Feel that sun? It’s San Francisco’s summertime, and it’s time to think about swimming before the weather cools back off in July. If you haven’t already signed up for a series of swimming lessons somewhere like San Bruno’s tony La Petite Baleen or the magnificent pool at UCSF’s Mission Bay location, it’s not too late to get in on classes offered by San Francisco Recreation and Park — though most courses aren’t open for Internet registration until June, calling Recreation and Park at 415-831-2747 can usually find you an open space in one of the local pools. Classes are offered for kids as young as six months or as old as 17, and many are incredibly cheap or free.
If you can wait a few weeks, the new cycle of classes at the dreamily warm pool at the Janet Pomeroy Center out by the SF Zoo start June 9. Kids aged 3 and under get an introduction to water in the Cuttlefish classes; those aged 3-6 may opt for the Penguin option, in which kids learn swimming skills. There’s no schedule online for classes, but Cuttlefish classes are offered generally in the late mornings Tuesday through Friday, while Penguin classes are Tuesday and Friday afternoons. The online information is hopeless; call 415-665-4241 for questions and to register. Students in swim diapers are accepted.
Prefer drop-in pool time? The JCC offers daily Family Swim time free to members or to those who can pay the rather steep day fee, $20 for adults and $10 for kids. Most of the public pools in San Francisco offer open swim times as well, and for a much more reasonable $4 for adults and $2 for kids. Each pool has a different schedule, so finding the right location and pool may take some clicking around. But SF Rec and Park does admit kids in swim diapers, a bonus for those with smaller kids, if not the rest of us.