Day Two swim: 4 kilometres (160 lengths of a 25-metre pool, or 80 of the Aquarium)

There’s only one swim, but it’s a fairly long one, which is daunting for Ben and Debbie. Oliver and Sophie have deliberately made this a continuous swim to prepare the swimmers for the next day’s crossing, where they won’t be able to stop and rest so often. In comparison, today will be pressure-free because they are going to be hugging the coastline. This has two advantages: the first is that they won’t have to sight nor be on the lookout for boats or jet skis. Secondly, they can focus on looking at the wonderful marine life in a leisurely fashion. There’s much less sense of having to keep up with each other this close to land and that’s nice for slower swimmers.

As it’s the second day, the group will be getting into the swing of things and learning a lot about their own and others’ abilities in the water –– accepting that not everyone in the group will be able to swim at the same pace, and that each person needs to rest and hydrate. As a result, there will be some waiting around by those who are faster swimmers. Luckily, the beautiful surroundings make that a joy rather than a chore!