Bay Area woman aims to be the first to swim the whole California coast

Catherine Breed, 33, is nearly halfway through a planned open-ocean swim of roughly 900 miles along California’s coastline, from the California-Oregon border to Mexico. She started the attempt on July 1 and is expected to continue through November, swimming with boat support and a team. Breed, raised in Pleasanton and a graduate of Amador Valley High School, later swam for U.C. Berkeley and the U.S. National team. She has completed ultra-long-distance swims including the length of Lake Tahoe and a San Francisco to Half Moon Bay crossing. At stops, she hosts community events focused on coastal issues and ocean conservation. As of Friday, she had covered 450 miles, with 550 remaining, and planned to continue her southbound swim from Ocean Beach.