Swim Alcatraz and more…
World-Class Open Water Swimming
with the Bay’s Most Experienced Team
Swim Alcatraz.
$279 Alcatraz Swims • Small Groups • Professionally Guided
Escape from Alcatraz with the Bay’s most experienced swim company. For $279, you’ll get a pace-matched, safety-first Alcatraz swim—led by USCG Master Captains with our own modern fleet. We’ve been swimming in San Francisco Bay for over 20 years and guiding Alcatraz crossings professionally since 2017. As USCG-licensed captains and open water experts, we’ve helped thousands cross Alcatraz off their bucket list—safely, successfully, and confidently. No one swims Alcatraz more than we do—because it’s what we do daily.
With over 90 group swims in 2025 and over 80 planned for 2026—plus solo, private, and custom events available year-round—this is open water on your terms. Bring your crew, celebrate something big, or take it on solo.
Success is an email away.
Epic Swims, Every Day.
Small-group. Pace-matched. Professionally guided
Since 2017, Pacific Open Water Swim Co. has helped thousands successfully Swim Alcatraz and dozens of other courses—with safety, precision, and unmatched local knowledge. Our USCG Master Captains and purpose-built vessels deliver the highest standard in open water support. We’ve raised the standard in open water swimming—we’re qualified, proven, and unmatched.
This video is an eight-minute look at how we experience San Francisco Bay and Lake Tahoe.
These scenes reflect the conditions, intensity, and raw beauty of open water swimming as we live it—with our clients.
The only thing better is being out there with us. (Volume up!)
Dozens of Great SF Swims Available…
Alcatraz Swims
Experience the thrill of Alcatraz with six unforgettable swim routes—each carefully timed to match the Bay’s shifting currents and calm morning waters. From the iconic Alcatraz Escape to scenic routes with sweeping views of San Francisco, every swim delivers a one-of-a-kind adventures.
Other SF Swims
Enjoy San Francisco Bay’s diverse and breathtaking beauty with our super-fun, challenging courses, each offering a unique adventure. Bridge-to-Bridge, the Golden Gate Bridge, the challenging Angel Island Circumnavigation, incredible night swims, and many, many more.
Marathon Swimming
Swimmers training for the English Channel, Catalina, Lake Tahoe, and other major goals come to us every season. With proven conditions and expert guidance, we’ll help you prepare. We also regularly pilot the 10-mile Round-Trip Angel Island—one of the Bay’s most demanding swims.
Swimming Is Our Only Business
We Don’t Do This on the Side.
We Do This Every Day.
What Swimmers Are Saying About Us
Why They Trust Us—In Their Own Words
Visiting San Francisco?
Make It a Swim You’ll Never Forget.
Our flexible scheduling and daily swims make it easy to add an Alcatraz Escape or other amazing SF Open Water Swim to your trip.
Here for business, holiday, or just passing through? We’ve got you.
We run more than 90 Alcatraz swims a year—early mornings, weekdays, and across all seasons. If you’re flying in, we’ll work with your travel window to match you to the right swim based on your pace, experience, and goals.
Whether you’re here for a few days or just one morning, start by filling out our Arrange a Swim form. We ask the right questions for travelers—date range, availability, pace, and preferences—so we can quickly recommend the best option.
We swim 24/7-365 with USCG Master Captains, purpose-built boats, and small, pace-matched groups. This isn’t a sightseeing tour—it’s real open water swimming, done right.
Marathon Swimming
We train marathon swimmers—and we swim marathon courses.
From 2, 4, 6, and 8+ hour training swims to official 6-hour qualifiers in sub-60°F water, our marathon training programs are built for serious swimmers. Real training plans, real coaching, and real distance—led by those who’ve done it.
Our courses include some of San Francisco’s most demanding routes: Round-Trip Angel Island (10 miles), Four Islands (14 miles), the 21-mile Circumnavigation of San Francisco, and more. We’ve piloted more marathon swims in the Bay than any other operator, including 49 Round-Trip Angel Island completions with a 96% success rate.
Since 2017, we’ve piloted over 355 marathon swims across San Francisco Bay, Lake Tahoe, and the California coast.
We didn’t add marathon swimming to our business—we built the business for marathon swimming.
More Iconic Swims
Swim the Golden Gate Bridge, Bridge to Bridge, Angel Island, and beyond
Take on San Francisco open water swimming with courses that deliver. We offer dozens of options for every level—from beginner-friendly, flat-water sessions to night swims, the 9-mile Prison to Prison, the 21-mile Circumnavigation of San Francisco, offshore adventures, and some of the toughest marathon swims anywhere.
From your first swim to your next channel, we’ve got you covered.
We’re swimmers ourselves and know what it takes to achieve—at your pace, your success.
There are few city skylines as iconic and beautiful as San Francisco’s—especially from the water.
This image captures a swimmer finishing the 10km Bridge to Bridge swim—scenic, satisfying, and a stepping stone to more demanding courses.
Kara and Nate’s Alcatraz Adventure on YouTube
Watch Kara and Nate take on their first Alcatraz swim—an unforgettable challenge guided by our expert team. A detailed training plan and optional, experienced angel swimmers supported these fit but novice open-water swimmers.
Their effort—captured in a video viewed over 4.1 million times and trending in YouTube’s Top 10—shows what’s possible with the right preparation and support, even if the tone is a little more dramatic than we’d probably choose.
A must-watch for anyone curious about swimming Alcatraz for the first time.
Thinking About a Swim?
Exploring Options? Let’s Talk.
You don’t need to be fully committed to start the conversation. Whether you’re planning months ahead, wondering if you’re ready, or just want to understand the options—we’re happy to help.
Tell us a little about yourself and your goals, and we’ll walk you through what’s possible, how it works, or what we can do. No pressure, no sales pitch—just straightforward guidance from people who do this every day.
Best sunrise, flat water on a massive flood with 56.4°F water temps and air 48°F had a quick 36-min ride-the-tide from the Golden Gate Bridge to Alcatraz. A plethora of harbor porpoises and one very large sea lion admiring the boys out for their morning swim. #openwaterswimming #coldwaterswimming #sfbayarea #alcatrazswim
Alcatraz Saturday on the holiday weekend - whoo! 43° air temp with a brisk wind and 55.8°F water temp did not faze these 11 women - quite a few are marathon swimmers. #swimalcatraz #alcatrazswim #sfbayarea #openwaterswimming #coldwaterswimming
A 55.7°F swim outside the Golden Gate Bridge this morning. Celebrating friendship, smiles and our fantastic San Francisco Bay. From our families to yours, wishing you a bountiful table and joyous Thanksgiving. #openwaterswimming #coldwaterswimming #sfbayarea #goldengatebrige #bayswimming #thanksgiving
Remembering our friend and swimmer Jeff Cooperman, one year on. Many great times together, some of our best photos, and thousands of memories carry his warmth, humor, and his grit.
Join us as we celebrate Jeff’s life on Saturday, Nov 22, 2025, 11:30 AM at the South End Rowing Club, San Francisco.
RSVP via the link in bio.
What?? Amanda Ernzer was the fastest American to complete the English Channel this year and received the @csaswimmers Robert Lyle Memorial Trophy at the CSA awards banquet last night! Congratulations!
#sealeopardcharter #stuartgleeson #englishchannel #matathonswimming #channelswimming #channelswimmingassociation @dolphinclubsf
Fortunate to have enjoyed a private screening tonight of Vindication Swim, the new film about Mercedes Gleitze—the first British woman to swim the English Channel at the South End Rowing Club…
We enjoyed the movie and the story, it’s one we didn’t know but should have!
We met director Elliott Hasler afterward, who brought her 1927 crossing and the controversy that followed to life with real grit and heart.
We’re sharing it because this story belongs to all of us who enjoy open water swimming and know what it takes to keep going when the world doubts you.
Streaming November 18 on Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, and Google Play. You’ll enjoy it as much as we did.
#VindicationSwim #EnglishChannel #OpenWaterSwimming #MarathonSwimming #ColdWaterCrew #SwimHistory #Endurance #Grit #ChannelSwimmers
Congratulations to Christina MacDougall who completed the Catalina Channel today in a time of 13:17:31 (unofficial pending ratification) under the Catalina Channel Swimming Federation.
Christina was scheduled to swim the English Channel this year but weathered out so used her training and was able to get a late Catalina date.
Her English Channel pilot Stuart Gleeson of Sea Leopard Charter made the trip to be on her boat - to see her across A CHANNEL! Pilot Sylvia from @pacificswimco joined along with Maxine Bayley (One with the Ocean) - paddlers Sidney Russell, Angela and Observers Ana and Michelle topped off by the pilots and crew of Pacific Star... Enough experience on the boat for a few swims!
#channelswimming #catalinachannel #channelswimmer #marathonswimming #marathonswimmer
A quick 3.1-mile swim from the Golden Gate Bridge to Alcatraz before work makes morning meetings so much easier... #openwaterswimming #coldwaterswimming #swimsf #sfbayarea
Clinics and Coaching
We’re a Full-Service Swimming Company
Our stroke clinics and private coaching are led by certified, full-time professionals—dedicated coaches who are also successful channel and marathon swimmers. These aren’t part-time instructors or hobbyists. They’ve done the work and know how to guide others through it.
Whether you’re refining technique, training for a marathon swim, or preparing for your next big goal, we provide personalized support every step of the way. With custom training plans, structured programs, and focused webinars, we give you the tools to swim smarter, stronger, and farther.
We’re serious about swimming—and fully invested in helping you succeed.
One of our purpose-built Axopar 28 escort vessels—Finnish-designed, custom-modified for open water swimming, and equipped with low-emission engines and advanced marine electronics. Fast, stable, and fully configured for safe, serious support in San Francisco Bay.
Open Water Swimming, Done Right
Built by Swimmers. Trusted by Thousands.
Founded in 2017, Pacific Open Water Swim Co. delivers professionally escorted open water swims in San Francisco Bay and Lake Tahoe. With over 355 marathon swims and 900+ small-group outings supported to date, we operate more Alcatraz, Bridge-to-Bridge, and marathon swims each year than any other organization.
Every swim is led by USCG-licensed Master Captains, supported by trained crew, and the company is operated by experienced open water swimmers. Unlike others, we don’t rely on rented fishing boats, water taxis, dinner cruise ships, or volunteer kayakers—setups that fall short on safety, oversight, and professionalism. Our operations are built for serious open water swimming, with every detail designed for success—for swimmers, by swimmers.