Katie Pumphrey waded into the dark waters near the Chesapeake Bay Bridge — and then took off.
Her first stroke — at 3:19 a.m. Tuesday — marked the start of a 14-hour-long swim. By 5:13 p.m., Pumphrey had reached the Harborplace Amphitheater in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor, marking the milestone of a swimmable harbor.
She was sunburned, her body loudly telling her the cost of such an ambitious swim. Pumphrey, who lives in Baltimore, said she had become the first person on record to complete the 24-mile swim from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to the Harborplace Amphitheater in Baltimore’s Inner Harbor.
“It’s my love letter to Baltimore because it is more than a swim,” Pumphrey, 36, said in an interview hours after completing the swim. “It’s a huge message about the progress of the harbor and all the work that Waterfront Partnership and so many organizations have done, but also just how awesome the city is.”
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Pumphrey, an artist, grew up in the water, competing in a summer swimming league at 5 years old, joining a club team and continuing to compete while a student at Middletown High School in Frederick County. While studying painting at the Maryland Institute College of Art, Pumphrey coached a children’s swimming team and worked as a lifeguard at a YMCA in Baltimore.
In June 2010, she tried the 4.4-mile Great Chesapeake Bay Swim and loved it. She remembers hugging her mom and saying: “That was the hardest thing I’ve ever done. I want to do it again.”
By August 2018, she earned the triple crown of open water swimming, a challenge that includes swimming about 36 miles in the English Channel between England and France, 20 miles in the Catalina Channel between Santa Catalina Island and the California mainland, and 28.5 miles around Manhattan.
But for years, Pumphrey had dreamed of the day the harbor would be swimmable, telling anyone who would listen: “The moment it is declared so, I’m jumping in.”
So when Pumphrey watched a video of staff and advocates with the Waterfront Partnership of Baltimore jumping into the harbor last September to demonstrate the improved water quality, Pumphrey saw her chance. She reached out to the group, a nonprofit that has worked to improve the harbor’s water quality, and asked whether she could collaborate with them to swim it in a celebratory way.
“We immediately started meeting with Katie and talking about logistics and how we would announce the swim,” said Adam Lindquist, the group’s vice president. “Katie is a true Baltimorean and she’s doing a wonderful thing for Baltimore City today.”
She had planned to swim the distance in mid-May. But the March collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which left families and a city grieving the six lives lost and disrupted the supply of cars, coal and other goods, left her plans uncertain.
She ended up pushing the swim to late June and decided to allocate 10 percent of proceeds raised to support the cost of her swim to the Maryland Tough Baltimore Strong Key Bridge Fund. This swim, she thought, would be an opportunity to celebrate the resiliency of the city she loved.
Less than two days after about 150 people jumped into the Baltimore Harbor for the Harbor Splash public swimming event, Pumphrey began her journey from Sandy Point State Park.
As the hours ticked by Tuesday and Pumphrey swam through heat and exhaustion, she reminded herself she was swimming toward home. This was a city that didn’t have enough “positive stories” told, she said — a city that is resilient, where people show up for each other. She kept going.
And with each stroke, her 19-person crew between two boats cheered her on, supported her and documented the journey.
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Her husband made sure Pumphrey took breaks for water or changed her pacing. Her physical therapist was on board, as well as support swimmers and observers logging data such as her stroke rate and the water temperature. There were filmmakers and journalists. Her niece and two older brothers alternated hopping in a kayak.
During the last few hours of the swim, her older sister Laura Madoo, 41, organized a group to sail on Urban Pirates, a popular boat tour company in Fells Point. Those present included Pumphrey’s parents, other relatives, friends and the media. Madoo said she brought inflatable toy swords and eye patches and played music she knew her sister would enjoy, like “I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” from Disney’s “Mulan” movie.
With just half a mile left, Pumphrey had a celebrity escort: Mr. Trash Wheel — a trash-trapping machine that has removed 1 million pounds of litter and debris from the water each year since its installation in 2014.
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Lindquist said he hopes all the attention from the Harbor Splash and Pumphrey’s swim helps raise awareness of the harbor’s potential. There could be triathlons, paddleboard races and swim meets in the harbor.
Still, Lindquist said, there is much work ahead. For example, the city needs to improve sewer infrastructure and reduce stormwater runoff.
“The Baltimore Harbor still has good days and bad days,” Lindquist said. “We don’t want people jumping in the harbor whenever they feel like. We want them to do it as part of a planned and specially supervised event, like Harbor Splash or like Katie’s swim.”
Shortly after 5 p.m., Pumphrey swam toward cheering supporters and tapped her right hand on the Inner Harbor wall. She had finally made it. She looked around her and threw both her arms up in celebration.
“That was the most magical swim finish into Baltimore with so many Baltimoreans cheering,” Pumphrey said. “I’m a bit in shock about all of that and just over the moon that I was able to do this swim and celebrate my love for Baltimore with so many people.”
