Father and son endurance swimmers Eric and Hunter Helmick swam into Swan Hill on New Year’s Eve.
The Colorado duo started their 2500km Murray River odyssey at Corryong on November 5.
The aim is to reach the mouth of the Murray, at Goolwa, in 90 days.
The Swan Hill pit stop marks the 1000km point in their quest.
Eric Helmick said the reason behind the crazy journey was to inspire the youth of Australia and raise awareness of youth suicide.
“Hunter and I travelled around Australia doing a Las Vegas-style magic show and met a lot of people who had some hard knocks in their lives,” Mr Helmick said.
“We thought that if we could do something visible and tangible, we could inspire and give them hope.
“If people cheer us on, then we can turn around and cheer them on too.”
On their journey the duo have come across plenty of snakes, suffered through freezing cold water and sweltered through blistering heat on the riverbank.
“Hunter swims every day. I start the swim every day and do as much as I can,” Mr Helmick said.
“We try to tackle about 25km a day. When we finish up, we’re going to have a big rest.”
To read more about this story, grab a copy of Monday’s Guardian (January 2).
