A full Report

The Start

I promised a full report and I think I'm just about ready to share my experience although my brain isn't working very well. I think I am recovering well until I try to lift my arms.....don't lift your arms then!!!!!!

We left Ailsa Craig on the morning of September 12th at 8.20am. That was a special moment for me as the boat dropped me off and I swam to the rock all by myself. I scrambled onto the beach and there was just me, a grey seal and a large cormorant. Such peace and serenity. I stopped a while and breathed it in. I saw my trusty support team on the boat waiting for the start of the day we had waited so long for. We agreed that I would swim for 2 hrs and then have a stop and then hourly stops from then on.
It was a bit cloudy and Ifelt chilly and unsure for moments but overall I felt positive and strong. The water temp was about 15c and it was calm. It soon became clear that I had company. Seals! Especially an enormous dog seal we called Big Ed as his head was almost as big as my body. He was probably about 11 foot we reckon.

Big Ed swam with me for 7hrs. The last time I saw him was about 2 miles from the beach and he raised his huge majestic head and disappeared. He touched my toes and swam underneath me. All the time there were other smaller seals around me. It was spritual, magical, and forever with me.

Hours 3 and 4 were good and I felt the privilege of being out in such beautiful waters with amazing wildlife seemingly looking after me. The boat crew seemed happy and the atmosphere was wonderful. Hour 6 we felt optimistic as we thought that we were on the final stretch and we could see the buildings and the beach.

Unfortunately we were then caught in an unexpected atlantic swell which came from the storms we had last week. The swell caused us to be caught and pushed way off course, and we ended up getting stuck for about 2 1/2 hours. It was very frustrating and for the first time I honestly thought I was going to fail.

I was in agony and my shoulders and back in particular were very painful. In fact I can say that not one part of my body did not hurt. Then I remembered my friend in the village who had fallen off a roof the previous Monday and I thought....that's real pain, this pain will stop when I finish the swim....keep going.....keep going!

There were about 200 people on the beach and the drummers were drumming and the piper Andy was piping and the crowds were cheering and I couldn't hear any of it. I didn't know if I could stand up and I felt disappointed because I knew I had been in water much longer than we had planned. I had lost perspective though and I wasn't sure exactly what had happened. I heard almost immediately that I had swum 17.5 miles and it had taken me 8 hrs 27 mins and 44 secs.......oh boy that was some atlantic swell!!!!!

The reception was fantastic and everyone was crying.

The relief of completing the swim washed over me as I soaked up the love and support I received. Thanks to everyone who helped me to acheive this goal and the most important thing is that we continue to raise money for a cause which is crucial to the lives of carers and those who suffer from this wicked disease. We are lucky and just look at the faces of the crew as we celebrated months of hard work and determination. I'll add some more footage soon.

This is not over!