JUBILANT Channel swimmer Roger Allsopp yesterday vowed not to take on any more challenges for a while after completing a gruelling 15-and-a-half-hour journey in rough seas. ‘I won’t be getting myself into any more fine messes,’ he said as he recovered in Dover.

Mr Allsopp’s aim was to raise thousands of pounds for breast cancer research charity Hope for Guernsey, of which he is chairman, and he should know how much he has made in the next few days.

It was touch-and-go whether the 65-year-old retired surgeon would be able to attempt the crossing – weather conditions were less than ideal.

Mr Allsopp set off from Dover at 2.15am on Wednesday in a 16-knot wind, increasing to a gusting force six. The maximum for a Channel swim to go ahead is usually force three.

‘The pilot of the boat wasn’t sure if we should attempt it, but I said I was used to swimming in rough weather in Guernsey,’ said Mr Allsopp.

The worst part of the entire trek was when he had to jump out of the pilot boat in Dover to touch the shore before setting off properly.

‘I felt like a man in a condemned cell being taken to execution. It was a dark and lonely moment, setting out.

‘We set off and the boat was all over the shop. I was a bit sick going along but I couldn’t have been in the boat in those conditions.

‘It became more serene in the water and there was lots of fluorescence, which kept me amused for a minute.’

But the weather became worse.

‘It got rougher and rougher and at the two-hour mark, I couldn’t keep anything down.

‘It was difficult to see and I was trying to stop myself crashing into the boat. But I thought that if I packed it in, I would have to do it all over again.’

Around mid-morning he felt he might almost be at the French shore, but was disappointed to learn there was a long way to go.

‘Mike Banfield ‘a member of Mr Allsopp’s support team’ said I was just over the half-way mark.’

To keep his spirits up, he concentrated on the support given by islanders.

‘I did feel pushed along by the support of all those people who wrote to me. It was an extraordinary feeling of being pushed along.’

The water was colder than expected, although Mr Allsopp kept telling his support team that he felt fine.

‘It was around 16.5C and there was a chill factor. It was difficult in the end.’

And to make matters worse, when he reached Cap Gris Nez, near Calais, Mr Allsopp learned that he would not be able to swim the shortest possible route.

‘They said we wouldn’t be able to make the point and would have to go beyond to a sandy beach, which sounded nice, but it was going to be another hour or two.’

The weather had become so bad that a pilot boat that had accompanied an American, who had completed the swim ahead of Mr Allsopp, attempted to act as a shield from the wind.

‘It was really rough and was coming in all directions. It was quite difficult to find the beach.

‘I knew I would finish because

I was in the bay, but it is possible to be within 100 yards and never make it.

‘Coming ashore, there were a couple of seals in the surf which I thought were people.

‘It was difficult to get up the beach because there was a strong undertow.’

He thanked his support team.

‘They were absolutely fantastic – there’s no way I could have stayed on the boat all night in wind like that. I was better off in the sea.’

Despite suffering from the cold and exhaustion, Mr Allsopp was yesterday feeling much better.

‘I feel fine today, really pleased. It was an amazing adventure,’ he said.