Oh, depends on the version. In versions prior to 1.0034 I was dead instantly if I didn't take the shortest way from west to east.
In the last version, I could even get to the tiny isle north of the larger one - the one with a sleeping bag. I had lvl 1 and when my time was up, I just reactivated it. This was the first time I could actually wander over the whole lake and look at everything closely.
Kiya
