Swimming Loch Ness: Amy Ennion’s Scottish Epic

It was touch-and-go whether we would even start. The pilot’s boat had broken down, the wind had shifted, and a yellow thunderstorm warning was in place. But after a late-night call, we decided to go ahead for a 4am start.

The loch was mirror-flat – mist drifting across the water, but with surprisingly good visibility. Taken by RIB to Lochend, I stepped in at 4:30am and began my swim. For five hours we had impeccable conditions: calm water, no chop, smooth feeds, and just a little rain. My crew were wrapped up warm on the boat in a mix of EVO Pro Change Robes and EVO Pro Slimline Parkas, which reassured me that they weren’t suffering while I swam.

Loch Ness is one of the most beautiful swims I’ve done. It’s long but incredibly narrow, so both banks and their landmarks (Drumnadrochit, Urquhart Castle, Foyers) slid past me easily in view. I had estimated the swim at 13½ to 14½ hours, with a gold-standard don’t-tell-anyone secret goal of beating my English Channel time of 13:21. That felt pretty outlandish (which is why I didn’t tell anyone) as Loch Ness is further, colder, and without the buoyancy of salt water.

By halfway at Foyers, I sensed we were moving well, though I tend to lose track after the four-hour mark so I didn’t quite appreciate how good the time was. What I didn’t know in the water was that a thunderstorm was chasing us down the loch. My crew watched the lightning strikes on a tracker: 38 miles, then 25, then 12. We had agreed with the pilot that if lightning got too close, I would get out – although everyone knew I didn’t want that!

The pilot called for a ‘power hour’: normally a Channel tactic when you give the absolute fastest pace you can manage for an hour, usually in order to break through a current. But in this case it was a race against the storm. That hour stretched into 75 minutes, then 90 minutes; I honestly felt like it was the hardest I’ve ever swum. My sister’s partner shadowed me on a SUP, shouting encouragement every time I breathed towards him, while my partner swam alongside to lift my spirits.

With one feed to go, my mum and sister took the boat to the finish so they could greet me ashore. The storm closed in, the wind rose, and the loch turned choppy. Pushing against the current from the River Oich, the final 400m into Fort Augustus were brutal.

But I made it; I finally climbed onto the beach, raised my arms, and the horn sounded. My family cheered, I cried: 11 hours 16 minutes.

Loch Ness wasn’t only one of the most beautiful swims I’ve done, it was also one of my best performances. Everything just clicked: training, nutrition, preparation, and the support of an incredible crew. The swim was perfect: I think it’s going to be seriously hard to top!

Follow Amy’s ultramarathon swimming adventures via @amy.swims on Instagram.