Earlier this week, Adrian Lole of the Royal Life Saving Society said: “Rivers are unpredictable and dynamic in nature and people should not be tempted to cool off or tombstone into them at anytime, unless doing so with a professional outdoor pursuits company. After the recent storms, rivers are now even more dangerous with faster-flowing water, stronger currents and colder water flowing through. The sunshine may be back out but the water in rivers is even more deadly.”
Other experts have pointed to the fact that all sorts of illnesses can be contracted by swimming in rivers and ponds – including stomach upsets, ear complaints, “swimmers’ itch” and, worse, Weil’s disease.
Suddenly wild swimming no longer seems quite so cool.
Make no mistake, it is a dangerous pursuit (not for nothing is the term wild used). I count myself to be quite an experienced practitioner, but I, too, have had two near-death experiences. Both involved the sea (the Pacific and Atlantic oceans) and both involved leaping into big, crashing waves that looked irresistible – and then realising that I was being sucked ever further out to sea and was way, way out of my depth.
Luckily, I was – just – strong enough to get back, but I am very much more cautious now about swimming in choppy waters. I look to see how fast the current of a river is before getting in. I try always to swim with someone else (or where others are swimming). I consult specialist publications such as Kate Rew’s “Wild Swim: River Lake, Lido and Sea” and the excellent wild swimmer’s map of Britain found on the website of the Outdoor Swimming Society (founded by Rew).