This summer, Jim Dreyer returns to the lake to once again attempt to complete the journey he was forced to abort last year, when he made two attempts to swim the width of Lake Michigan from Wisconsin to Michigan to mark the 25th anniversary of his first successful swim across the lake, which made him the first and only person to do so.
He will make the journey alone, towing over 200 pounds of supplies and doing his own navigation. The 82.9 mile journey from McKinley Beach in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to City Beach in Grand Haven, Michigan is expected to take over 72 continuous hours without sleep. “For self-navigating, I have once again partnered with Vuzix Smart Swim,” explains Dreyer. “Their amazing cutting-edge technology provides GPS mapping right on my goggles, which is tremendously important when I cannot see shore in any direction…To oversee all safety logistics, I have partnered with worldwide crisis management specialists, Raven Strategic Group. My Raven team will be stationed in Milwaukee with a rescue boat until I am in Michigan waters; then they will cross over to Michigan and await my arrival. I will have satellite communications with them should an emergency occur, and they will track me down wherever I may land in Michigan.”
Dreyer plans to start the journey on August 6, 2024, weather permitting. “Even with all the extensive training and planning, I understand the inherent dangers of this self-sufficient swim,” Dreyer adds. “I hope this calculated risk captures the imaginations of adventurous souls everywhere, as I find my way across the seemingly endless expanse of Lake Michigan. In doing so, I also hope to encourage those trying to find their own way in life to put their trust in God.”
“I hope followers of the swim support my cause, which is the U.S. Coast Guard’s Chief Petty Officers Association,” says Dreyer.. “Donations support the Lake Michigan guardians on both shores who have stood by me for the past 25 years and kept so many safe in these often-treacherous waters…It would be fitting to finish in ‘Coast Guard City USA’ (Grand Haven, Michigan), and while that is the plan, it is extremely difficult to guess where the currents could take me, and where and when I may land in Michigan.”
You can track Dreyer’s journey and make donations to the USCG Chief Petty Officers Association at jimthesharkdreyer.com.
