Stert Island Swim - the annual Burnham sea swim
The Stert Island sea swim saw competitors dash into Bridgwater Bay at Burnham-On-Sea beach, then swim across the bay to Stert Island before swimming back to Burnham.
In August 2000, Burnham and Highbridge Town Council rescurrected the swim as a Millennium Project.
Prior to this, there had been no swim for 40 years. The 2007 event was cancelled due to bad weather.
The event has not been held since 2015 due to the EU’s sea water regulations preventing swimming in the sea at Burnham (even though many holidaymakers still take a dip every summer). Read more here on why it stopped.
The 2.4km swim had to be swum on the Neap Tide where there is maximum high water for sufficient length of time to ensure the swimmers can reach the island safely and return.
The unique event attracted crowds of spectators and participants from all over the country.
