she swam many miles paving a safe route for the baby in the prayer and hope that his mother could be reunited.

This is lyrically written and a testimony to courage and the love of nature.

Recommended!

[susanrebecca · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A young gal swimming alone off the California coast happens across a baby whale who has lost his mother. The two spend several hours swimming together in search of the whale's mom. The coast guard, an old time beach geezer and the local community all get involved. Grayson is eventually reuinted with his mom and life lessons are learned all around. Oh yes, this is a true story.

[st5croixsue · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lynne Cox, the well known long distance and deep water swimmer has written a lovely short memoir about her encounter with a baby gray whale while training off the coast of California when she was 17. She weaves many details together; long distance training, encounters with sea life, and how this encounter with the whale impacted her spiritual and emotional life. Good book for teens and adults.

[dreamerenglish2 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Elizabeth G- I loved this book because it was an amazing and inspiring story. It is about how Lynne came across a baby gray whale while training and helped it to find its mother and I would recommend it to anyone who likes to read short, great books.

[carolynschroeder · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This a very simple story about an girl and the baby Grey Whale that follows her during a training open water swim near Seal Beach, California. Despite its simplicity, or because of it, it's a beautiful story of one woman's journey with not only the whale, but the ocean life in general. There are some absolutely breathtaking scenes of living with and around stingrays, grunion, seals, whales and phosphorescence. On some level, this book reminded me slightly of Gifts From The Sea, in its reflections of a woman's journey and the world around her. This is actually a great little book to be shared with a child (my niece, who is almost 9, asks me about the "baby whale book" all the time). I really liked when the author found herself in a confusing, difficult or stressful moment and how she calmed down to find the solution ~ wonderful lessons for both children and adults. Highly recommended for something a little off the beaten path and if you have any interest in ocean life and making the world a slightly better place.

[abbylibrarian_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

When she was 17 years old, long distance swimmer Lynne Cox found her morning workout interrupted by the presence of a baby gray whale. The baby whale was lost from its mother and began to follow Lynne as she swam. Lynne couldn't swim for shore for fear that the whale would follow her and beach itself. This account tells of all her hopes and fears as she swam beside "Grayson" that morning. In great detail, Lynne describes the ocean as it changed that morning and all the wildlife she saw. It's a little gem of a book that really brings you into the Pacific ocean on that morning.

[goldiebear · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This was a super quick read. Though, I am unsure how I feel about this book. The story was very interesting, though I felt like it may have been a bit exaggerated. It's hard to say. Cox wrote this book many years after the actual event happened. Because of this, I feel it may have been overly done in story form. And that being said, how could she possibly be remember so much about what happened in just a short three hours?

No matter, the story itself is incredible. Cox has a way with words that really make you feel like you a right there in the water, with her and the whale. What an experience it must have been. I have never been a swimmer, so I really have no clue how she was able to stay in the water and swim that long with the whale. I can't even imagine. But I guess that is what she was training to do....

Despite a tad of arrogance, the book was a very touching portrait of man and how it can interact with wild animals.

[escondidolibrary · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Lynne Cox swam every morning when she was a teenager, preparing herself for competitions. She was used to the other living things she encountered in the Southern California coastal waters, but one morning she became quite frightened when she sensed something very large in the ocean near where she was swimming. The large presence turned out to be a baby grey whale who had lost his mother. Grayson tells the story of what happened that day and what Lynne did to help this baby get back to his mother.

[lorielibrarian · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Short book, long distance swimmer on a workout encounters a baby whale separated from its mother, spends several hours with the baby trying to help mamma and baby reunite. I skipped a lot of the philosophizing, but the ocean and creature discriptions were grea.