ESCANABA — Tyler Lindquist has always been interested in physically pushing himself, according to his sister Ann Lindquist, and on Aug. 17, he did just that. Lindquist swam from Chippewa Point to Burndt Bluff, crossing Big Bay de Noc. He swam 6.6 miles in five and a half hours following the Marathon Swimmers Federation Rules of Marathon Swimming. The swim started once Lindquist entered the water from a natural edge on Stonington Peninsula, and concluded when he exited the water on to a natural shore just south of Fayette.

“Every so often, we had to write down his coordinates so he could clock his actual swim distance,” said Ann Lindquist.

In 2017, he swam across Little Bay de Noc and decided to swim across Big Bay de Noc shortly after. Lindquist wanted to do a marathon swim and thought it would make sense to attempt it in waters he knew well.

“I swam across Little Bay de Noc two years ago from a boat launch on Stonington to the Escanaba harbor,” said Lindquist. “First memory of thinking about this was when I was a kid, swimming out to the platform at Gladstone beach.”

Lindquist’s training started when he joined a 5 a.m. swim club in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, where he lives now. He swam a few times a week and trained his body like he would for running a marathon. While he was training his body to get ready for the swim, his sister, who was going to be the official observer, read and memorized the rules by the MSF in Rapid River.