Throughout the year, rowers of all ages gather at the Sagamore Rowing Association's boathouse to train for competitions and row recreationally. During early summer mornings, one will find the Crew Club of Oyster Bay, Sagamore Rowing Association's scholastic program, practicing as a team in preparation for the US Rowing National Championship Regatta. As members of that team, we are privy to the special beauty of Oyster Bay early in the morning.

On most days, the bay is serene at 7 a.m. Gentle waves lap at the shore as we wade into the bay, placing our boats in the water and our oars into the boats. On most days, we slip off of the beach quietly, unwilling to disturb the magic of the bay at dawn.

We use the 3 kilometer stretch along the west shore to reacclimatize our bodies to the demands of a tough practice; we also focus our thoughts on the unison in the boat because we can only move quickly if we are all pulling together. Except for the bowman whose job it is to steer, each rower's gaze remains fixed on the person in front of him or her.

We stop just before the Bayville Bridge to gather the boats together and begin the heart of our workout. Each piece has a purpose: Some develop our sprints, some help us with race strategy, some fine-tune our technique, and others build endurance. During a piece we are totally focused on the run of the boat, the feel of the water rushing besides us, the catch of our oars and the rhythm of our bodies; we feel the bay more than we see it.

When the tide is high, we row to the back of Mill Neck Creek stopping just before the Robert DeGraph Causeway. Between pieces we get a chance to truly appreciate our surroundings. In a rowing shell we sit very low to the water, so it is easy to feel like a part of the environment. In the warmer months, the Terrapin Turtles pop their tiny heads above water and we try to count them. We usually spot many different wading birds, hiding in the grasses near the causeway, including Black Crowned Night Herons and Great Blue Herons.

The water during afternoon practices is usually rougher. The waves that splash over the gunnels of the boat are a refreshing reprieve from the heat. The bay is much busier during the afternoons because of all the recreational and commercial use. The fish in the bay are also more active in the afternoon, and on occasion we can see schools of them jumping out of the water trying to escape from predators.

As rowers we witness the beauty of the bay change with the seasons. Whether it is a casual Christmas Eve row into the sunset, a tough sprint during a sultry summer practice, or an endurance piece through the fall colors, rowing gives us daily contact with some of the most common, as well as the most beautiful, aspects of nature in Oyster Bay.