Elsie Berriman is making an epic journey from Hayle across the bay to Carbis Bay in Cornwall to get to school – and has been swimming through jellyfish in the process
A teenage girl is making waves by paddleboarding to school every single day, braving jellyfish stings along the way.
Elsie Berriman takes to the water to paddle across the sea from Hayle to Carbis Bay in Cornwall for her school commute. Rising with the sun, the 13-year-old starts her aquatic trek at 6:30am, spending approximately an hour crossing over to Carbis Bay, where she usually arrives around 7:45am.
After her unique journey, this intrepid surfer uses the beach’s outdoor showers still decked out in her wetsuit, before heading to classes. But Elsie isn’t just riding the waves for fun – she’s on an epic fundraising drive for her local surf lifesaving club.
Committed to a 20-mile, 10-day paddleboard challenge for Hayle Surf Live Saving Club, which has been her second home since childhood and champions coastal safety for all ages, Elsie aims to give back to the community that shaped her. The young adventurer has not only exceeded her fundraising goal, hitting £2,045, but also intends to keep gliding through the sea – enduring daily encounters with jellyfish along the way.
Growing up in Hayle, Elsie cherishes her connection with the surf club. She said: “Hayle Surf Livesaving Club has given me something to be passionate about, and along the way, I’ve been fortunate to make some great friendships. It’s a fantastic community to be part of, and I want to give back by taking on this challenge”.
Andrew Berriman, Elsie’s dad, is awash with pride and gratitude, amazed at the swell of monetary support his daughter has received. “It has really surprised us how generous people have been,” he said.
“We didn’t aim to raise as much money – it was just meant to be a small fundraiser, but it seems to have really captured people’s imaginations. I think a big reason is because she is 13 and is doing this every day for two weeks!”
“The conditions have been so bad as well, but she’s not fazed. She’s always loved the water and has grown up around the sea and particularly that bit of water – she knows it well and is a confident swimmer.”
Elsie goes out in the mornings with at least two to three members of the club who provide a safety cover for her. Andrew, who was initially meant to do the challenge with Elsie but was unable to due to an Achilles heel injury, says the surf club has been a huge part of both of their lives.
Having been a member since a teenager, Andrew wanted his daughter to grow up with the same surf club community he had. He said: “It’s why we got her into it – she has loved it and it has been her absolute favourite thing to do.
“The club have so many dedicated people and all her closest friends are there too. She is there all day on Sunday for training, Tuesday nights, Wednesday nights, and they often have something on a Friday too. She feels this surf club is a community for her – and this challenge proves it really is.”
Elsie added that her idea for the fundraiser came about after the club were fundraising earlier in the year to buy a double ski, which is an ‘expensive piece of kit’. The determined youngster has taken up the challenge to paddle to school, a concept that evolved from a spark into reality with some planning alongside her dad.
The adventure hasn’t all been smooth sailing, though, with Elsie facing tumultuous conditions and an invasion of mauve stinger jellyfish this week. Andrew said: “Elsie has been stung everyday, and other members of the club have been stung loads too.”
In one particularly troubling incident, he said that one morning, while paddling, “she brought her hang up and there was one on her hand”, adding “even that isn’t bothering her”. Elsie is now set to complete her ambitious endeavour next Friday, weather permitting, in hopes that conditions will remain favourable.
Should the sea turn too treacherous, Elsie is ready to push through, aiming to finish the full 10 days of her journey. People are encouraged to back Elsie’s fundraising efforts.