Nearly 500 solo and relay-team open-ocean swimmers will attempt to complete the 11th annual Swim for Alligator Lighthouse, slated for Saturday, Sept. 7, in Atlantic Ocean waters off Islamorada.
Individuals and two-, three- and four-person teams must conquer the 8-mile round-trip course to the historic lighthouse and back in less than eight hours. To compete as an individual, a participant must first show proof of completing a prior 1,650-meter or 1-mile swim in 45 minutes or less. All swimmers must have a support kayaker.
Sanctioned by the World Open Water Swimming Association, the event features an in-water start and beach finish at the host hotel, Amara Cay Resort at MM 80.5, oceanside, in Islamorada.
First- through fifth-place solo and relay team finishers will receive awards in male, female and mixed divisions. All successful participants get a finisher medal and a souvenir towel.
Early-bird checkin and packet pickup is set for Thursday, Sept. 5, from 4 to 7 p.m. at Amara Cay. An informal meet-up social is planned from 6 to 9 p.m.at Florida Keys Brewing Co., 81611 Old Highway. Participants also can check in Friday, Sept. 6, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. at Amara Cay.
Saturday’s wave starts for swimmers begin at 7:45 a.m. All swimmers must exit the water by 3:30 p.m. An awards ceremony with dinner is scheduled at 7 p.m.
Entry fee is $250 per person for solo swimmers. Fees are $240 per person for two-person teams, $230 per person for three-person teams and $220 per swimmer on four-person relay teams. All swimmers must provide their safety kayaker information to race officials. Online registration is available and the field is to be capped at 490 swimmers, according to race officials.
The annual challenge is a fundraising effort for the Islamorada-based Friends of the Pool Inc., a nonprofit group that in 2021 was granted ownership of Alligator Reef Lighthouse under the National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act. The group intends to restore the 151-year-old beacon – a project anticipated to be a 6-year undertaking with a cost of $5 million to $6 million.
Alligator Reef Lighthouse is named after the USS Alligator, a U.S. Navy schooner that ran aground and sank on the reef in 1822.
