Winter Wild Swimming Guidance in Lochs and Rivers
For many of us, inland wild swimming doesn’t stop when the temperature drops—it simply changes. Winter swimming can be deeply
There is always room for the next exciting adventure, and sometimes bundling that adventure into a challenge makes it ever more tantalising. This challenge came from exactly that, and the childlike silliness of wanting to cram as much into a day as possible.
Lynda has attempted the 10 loch challenge in a single day previously with two of her swimming buddies; Jane & Wendy, but the weather was the most challenging part a few years ago. They got to Loch 6, where the mission was abandoned as a result of the road being closed due to flooding. They were all ‘loched’ out, but also shattered too, so in some ways being unable to proceed was a blessing. Trying to fit multiple swims into a day is hard, but actually trying to fit 10 in to one day really took the joy out of it. They ended up worrying about getting to the next swim and the logistics rather than soaking in the moment and the adventure of it all.
That’s where the new concept of stretching the challenge out over two days was born, still challenging, but actually taking time to enjoy the water and share the special moments with newly made friends. It also gave them a chance to make a weekend of it and truly enjoy the euphoria of pure bliss in the water. (really as swimmers, do we need an excuse for a weekend away in the water?)
Then last year Lynda launched the weekend as a trial to obvious raving success, so decided to create an annual tradition, but instead of 10 lochs, Lynda had 12 in her back pocket! The aim was to offer adventurous swimmers the opportunity to embrace the challenge, but also if the weather or parking didn’t allow, there were a few plan B’s in place. Lynda wanted to ensure all swimmers had the opportunity to complete the 10-loch challenge.
Now when I say Loch, I’m sure you’re thinking well don’t they all ‘loch’ the same, but actually there’s a huge variety of landscapes and swims to be had if you know where to ‘loch’ (okay sorry I’ll stop the puns now!). There are so many different stretches of water to add variety, some with rocky entries, others squelchy, mountainous landscapes and some encapsulated by trees. Mostly peaty water, but the swim at each one completely unique and a chance to try something new for our swimmers. Lynda and Becky had teamed up once again to provide land and water safety cover, and swapping at relevant swims. Becky’s turn in the water was dubbed ‘Becky doing a recce’ for the swimmers, to find the best and safest way into the watering hole.
Of course, an adventure wouldn’t be complete without a waterfall too, as just because this is a loch challenge doesn’t mean we can’t find some wonderful kinetic energy of water for a magical reprieve.
The locations of such places are only as good as the swimmers you meet, and that’s the exact reason these types of trips came about for ‘Take me to the Water’. It was to celebrate these new formed friendships the water gives us and sharing that adventure with people is the essence of it all. Meeting new people along the way always enhances that too, in this instance it was meeting two very amicable and interesting German motorcyclists who were touring Scotland. They presumed there was only a few swimmers in the clan and offered to take a photo of the group, and to their amusement, the rest of the crew unfurled from neighbouring cars. All in different levels of disarray to clamber in to the obligatory group shot. Lovely to get everyone in without the oversized head of the selfie taker in the foreground. Naturally we had to take the Selfie with them in too to capture the moment.
One of the swimmers of the weekend was also taking on a challenge of her very own, wanting to accomplish 20km in open water to raise funds for her local theatre. Helen managed 2 x 1km swims in each of the last lochs of each day and was supported all or part of the way by some of the other swimmers. Challenge within a challenge, it’s almost as if us swimmers can’t get enough!
What else is there to do after completing such a feet after the first day, but to hot foot it to the local Indian. Reminiscing and cementing memories of the days, that lovely eagerness for food accompanied by watery anecdotes are a usual sound on these types of adventures. Although unfortunately the meal was a little more delayed then the hungry swimmers liked, the very charismatic owner came and won the group over with complimentary Indian dessert, that wasn’t even on the menu! Our swimmers didn’t only leave feeling accomplished, but there was also an unexpected prize at the end of the weekend.
The group lounged on the banks of the loch after they’d finished their final swim, and no sooner had they found contentment, they were of course surrounded by people asking what they were up to, and followed by the mandatory “was it cold?”. That happy buzz of people thinking you’re slightly crazy always creates a heart-warming feeling. A gentle reminder that this type of adventure isn’t for everyone, and in that it makes it that much sweeter in the knowledge of what the swimmers had accomplished. One of Becky’s friends lived on the banks of the loch and came down to say hello too, I’m sure if you left it too long they’d have ended up on the local news, “Crazy Swimmers Complete 10 Loch Challenge!” – And so they did!
Keep an eye out for our challenge in 2025!
For many of us, inland wild swimming doesn’t stop when the temperature drops—it simply changes. Winter swimming can be deeply
I reached out to the pals I swim with as the magic of water resonates with so many people and
I asked my swim buddy to share with me his experience of cold water dipping and what I received was