WESTMORE — Nadine Bennett of Upper Cape, New Brunswick, became the first woman to complete a four-way crossing of Lake Willoughby on Tuesday, swimming 20 miles in 12 hours and 58 minutes.
Bennett, 52, entered the lake from North Beach at 7:45 a.m. on September 16, 2025, and finished her fourth lap in darkness at 8:53 p.m. Her total elapsed time was 13 hours and 8 minutes, including 10 minutes spent out of the water during turnarounds.
Greg O’Connor was the first person to complete a four-way Willoughby crossing in 2021.
Bennett’s support crew included Gary Coburn and Karina Palmorino piloting the pontoon boat Molly, her sisters Denise and Christine Herman as crew, and Kathleene Marcil on kayak support and photography.
Water temperatures ranged from 64 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit, with air temperatures starting at 50 degrees, reaching a high of 76 degrees, and dropping to 60 degrees at the finish. Wind was light from the north and east at 1-2 mph. Bennett maintained a steady stroke count of 45-48 strokes per minute.
Her swim breakdown included four legs: North to South Beach (2 hours, 54 minutes), South to North Beach (3 hours, 6 minutes), North to South Beach (3 hours, 23 minutes), and South to North Beach (3 hours, 35 minutes).
During her fourth lap, Bennett experienced back pain in her scapula area. She completed the fourth leg but chose not to continue swimming to avoid potential injury.
Tracker services were provided by Kingdom Games in conjunction with Evan Morrison. The Northeast Kingdom Open Water Swimming Association ratified Bennett’s swim as conforming to traditional channel crossing rules published by the Marathon Swimmers Federation.
Bennett has been a longtime participant in Northeast Kingdom swimming events, including multiple Kingdom Swims, NEK Swim Week, In Search of Memphre in 2023, and the Memphremagog Winter Swimming Festival. She has also crewed for swimmers crossing Lake Memphremagog.
