My first time wild swimming…

OMG…Okay…OMG… I had to remind myself to take in breaths- In…Out…In…Out. The chill of the water as it made contact with my skin was like a thousand tiny shocks. I could barely stop myself from shivering, my toes stung from the cold and in those first few moments I couldn’t for the life of me grasp the concept of voluntarily dunking yourself in freezing water on a regular basis- such is the life of a wild swimmer. 

Okay, so I should probably retract a bit and admit that I only, technically went in as far as chest level- it had taken all my courage to get that far, and I was not prepared to go the full way in on my first attempt. The location of my first dip into wild swimming was an old quarry located within the Dartmoor National Park and from what I had seen from previous photos- a great spot for wild swimming. Granted those photos looked like they had been taken in the heat of the summer and not on a dismally cold January morning (RIP my dreams of seeing a clear sunrise). But I still hadn’t prepared myself enough for the sudden onset of freezing water that greeted me and I bitterly regretted not wearing my neoprene trousers (usually reserved for kayaking). My reasoning for not dressing appropriately for the occasion was because I feared if I had worn them, I would not have gotten the full experience of wild swimming (as seen on my aesthetic Pinterest feed). Plus, they are a complete nightmare to remove when wet and I did not want my companions to witness the flailing struggle of me VS the neoprene trouser removal usually witnessed only by my bemused Labrador at home.  Instead, I opted for boardshorts and a rash vest, which aside from providing some dignity did absolutely nothing to keep in body heat- which was all but reduced to nothing in the water.

Still, I must recount the one positive of my experience and the factor that I think may lead to more freezing dips in the future- Once you recover from the initial rush of adrenaline and are able to get your breathing back under control, the experience becomes oddly gratifying. Along with a great feeling of accomplishment, I must admit the cold water did give me an unexpected boost- sure I couldn’t feel my feet for a good ten minutes afterwards, but who needs that when you can have the crazy boost of cold water swimming? And once I had engulfed my post-swim hot drink and chocolate snack I felt ready to take on the world again, with a renewed sense of accomplishment (and still slightly numb legs).

This had not been a spur of the moment decision (although I’m not sure who would choose to get into freezing water on the spur of a moment outside of an emergency) but part of a wider planned outing with an outdoor adventure group I had recently joined. I take my personal safety very seriously when exploring and would not have attempted such an activity as wild swimming without at least one other person present. That said only one other person was brave enough to join me in the water that day and I am grateful there was someone as crazy as me there to test it with me… even if it was less then 10 minutes in the water.

My tips for first time swimmers:

• Take a hot drink (and chocolate) for afterwards.
• If possible, where water shoes and gloves- this will provide your hands and feet with a bit more protection and hopefully mean you warm up faster afterwards.
• Don’t go alone! Always go with someone else, preferably someone who already knows what they are doing.
• Make sure you have fun- Wild swimming is not for everyone and if its not for you- don’t force it.

To learn more about the health benefits of wild swimming I recommend checking out this BBC sound feature- https://youtu.be/nTwZ46QHHIM