43rd Annual Swim Around Key West

One year when Steve and I visited Mallory Square on an early Saturday morning, we noticed that there were people swimming in the Gulf of Mexico, and each of them appeared to be accompanied by a kayak carrying a numbered flag. When we got home, Steve did a bit of sleuthing and discovered that the swimmers were actually circumnavigating Key West. This is an annual event — and in fact, there are two organizations that host two different “Swim Around Key West” (SAKW)events.

This year, we were lucky enough to take part as kayak escorts. We knew that paddling 12.5 miles in open water would push us to our limits, and we trained by making some long freshwater paddles. But these did not prepare us for the conditions of the SAKW.

The launch time is determined by tides, and we launched from Smathers Beach just after sunrise. It sounds lovely and under normal circumstances it would have been, but here’s the thing: we had a lot of pre-launch business to conduct in the dark.

• Our headlamps were not helpful, and it was so humid that none of the tape we were counting on would stick. We had numbers to tape to the front of our boats and we had flags that were to be mounted on the rear of our kayaks. Next year we will know better and have a solid plan in place for both of these. Duct tape just doesn’t cut it — even though there was plenty of it and race organizers were generous about handing it out.
• The seaweed was dreadful. In hip-deep water, I think only below my ankles was in clear water and the rest of me had to fight through the seaweed to get in my boat. This is not related to the dark, but accomplishing it in the dark was . . . a little creepy!
• 100 swimmers and 100 kayaks launched at the same time. This was insane. Within the first 5 minutes, I lost my favorite water bottle and nearly brained several swimmers and other kayaks with my paddle. And I wasn’t the only one struggling to control my boat in a strong current with a LOT of chop and no room to maneuver.
• With such a large group of swimmers and boats in a small area, I immediately lost sight of my swimmer, and so did Steve. We both required assistance to find them again.

After those mishaps and being reunited with our swimmers, the day improved. In spite of the chop, which we had been assured would not be SO choppy, we enjoyed the beautiful morning and seeing such a famous island from the water. I only have a couple of pictures because I couldn’t find my phone (in the frustration of the duct tape and flag fiasco, I had jammed it in my swimsuit top), but t the tropical turquoise water and the almost non-stop development along the shore is something I won’t soon forget.

I was astonished at the strength of my swimmer. She has not indicated any interest in being a part of this blog, so I will respect that and not identify her except to mention that she won her class due only to her persistence and ability to keep swimming in spite of her exhaustion. She struggled to drink enough because the water was so rough she could barely swallow. But watching her swim, man, oh man. I’ve never seen anything like it.

At 7 miles, she got very discouraged, and wasn’t sure she would make it. By 9 miles I was beginning to doubt she would make it. I was worried that the seaweed fumes were getting to her — they were bothering me. Her GPS stopped working and she wasn’t sure how far we had to go and where we were, and she didn’t have much faith in me after we got separated in the first mile. She was worried that we weren’t on the right route and that she was running out of time, and I couldn’t convince her otherwise. But the important thing is that SHE KEPT SWIMMING. That resilience has come to my mind several times in the month since the event, and I don’t think I will ever forget it.

The results of the race can be found here. This was the 43rd year for this specific event, and it was followed shortly after by another SAWK event. I am not sure what posesses otherwise normal people to decide to swim in such challenging conditions, but I’m glad they do. It is a cheerful thought, to me, that humans have such differing ways of expressing their joy in living, and it gives me an excuse to paddle where I otherwise would not.

My favorite part of the event was Cow Key Channel, very near the end. The water is VERY shallow from this point all the way back to Smathers Beach, and I was able to see several rays and other critters along the sea bottom. For the last mile, I kept wondering if my swimmer would notice if I just cut to the right and landed my boat. When we reached the finish line, I fell in the seaweed twice . . . my beautiful event shirt was ruined and I was simply spent. When Steve and I found each other all we wanted was something to eat and a Diet Coke.

I would not say this day was fun. I would say that we will do it again, because it felt wonderful to be part of something unique and inspiring. But we’ll be better prepared, and I’ll keep my NEW favorite water bottle on a lanyard.