Yesterday, September 9th, was the 3rd Scilly Swim Challenge between the islands. 130 ish swimmers were attempting to swim between all the islands on one day. I was a volunteer kayak support paddler, paddling beside the swimmers, helping guide them to their next destination and giving help and moral support.
Starting from Bar Point they swam to St. Martins, then Tresco, on to Bryher, Samson, then very long over 2 hour swim to St. Agnes and finally the finish was on St. Marys again at Porthcressa beach. The longest swim from Samson to St. Agnes was a gruelling stage.
It was a long day for all. We started kayaking at 7.15 am the first swim was at 8.30. The first swimmers arrived at the finish at around 7.30 pm! Not all made it the whole way and that shows how exhausting a challenge it is! Congratulations to all who attempted it. The organisation was flawless, refreshment stops superb and the comradery wonderful.
I’m feeling a bit sore today but am glad I could help and honoured I was asked.
Below are some photos and some video from my experiences from yesterday, along with a map to show the routes we took, blue lines for swimmers and red for kayaks. I estimate I kayaked around 16-18 miles!
