Courtesy of Anna Marshall and Jason Papps, Lake Taupo Marathon Swim, North Island, New Zealand.

Michelle Macy created the Still Water 8*, a group of 8 marathon swims in lakes for seriously-minded swimmers who are focused on lake marathon swims. Successful completion of these 8 marathon swims has never been recorded by a single individual.

One of the Still Water 8 sites is Lake Taupo, located on the North Island of New Zealand. It is the largest lake in New Zealand.

The standard marathon crossing of Lake Taupo is 40.2 km (25 miles), the longest straight line tangent from Little Waihi at the southern end to the Yacht Club beach in Taupo (known as the long course). Margaret Sweeney was the first person to accomplish this feat in 1955; it was not until 22 years later that her feat was replicated.

History of solo crossings of Lake Taupo Crossings:

1955 Margaret Sweeney (Auckland, New Zealand) s-n in 13 hours 29 minutes
1977 Patrick Cox (Taupo, New Zealand) s-n in 12 hours 54 minutes
1977 Bill Rout (Cambridge, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 31 minutes
1978 John Coutts (Napier, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 47 minutes
1978 Chris Hurdley (Auckland, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 47 minutes
1978 Sandra Blewitt (Auckland, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 47 minutes
1978 Patrick Benson (Hastings, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 47 minutes
1980 Mohammed El Meseery (Egypt) s-n in 12 hours 43 minutes
1980 Philip Rush (Dunedin, New Zealand) s-n in 12 hours 52 minutes
1980 John Coutts (Napier, New Zealand, New Zealand) s-n in 12 hours 55 minutes
1980 Carolyn Wordsworth (Dunedin, New Zealand) s-n in 14 hours 8 minutes
1980 Rhonda Smidt (Napier, New Zealand) s-n in 15 hours 18 minutes
1980 Belinda Shields (Auckland, New Zealand) s-n in 15 hours 58 minutes
1981 John Coutts (Napier, New Zealand) n-s in 11 hours 39 minutes (first double crossing attempt, first n-s crossing)
1983 Sheryl McClay (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 58 minutes
1984 Karen Bisley (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 40 minutes
1984 Michael Quinlivan (Christchurch, New Zealand) s-n
1985 Philip Rush (Lower Hutt, New Zealand) n-s-n in 23 hours 5 minutes (double crossing)
1985 Philip Rush (Lower Hutt, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 14 minutes (Little Waihi to Yacht club)

1986 Sandra Blewitt (Auckland, New Zealand) n-s-n in 33 hours 21 minutes (double crossing)
1987 Ingrid Greenslade (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 52 minutes
1988 Stephen Rainbow (Auckland, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 42 minutes
1990 Kaine Thompson (Lower Hutt, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 13 minutes
2002 Trish Coley (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 18 hours 39 minutes
2002 Corry Decker (Taupo, New Zealand) s-n in 13 hours 19 minutes
2007 Blain Cox (Taupo, New Zealand) s-n in 16 hours 1 minute
2008 Jason Papps (Wellington, New Zealand) n-s in 12 hours 38 minutes
2008 Anna Marshall (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 26 minutes
2009 Ben Campbell-Macdonald (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 45 minutes
2010 Stephanie Bennington (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 11 hours 54 minutes
2011 Pam Dickson (Rotorua, New Zealand) s-n in 13 hours 54 minutes
2013 Casey Glover (Wellington, New Zealand) s-n in 10 hours 52 minutes
2014 Katrina Price (Thames, New Zealand) s-n in 14 hours 45 minutes
2015 Simon Olliver (Christchurch, New Zealand) s-n in 14 hours 50 minutes
2015 Heather Osbourne (Tauranga, New Zealand) s-n in 15 hours 37 minutes
2016 Holly Cassin (Christchurch, New Zealand) s-n in 15 hours 51 minutes
2016 Mike Cochrane (Auckland, New Zealand) s-n in 14 hours 29 minutes

* Still Water 8 includes the following swims:
1. Loch Ness (Scotland): 23 miles/37 km, water temperature averages 50°F/10°C in season. Known for its deep black and chilling waters.
2. Windermere (England): 10.5 miles/16.9 km, water temperature can be as low as 55°F/13°C in season. The largest natural lake in England.
3. Lake Zürich (Switzerland): 16.4 miles/26.4 km, water temperature 66.2–75.2°F/19-24°C. This lake has an annual international competition.
4. Lake Tahoe (USA): 21 miles/35.4 km, water temperature is 50–58°F/10–14.4°F. Difficult due to cool water and air temperatures and high altitude.
5. Lake Baikal (Russia): 7-10 miles/11-16 km or blaze a course of equal or greater distance,water temperature can be as low as 50°F/10°C. The world’s oldest and deepest lake is also a UNISECO World Heritage Site.
6. Lake Taupo (New Zealand): 21 miles/34 km, water temperature 51–73°F/11–23°C. The largest lake in New Zealand is located on the North Island.
7. Lake Ontario (Canada): 31.5 miles/51 km, water temperatures are variable in a matter of hours due to wind (50–72°F/10-22°C. Difficult swim due to unpredictable wind and currents.
8. Lake Titicaca (Bolivia–Peru): Temperature is 56-58°F/13-14.5°F and is highest lake in the Americas.

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