Just keep swimming. - Dory (From movie Finding Nemo )
MOLOKAI CHANNEL SWIM
OCTOBER 18, 2024
Location: Between Molokai and Oahu, Hawaii
Length: 28 miles (45 km) Start: Kepuhi Beach, Molokai Finish: Sandy Beach, Oahu Duration: 12 - 20 hours Difficulty: Hard Challenges: wind, Hawaii jellyfish, waves Best season: Year round The Moloka'i Channel (also known as the Ka'iwi Channel) is a waterway between the islands of O'ahu and Moloka'i in the State of Hawaii. The nearly always rough channel is 45 kilometers (28 miles wide) with an abundance of marine life including sharks, jellyfish, whales, turtles and dolphins. Its maximum depth is 2300 feet (701 meters). Kepuhi Beach is the traditional starting point of swimmers who attempt to swim from Molokai Island to Oahu. It is considered one of the most difficult swimming channels in the world and is part of the Oceans Seven. 
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Molokai: The genesis
Back in 2016, when I wrote down my bucket list of adventures I wanted to do, it came to me quickly. First were the highest mountains on each continent, after reading the great book “Seven Summits” by Dick Bass and Frank Wells. Because I’m no mountain climber, I added Mount Rainier, as a steppingstone and training ground prior to starting the Seven Summits. Although I have already done the RAAM bicycle race and the Kona Ironman triathlon in the past, I wanted to include them in the list. Then came the RUNAAM, again because of a book I read, “UltraMarathon Man” by Dean Karnazes. Finally, I added two ultra-distance hikes, AT and PCT, and a smaller one, JMT, to gain some backpacking experience I didn’t have. All in all, I had 14 adventures and with that, I started developing my website. However, when I put one picture for each adventure on the homepage, I quickly realized that to fill the page properly, I would have to add one more adventure. Read more... Molokai: The swim After my third AT section back in May 2024, I immediately started training for Molokai swim. I had only four months left to get ready for this mega swim planned for mid-October. Being a lifelong swimmer, it took me just one month to feeling good in the water. During the summer months, I increased the number of practices, up to nine per week, and distances. I did several 10k swim at Walden Pond, MA on the weekends. Finally, I joined the MIT masters swim team in September, to try to get some speed and motivation from my teammates. Overall, it was as good a preparation as I could do, considering I still work. However, I also understood that it was a minimal training for a 28 miles (45km) open water ocean for two reasons: I only trained in a pool or a pond, never in the cold Atlantic Ocean, and the longest open water I have ever done was the 12k swim in Lake Mont Tremblant, Quebec back in 2022. I was relying on my decades of swimming, a good weather window and the right mindset. Read more... |