Clair Harris celebrates her 60th by completing the 13 Lakes Challenge

Not only did she become the first woman to complete the 13 Lakes Challenge, but she also swam without a wetsuit and cycled between the lakes.

In the middle of Ullswater, Clair Harris stops for a feed from her support kayak. The wind is 15 mph and gusting 30 mph, blowing up white horses in the otherwise grey lake. The rain is lashing down. Her support team sees her chin chattering and is concerned that the three previous days of exertion have taken their toll.

“Are you ok?” they ask.

“Well, it’s certainly good channel training conditions!” she replied.

She takes a quick feed before she’s off down the lake in her relentless pursuit of completing another of the 13 lakes.

Clair went on to complete the gruelling 13 Lakes Challenge in a time of 84 hours. We caught up with her to learn more about her experience taking on this challenge.

What made you want to take on this challenge?

My husband, Dave, showed me a video of Tom Elliot and Danny Longman completing The 13 Lakes Challenge and cycling between each lake. I have done plenty of swimming in the Lake District, especially in Windermere, and I thought I would like to give it a go.

Secondly, I’d been inspired by the remarkable story of Kevin Sinfield undertaking running challenges for his friend and Rugby League teammate Rob Burrow, who suffered from MND. A close friend of mine, Nausheen Ahmed has a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy. Consequently, I wanted to do something similar for her and raise funds for the charity Muscular Dystrophy UK.

What exactly is the challenge, and why did you decide to swim ‘skins’ and cycle between the lakes?

The challenge is to swim the full length of all 13 publicly accessible lakes in the English Lake District as quickly as possible. It’s primarily a swimming challenge so you can choose how you get between the lakes and whether you want to swim with a wetsuit or not. I’ve always swum and I’ve been building up the miles on my bike with Dave over the past few years. I thought the idea of swimming all the lakes and cycling between them was appealing. I’ve always swum skins so opting for a wetsuit was never really an option – particularly as I don’t own one! Additionally, I was turning 60 on 12 July 2025, so it all seemed to fit – start the challenge on my birthday and become the first woman to complete it.

How did you train for the challenge?

Training started in earnest in January. Pool sessions with my club, Slough Dolphins; winter dips at Bray Lake Watersports near Maidenhead; and 45km cycle trips to Hampton Pool (a heated lido) for longer swims of 4 to 6km.

At Easter, I did a self-organised training camp at Aix-Les-Bains in the French Alps. I started each day with a two-hour pool session in the magnificent Aqualac outdoor 50m pool, followed by a bike ride in the mountains and then finished the day with a shorter lake swim in the 12-degree waters of Lac du Bourget. During the low season, I find Aix-Les-Bains to be a perfect and very economical place to do a training week.

After Easter, the number and duration of swim sessions at Bray Lake increased. I peaked at 4 sessions per week, totalling 12 hours of swimming and, of course, I cycled to and from the lake. I maintained one pool session a week and longer bike rides at weekends. I trained on Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. I rested on the days I work as a primary school teacher. I felt the repeated days of training were also good preparation for the continual effort required for the challenge.

There was a trip to the Peak District in May. I did daily 2-hour swims in the 19-degree, clear mineral waters of the historic, spring-fed outdoor lido at the New Bath Hotel in Matlock Bath, followed by bike rides in the surrounding hills.

The final push included sea swims in Bournemouth, kindly supported by the Durley Sea Swimmers, as well as taking part in a range of events. I did 9 hours of swimming during The Level Water 24-hour relay event at Shepperton Lake. I competed in The BLDSA Champion of Champions in Dover Harbour and The Thames Hospice 10km swim at my home venue of Bray Lake.

You’ve swum the English Channel, Manhattan Island and Catalina Channel previously: how did this compare?

Achieving the triple crown of open water swimming was, of course, very special. However, it took me 22 years to achieve that goal! There was time spent working abroad and raising two sons in between my English Channel and Catalina swims.

The 13 Lakes was a very different challenge as it took place over four consecutive days and the total distance swum (71km) was further than I had covered in either of my channel crossings. It was definitely the biggest physical swimming challenge I had taken on in my life, and there was also the small matter of cycling between each of the lakes. I had no idea how my body would react to the cumulative effect of each swim and cycle leg.

What conditions did you encounter?

There was a bit of everything. Day one was Windermere, Rydal Water, Grasmere and Elterwater. The conditions were glorious, blue sky and hot temperatures.

Day two was Coniston and Wastwater and the conditions were much the same. This day included 68 miles of cycling with some steep 20% ascents – the heat was certainly not my friend on the bike!

Day three was Buttermere, Loweswater, and Crummock Water in the morning, followed by Bassenthwaite Lake and Derwent Water. The weather began to turn in the afternoon. The clouds came in and so did a strong south-westerly wind. My plan was to swim Bassenthwaite, north to south, but this resulted in swimming into a strong headwind for 3 hours. As a result, at Derwent Water, my fifth and final lake of the day, we decided to change the swim direction and go south to north. The wind really picked up in the evening, creating large waves.

Jamie in the support kayak was finding the conditions extremely challenging and he was rightfully concerned for everyone’s safety. We just had to go with the wind direction and the crew thought we would have to abandon the swim because we were being pushed off course and heading for the easterly shore. Fortunately, as we got closer to the bank, we got some shelter from one of the islands and the kayakers could finally steer. They were able to turn, and that got me to the northern exit point.

Day four was Ullswater and Brotherswater. The south-westerly wind was still blowing strongly and we also had to contend with driving rain. The cycle ride from Derwent Water to Ullswater was tricky, with slippery roads, but my bike team did a great job escorting me. It wouldn’t have seemed quite right, if we didn’t have some proper Lake District weather to contend with!

What was the toughest lake to swim?

For me and my kayak support team, it was definitely Ullswater. The weather conditions were very poor, and there was no one else out on the lake despite it being peak holiday season. I had already completed three long days of activity and as soon as I entered the water, I felt cold. This resulted in a tense lower back and groin pains. I had to stop one channel swim because of similar problems. The thought of this happening again was playing on my mind. On top of which, I knew I had at least five hours swimming ahead of me. I had to dig deep and be mentally strong.

What got you through this hardest part of the challenge?

My support team on the double kayak could see that I was cold in the water and increased the temperature of my feeds and their frequency, which helped enormously. Also, they abandoned the carb drinks in favour of a good old cup of tea with a chocolate bar! That certainly hit the spot.

Conditions on Ullswater were also challenging for the kayak team, but in the second half of my swim, I was delighted to see my son Sam, 22, come paddling towards me in a single kayak after crew change. My spirits lifted considerably.

This was soon followed by the funniest moment of my challenge. A speed boat was approaching, which was strange enough in itself, as we hadn’t seen any other craft out on the water due to the dreadful weather. It came closer and closer. I was thinking, why is that boat heading directly for me when there is the whole lake to drive in? What a complete surprise to see a fellow Bray Lake bather sitting in the boat. A huge shout out to the staff of Ullswater Marina who kindly ferried out my friend Joe, who proceeded to jump in the water and swim alongside to keep me company for the last leg of the Lake.

Throughout the difficult moments, I also thought of Nausheen. I reflected on how, despite her disability, she never complains. She always radiates positivity. Thinking of her gave me that extra motivation I needed.

How did cycling affect your swim?

I didn’t feel there were any detrimental effects of cycling between lakes. But one big positive is you can enjoy the Lake District scenery more easily on a bike. When cycling from Wastwater to Buttermere, we were treated to spectacular coastal views which extended out to the Isle of Man and Scotland. Of course, the other thing you can do on the bike that you can’t do in the water is have a chat! My cycle team, Sam and Joe, were constantly encouraging me, checking I was keeping hydrated and fuelled, as well as just having a good old natter with me as we pedalled along.

What was the most memorable part of the challenge?

Except perhaps for Ullswater, I loved the rest of my adventure. Swimming in Wastwater below the giant scree slopes was certainly a highlight. But for me, the most memorable experience was sharing my 60^th birthday and my whole adventure with my team, who had given up a week of precious summer holiday to come along and support me. I was surrounded by my family and a big group of swimming buddies from Bray Lake. Not to mention friends with support vans as well as my bike team. I couldn’t have done it without them.

How does it feel now that you have completed the challenge?

Naturally, I am very proud to have achieved what I set out to do, especially after all the hours of training I put in both on the bike and in the water. It certainly seems a bit surreal now – did I actually do that? However, in the immediate days after, the most noticeable feeling was one of constant hunger and tiredness.

Show your support: https://www.justgiving.com/page/clair-harris-swim-13-lakes

Find out more about The 13 Lakes Challenge: https://www.the13.info/