Five hundred swimmers, one cold headland: the Point-to-Point turns 50

The open-water swim from Harbor Point to Gull Rock started with eight swimmers in 1976.

A curving beach and headland seen from above

The first Point-to-Point swim, in 1976, had eight entrants and no safety boat. On Saturday, 512 swimmers crossed the 2.4 miles from Harbor Point to Gull Rock, in water that measured 58 degrees at the start.

Organizers capped entries this year for the first time, after demand tripled in five years.