Jersey swimmer joined by dolphins on way to France

A swimmer said it had been a "surreal and humbling" experience to be joined a pod of dolphins on his route from Jersey to France.

The Jersey Long Distance Swimming Club (JLDSC) said Phil Gaudin completed the 20.5 mile (33km) distance in six hours and 56 minutes on 23 May, making it the earliest seasonal crossing the group had recorded.

The club said the swim began at La Coupe point in "excellent weather conditions" and that the crew and Gaudin were joined by a pod of dolphins for 30 minutes at the beginning.

"I could feel the power from their tails and sound from their blowholes, before seeing them glide in front and to the side of me - I was watching them watching me," Gaudin said.

The endurance swimmer said it was not only dolphins that joined him on the journey.

"There is an algal bloom with the warmer seas that is bringing the phytoplankton making the sea greener, in turn bringing copious amounts of blue jellyfish," he added.

JLDSC said it had seven solo swimmers in 2025 and that it was expecting to have 15 people attempt the route this year.

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