Diving in to Celebrate 70 Years on Winnipesaukee 

By Kathi Caldwell-Hopper

When Alexis Wallace asked herself the question, “How does an arthritic, asthmatic, cancer survivor celebrate 70 years on Lake Winnipesaukee?” she already had the answer. 

By jumping in the lake and swimming.

With a self-deprecating sense of humor, Alexis has found the lighter moments amid cancer (she is now cancer-free), and the aches and pains felt as the years move on. But there is one thing she is serious about: Working to protect the water quality of Lake Winnipesaukee, a place she loves dearly. 

Thus, last summer, she decided to challenge herself to do a swim of two miles near her Wolfeboro home to raise awareness and donations for the Lake Winnipesaukee Association.

Alexis is aware of the problems Winnipesaukee may face in the future, from too much traffic to cyanobacteria to a score of other issues. She speaks with warmth for and admiration of the Lake Winnipesaukee Association (LWA) and their tireless work to ensure the lake is in good condition. 

Why is this so important to Alexis? She explains, “My parents summered on the lake in the 1940s and bought our place in Wolfeboro in 1953. I am from suburban Boston, Massachusetts, but we came up here in the summer and made great memories at our cottage in Wolfeboro.”

The cottage wasn’t large, but it fit the description of a typical 1940s to 1960s “summer camp” on the lake. Knotty pine paneled walls, a few bedrooms, and the lake nearby. The parents relaxed, hosted barbecues and the kids frolicked in Winnipesaukee and played outside every day. These were simple, innocent pleasures that built a lifetime of fond memories for Alexis. 

As an adult, Alexis was a New Hampshire public school counselor and had a private practice as a counselor. With this schedule, she continued to summer in Wolfeboro, and now retired, she and her family spend six months of the year at their beloved family cottage on the shore of Lake Winnipesaukee. 

From the first, Alexis was in the water, and the lake was a huge playground for her and her siblings. Being comfortable in the water started young, and she recalls, “My Dad taught me to water ski when I was five years old. It took about 24 tries, but I was finally waterskiing!”

Life on the lake gave a lot of freedom to Alexis, and she loved to swim. “I remember swimming across Winter Harbor to our neighbors’ cottage.

Perhaps that childhood swim set the stage for Alexis, as a retired adult, to challenge herself to another swim, this time to mark 70 years on Winnipesaukee.

The first fundraising swim for the LWA took place in August of 2020 was two miles from Keewaydin Point to Carry Beach. Alexis admits it was a rather quiet happening. She did not create huge fanfare but trained ahead of time and coordinated her swim with family and a few friends.

Alexis learned a lot from that first swim last year and used what she ascertained for her second swim, this year on Tuesday, August 24. She slipped into the water at 5:50 am from a boat with her boat escort encouraging her to complete the swim.

The August 2021 swim was in a different location. “I settled on Rattlesnake Island area for this year’s swim,” she explains. “I swam easterly towards Wolfeboro in the early morning. It was 2 ½ miles and it took me about 1 ½ hours; I was done with the swim by 7:20 am,” she says.

She identified ahead of time a point to start her swim near Rattlesnake Island and stresses she always stayed close to shore during the swim. It was remarkably quiet and peaceful on the lake at that early morning hour, and she assumed few people saw her but learned later, via the Everything Lake Winnipesaukee Facebook page that indeed someone had seen her swim.

Coordinating her swim meant getting a permit before the swim. Alexis got a permit from the NH Marine Patrol, who she credits with being incredibly supportive and helpful. 

Training for the swim with a coach from April into the summer, Alexis found that pacing herself would be important. Her coach, Maury McKinney, at Agiochoook Aquatics in Intervale, was helpful as Alexis trained and prepared for her August swim. 

Such a swim might seem daunting, but Alexis had a method of “crawl, backstroke, float” which worked well so she did not overtire. “I found,” she laughed, “that I wasn’t tired and could’ve kept going longer!” Being in the water is something Alexis is used to, and she swims almost every day. “If it’s cold, I wear a wet suit; I swim about ¾ of a mile daily. And I swim along the shore for safety in case I get tired,” she explains.

Certainly, this year’s swim was a bit more of a challenge than her first swim because she swam longer and in a new location vs. near her Wolfeboro cottage. But it was a success, and she plans to do another swim in 2022. 

At present, Alexis is scouting for a location for her summer of 2022 swim. She hopes to do a swim each summer from a different Lake Winnipesaukee town, and she says if anyone has a suggestion of a spot or town, she would love to hear from them. (See contact information at the end of this story.)

Although Alexis was “in utero” 70 years ago, it still counts for a 70-year celebration of her time spent on the lake. It was the start of her Lake Winnipesaukee residency, and she has always had a love of the lake. 

Perhaps that is why she wants to help raise awareness for lake quality issues and the important work of the Lake Winnipesaukee Association. 

Alexis adds, “When I was a child, I could look out across the water near our cottage and see a big rock in the water. But not now. Why is that? Because the water is cloudy and not as clear.”

It is a sobering statement, but it underscores the fact that the lake water has changed. It is the good work of the Lake Winnipesaukee Association that gives Alexis’s hope for the future of Winnipesaukee and other area bodies of water.

After her swim, Alexis climbed back in the boat and the group headed home. After getting warm and into dry clothes, she contacted the LWA to let them know she had completed her second swim, giving them her finish time. She adds, “The weather conditions were ideal, which is what I want for a swim. There was no wind, and it was very calm, and it did not rain. We watched the weather and picked a week that would be good.”

Alexis explains that her 2022 swim will probably be in August, and she is hoping to do the swim in a more densely populated area to raise greater awareness for the LWA. Perhaps a swim in the Moultonboro area or in Paugus Bay. “I would like to complete a three-mile swim challenge in 2022.”

The first year Alexis did the swim, she admits she was somewhat apprehensive, as one would be when doing something different. This year, she recalls, she was more excited and less apprehensive when she jumped in the water. 

On the LWA Go Fund Me page for her swim (Making Waves for Winni), Alexis is quoted as saying, ““I am at an age where I care deeply about future generations. This is our family's 74th year on the lake. Currently, the fifth generation of our family is enjoying Lake Winnipesaukee, and we want to make sure that the lake quality stays pristine for our children and grandchildren.” 

Alexis certainly brought awareness of lake issues and the LWA to her friends, family, and others and will continue to do so each summer with another swim. 

So how does a woman with some health issues celebrate 70 years on Lake Winnipesaukee when she cares deeply about the lake and the environment? 

For Alexis, it is easy: she just dives right in.

For information about the Lake Winnipesaukee Association, visit www.winnipesaukee.org. If you would like to suggest a location for Alexis’ 2022 swim, you can communicate with her via The Laker at pressreleases@thelaker.com and your message will be passed along to Alexis.

(Alexis would like to mention and thank those who participated in her swim: NH Marine Patrol; all who donated to LWA; captain of the escort boat during the swim: Barbara Weiss; observer on the escort boat: Jeff Wallace; Nick at Dive Winnipesaukee in Wolfeboro for equipment and support; Maury McKinney, swim coach at Agiochoook Aquatics in Intervale and Bayside Nails for a blue nail polish pedicure for Alexis as a reminder to “Keep Winni Blue.”)

The direct link for the Go Fund Me page should you wish to learn more or make a donation, is https://www.gofundme.com/f/make-waves-for-winni?utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet+spider2v&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer.