The Busselton Jetty Swim… in Albany
While Albany may be 300km from Busselton, it didn’t stop eight local swimmers from completing the Busselton Jetty Swim in 2025 — without leaving their hometown.
The group took on the Busselton Jetty Swim’s Virtual Challenge, which invites swimmers to complete a 3.6km swim – the same distance around the Busselton Jetty – anywhere.
Rather than travelling to Busselton, the Albany crew swam across Princess Royal Harbour, a protected bay on Albany’s waterfront.
Organiser Sandy Laurens said the idea of the Virtual Challenge instantly appealed to her.
I swim every day, and I’ve completed the actual Busselton Jetty Swim many times. I used to swim Busso with my daughter each year and we’d make a weekend of it, but circumstances changed so we no longer make the annual pilgrimage.
When I heard about the Virtual Challenge, I suggested it to some of my swimming buddies and it just went from there.
Sandy said planning the virtual event was surprisingly simple, and the course actually involved a jetty.
We decided to start our swim from the Quaranup Jetty on Vancouver Peninsula, which is about 50m long, and swam across the harbour to the old Town jetty site, which is a distance of 3600m.
We let the local Port Authority know what we were doing, and also had a couple of kayakers and friend in a motor boat for support. It wasn’t complicated at all.
The group originally planned to swim on the same weekend as the Busselton Jetty Swim but shifted the date to suit everyone.
Sandy encouraged anyone considering the Virtual Challenge to just do it.
The Virtual Challenge is a great way to set a goal to work towards. There’s so much flexibility — you choose the date, the location, then start training. And usually, there’s always someone else keen to join in.
The Albany crew are planning to do it again this year — this time with a champagne breakfast waiting at the finish. Enter the Virtual Challenge here
