Just finished reading Waterlog: A Swimmer's Journey Through Britain , the late Roger Deakin's story of wild swimming in rivers, lakes and the sea around the UK. It's a soothing and philosophical work rather like Izaak Walton's Compleat Angler as well as a polemic against municipal hostility towards traditional community swimming areas. Until recently many or most communities had places in rivers or local ponds maintained for swimming, many with platforms and changing areas. Nearly all of them have fallen into neglect or been closed down in these risk-averse times. I swim in a lot of wild places in good weather including pools in the higher reaches of the Towy (bitterly cold close to Llyn Brianne, the reservoir in the headwaters) as well as sea swimming from May to October in Swansea and around the West Wales coast. I can testify with Deakin that swimming is a natural, primeval activity superior to other physical exercise for its therapeutic effect on mental wellbeing. In fact I swim year round in the open air (including this morning in spite of a nasty sore throat) but that's in my sports club's pool - heated, not quite so exhilarating, and clearly cheating.
