Marathon Swimmer Katie Pumphrey to Attempt ‘Bay to Baltimore’ Swim

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Photo Courtesy: Andy Ross

Marathon Swimmer Katie Pumphrey to Attempt ‘Bay to Baltimore’ Swim

Marathon Swimmer Katie Pumphrey is attempting the “Bay to Baltimore” swim from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.

The attempt will be made this summer for the Maryland native. (An original window in May was moved back after the collapse of the Key Bridge.) The swim will cover 24 miles and is estimated to take 12 to 13 hours. She will start at Sandy Point State Park and finish at the Harborplace Amphitheater.

“The Bay to Baltimore swim, in many ways, is my love letter to Baltimore City,” Pumphrey told a Baltimore television station. “I can’t wait to swim towards Baltimore, towards home, and truly celebrate this major milestone for our city. To be the first person on record to complete a swim of this scale in these waters is something I’ve dreamt about for years.”

Open Water Swimming News

Pumphrey will be accompanied by two support boats from Freedom Boat Club and observers from the Marathon Swimming Foundation. She estimates an attempt window, in consultation with the U.S. Coast Guard, of June 23-27.

The swim is in partnership with the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore nonprofit, which promotes cleaning and enhancement of the waterfront as a public space for the community.

Pumphrey, 36, is an accomplished open water swimmer. A visual artist living and working in Baltimore, has crossed the English Channel on two occasions, in 14 hours, 19 minutes in 2014 and 13:44 in 2022. She also made the Catalina Channel crossing in 2018. Her longest swim is the 46-kilometer 20 Bridges Manhattan circumnavigation. She’s also done the Great Chesapeake Bay Swim in 2023, the D.C. Marathon Swim and several Potomac River Swims.

Pumphrey is raising money for the swim, of which 10 percent will be donated to the Maryland Tough Baltimore Strong Key Bridge Fund.

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