How long is your English Channel swim?

The English Channel is a 350-mile stretch of the Atlantic Ocean between England and France. In France it is called La Manche, the sleeve. At it's widest, the Channel is 150 miles (240 km). Channel swimmers cross at the shortest distance, 21 miles or 19 nautical miles from Dover, England to Cape Gris-Nez, France. But 21 miles is as the crow flies! The changing tides will push and pull me along so I will swim a bit more than 21 miles. The faster I swim, the less I will be affected by the changing tides, so the shorter the distance I will swim. Swims starting in France are no longer allowed.

In swimming distances, the Channel is 38,000 yards. One of our typical Masters workouts is about 3,000 to 4,000 yards. So it's like doing 10 workouts in a row.

The Channel Tunnel, or Chunnel, is 34.4 miles and runs under the Strait of Dover from Dover to Calais. During my swim, I will mostly swim along or criss-cross over the Chunnel as the tide ebbs and flows during my swim. I've been through the Chunnel on a train to Paris and it seemed like we were in that tunnel a really long time!