It all began with a conversation between Ceri and Ally at Whitby Lifeboat station. Ally had just joined the crew, and Ceri, volunteer press officer at the station caught wind that Ally had previously swum the channel.

​

Ceri had dabbled with swimming in the sea and wanted to do more but didn't know where to start...

​

Ceri said: 'I approached Ally about starting a sea swimming club in Whitby, I had dipped a few times with friends and really enjoyed it but didn't feel knowledgable on when and where was best to swim. I had a chat with Ally and in 2019 we decided to start a regular Tuesday night swim - and the 'Whitby Wild Swimmers' was born.'

​

The first swim saw seven people turn up, but from then on the group grew, a couple of years later we entered a pandemic and the UK saw a huge surge in the amount of people enjoying wild swimming which was a safe way to exercise and enjoy the outdoors.

​

Our group continued to thrive and we now have hundreds of local members as well as swimmers joining us from groups around the country when they visit Whitby.

​

We have enjoyed solstice swims, sunrise and sunset swims and full moon swims howling at the moon!

​

Friendships have been formed, and we have a strong community of regular swimmers, who swim year-round and arrange meets via our Whatsapp group.

​

Fast forward a couple more years and Ceri discovered that there used to be a sea swim race back in the 80s. A bit more digging and we discovered that sea swim races were part of the Whitby Regatta from as early as 1912.

​

The Sandsend to Whitby swim ran from the sixties until the 80s and was run by local swim club the Seals.

​

Together Ceri and Ally approached the Whitby Regatta Committee and broached the idea of bringing the two-mile sea swim back to life as part of the Regatta weekend. They were met with unwavering support, and the event was reborn.

​

Helen and Effie joined the planning committee with Helen taking care of all things safety and Effie keeping us organised and managing the finishing line on race day.

​

The inaugural year (2022) the event was cancelled at the last minute due to a stubborn sea fret rolling in and reducing visibility to zero, but it didn't dampen our enthusiasm and the following year the event was a success. 

​

We now have three successful swims under our belts and would love for you to join us at a future event.

​

We would like to mention that without the support of many local individuals and businesses this event would not be possible. From individuals giving up their time, loaning us equipment or sharing their knowledge and skills with us, to businesses supporting us via sponsorship of equipment, it is a real community effort to make it happen. We are extremely grateful to all involved.

​

Please see our sponsors page for more details about the generous people who have helped make the event a success​​​​​