![]() ![]() "I was listening to the radio when told about it," she remembered. She was in her 20s when she first heard the news. "I'll never believe they're dead I don't believe they're dead," Widner said as she stood in the prison's old medical ward. She is John and Clarence Anglin's little sister. ![]() It's an unfounded rumor that drew an unlikely group to the island Monday to mark half a century passed, including many of the Anglin brothers' family. Most people assume the men have been at the bottom of the bay or were swept out to sea since the night they broke free, tunneling out of their cells in part with spoons from the kitchen and climbing the prisons' plumbing to the roof.īut the legend of their escape has held that the men, Frank Morris and John and Clarence Anglin, would return on the 50th anniversary of their breakout. ![]() history from what was billed as the nation's only "escape-proof prison" - Alcatraz. It was one of the most daring prison escapes in U.S. Swims usually have a limit of 100 swimmers but may be able to accommodate a larger group.Fifty years ago three men set out into the frigid waters of the San Francisco Bay in a raft made out of raincoats. Swims are priced affordably at $235 and swimmers can save $50 by registering before a month prior to the event ($285 with late registration). #Escape from alcatraz registrationPublic Alcatraz swims, which are offered 3-4 times a year by Odyssey, are events that are open to the public for registration until the swim is sold out. Staff members will kayak or paddleboard alongside swimmers and will be able to pull swimmers from the water if necessary. Odyssey Alcatraz swims quickly caught on and thousands of swimmers have joined Odyssey on public and private Alcatraz swims.Įach swim includes Odyssey staff for support and larger swims feature an EMT on stand-by in the rare case that one is needed. Odyssey Open Water Swimming began in 2013 as a small, locally-owned company providing exciting adventures in the East Bay. Swim from Alcatraz with Odyssey Open Water Swimming Swimmers are encouraged to wear a wetsuit due to the low temperatures, which can range anywhere from the high 40’s to 65 degrees. Odyssey Alcatraz swims are approximately 2 miles long and can take anywhere between 20 minutes to over an hour based on your level of experience and the conditions. Length (1-2 miles or longer depending on your route) Some of the key challenges include:Ĭold water temperatures which can be 10 degrees or lower than in other parts of the East Bay Still, swimming from Alcatraz is no joke. In fact, sharks in San Francisco Bay are exceedingly rare, and wetsuits minimize the physical impact of the frigid waters. Crossing from Alcatraz to San Francisco is not as challenging as one may think based on popular lore about sharks and freezing waters. “Swimming from Alcatraz” returns more than a million search results on Google and thousands if not tens of thousands of swimmers from around the world participate in Alcatraz-related swims, triathlons, and events each year. It’s also part of some of the most exciting and desirable open water swimming events in the world. From being featured in movies like The Rock and Escape from Alcatraz to being discussed in songs and played out in video games, Alcatraz continues to be a popular topic and tourist destination. The prison held such notorious as figures as mob boss Al Capone, Jame “Whitey” Bulger, George “Machine Gun” Kelly, and Robert “The Birdman” Stroud.Īlthough the prison hasn’t held inmates since the early 1960’s, its legacy lives on, and in a much more positive manner than one might have imagined back when it was in operation.Īlcatraz and the idea of escaping from it has become a part of America’s pop culture. Of those who attempted to escape, none are believed to have successfully made it to shore without drowning, being captured, or being shot during the attempt. Due to the security of the prison facility itself, the distance from shore, cold water, and strong currents, few dared to attempt to escape.ĭuring which the prison housed about 1,500 total prisoners, only 14 total escape attempts were made. Known as The Rock or simply Alcatraz, the Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, located more than a mile off the coast of San Francisco, was built to be the strongest prison in America. ![]()
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