By Micah True

A Haines man is planning to swim from Skagway to Juneau this summer to bring attention to the proposed road linking the two towns, which he opposes.

Steve Vick said the idea began forming when he heard about recently proposed ferry schedule changes that would end mainline service to Haines and send the fast ferry Fairweather to a different run, he said.

"Right when I heard that, I just jokingly said to myself, ‘If they keep this up, I’m going to have to swim to Juneau,’" said Vick, head coach for the Haines Dolphins. "And then it just solidified in my mind: ‘Hey, maybe I could swim to Juneau."

Vick, 35, said he hopes the multi-day swim, which is tentatively planned for late July or early August, will draw national attention to the road proposal and start meaningful dialogue. "I’m fed up," he said. "If (the road) gets built, it’ll be one of the most dangerous in the world…I think that a lot of people just don’t feel heard. I’d like to see some national attention brought to it.

"It seems like we’re pretty unified" against the road, he said. "It’s not democratic. They’re strong-arming us."

The planned voyage—dubbed the "Lynn Swim"— already is drawing some attention from national media outlets. The Christian Science Monitor is planning a feature about Vick’s swim to run Friday, he said.

After first conceiving of the plan, Vick sought advice from famed open-ocean swimmer Lynn Cox, who has been advising him on the project ever since. Cox is known worldwide for her long-distance swims in the ocean including across the Bering Strait and the English Channel, and is author of the recent book "Swimming to Antarctica."

"At that point it was like, ‘Oh my God, this is possible,’" he said.

Next, Vick contacted Lynn Canal Conservation for help planning and publicizing the swim. "We’ve been really active on the Juneau road access issue," said LCC spokesperson Nancy Berland. "I think it was a natural for Steve to come to us for help."

"I don’t have those media contacts" that LCC does, Vick said. The Southeast Alaska Conservation Council, an umbrella organization of southeast conservation groups, also is helping plan the event, he said.

In preparation for the swim, Vick, who swam competitively in college, has been training twice a day, four days a week, and once a day, two days a week. "I’m training hard now, harder than I have in 15 years," he said. "And I’m feeling good about it."

Vick conducts some workouts in Haines swimming pool and others in the ocean. Last week, his marine sessions each lasted about an hour, he said. "My ultimate goal is to be able to go three hours."

Vick said he hopes to finish the 92-mile swim in about 10 days, swimming twice each day for four to six hours. "I’m planning on swimming with all the outgoing tides," he said. "It’ll kind of be like six hours on, six hours off."

The swim is not only a physical challenge, but also a mental one, Vick said. "I have a secret fear of the ocean, and I’m getting over it, obviously," he said. "But there’s going to be 2,000 feet of ocean below me and there are going to be things there I can’t see," he said.

Training in the ocean is helping him get past that fear, he said. "As I swim more in the ocean, I get calmer. It’s kind of fun to face that fear." Vick estimated that he can see only about five feet below him when swimming in Lutak Inlet, where he’s been training.

Vick said he’s taking steps to make sure any encounters with marine animals during the voyage stay friendly. "I don’t want any animal mishaps," he said. "I’m told that the sea lions, if anything, are just going to play with me.

"The humpbacks won’t be a problem unless they inadvertently surface and tip (support boats) over," he said. "Every diver I’ve talked to has said pretty much if you see orcas, get out of the water."

Vick said he plans to consult orca experts to learn what signs to look for and how best to respond if he sees an orca or thinks one is in the area.

Part of researching what to expect from marine animals, Vick said, is nailing down exactly which species could pose a threat to a swimmer. "I guess there’s salmon sharks here, but I’m told not to worry about them," he said. "But I’ll definitely research that before (starting the swim)."

Vick is seeking volunteers for a support crew to accompany him on the trip. Part of their job would be to keep an eye out for animals and warn Vick if he needs to get out of the water.

Ideally, Vick’s team would have kayaks keeping pace with him, a Zodiak for rapid transit in case of emergency, and a larger fishing boat or pleasure craft where Vick could sleep and eat between swims.

"It would be great to be able to take a quick shower, have a meal and just rest between swims," Vick said. Alternate plans call for the team to camp along the beach if no one steps forward with a suitable boat.

Vick said the support team likely will have six or seven members, including an emergency medical technician, a dietician—a role Vick’s girlfriend will fill—, kayakers, and pilots for the boat. "It’s a big-time effort," he said.

Team members will have to get themselves up to speed on information that will be pertinent to the project, Vick said. For example, the project’s EMT will have to make sure they know how to recognize hypothermia and exhaustion, and the larger boat’s pilot ideally will know when to expect cruise ships and ferries to go by.

Such encounters likely will necessitate the team pulling Vick out of the water, he said. "The fast ferry, I hear, leaves a pretty fierce wake, (and) cruise ships leave a pretty fierce wake."

Equipment costs for the trip are going to be steep, he said, with fuel likely making up the majority. Vick estimates the entire cost of the project at $5,000, at minimum. "I just ball-parked it in my head," he said. "It could be $7,000."

Another major expense will be wetsuits for Vick to wear during the swim, which likely will cost more than $1,000, even factoring in the 50 percent discounts manufacturers Ironman, Xterra and ProMotion have offered, he said.

Three suits will be needed to ensure that Vick always has a fresh backup in case the one he’s wearing rips while in use he said. He’s currently experimenting with suits sent to him by the manufacturers, along with gloves, hoods and booties, to find the right combination.

Vick said the project’s feasibility relies on community support. "This is a homegrown, grassroots community effort, and we’re hoping the community will sponsor it," he said.

For information on how to donate to the project, help out, or to read Vick’s training blog, go to the website he created to promote the plan: www.lynnswim.org. A planning meeting for the event is scheduled for 7 p.m. tonight in the library.