Having grown up on a farm in South Africa, I spent my childhood swimming in the open lakes and making mud cakes. I have fond memories of my free- range outdoors childhood and even now, I enjoy regular visits to the forest and lakes to get my nature fix.
Wild swimming in the UK has been one of my elusive bucket list items for some time. When I recently visited Wales with Katrina from @Fast2foto for the Snowden sunset hike challenge, the plan was to follow up the next day with a wild swim. Unfortunately, the rain isn’t compatible with a drone camera, so we had to postpone our plans until better weather.
Back home in Kent, I once again did my sunshine dance and we had the most perfect opportunity early on a Sunday morning. Whilst most of the world was still asleep, bar a few people out walking dogs, we set off to set up for the drone operating procedures.
Our location was in a beautiful lake land site, teeming with wildlife and nature. Katrina is a licensed drone operator, and this entails complying with various operating regulations, procedures and insurance. Whilst we were setting up, we soon had an audience which included moorhens and chicks, lots of ducks and a curious swan family with six cygnets.
The air was a warm 18 degrees and the lake water felt refreshing. Once I entered the lake and started swimming, it felt invigorating and rather liberating. The swan family decided to swim alongside me, which made me swim faster as I didn’t want to invade on their space or risk upsetting them. It was so peaceful being out in the lake, stopping to look up into the sky and admiring natures dawn chorus. I felt so tranquil being still and enjoying the moment.
When I swam back to the shore, I had warmed up nicely and I was on an endorphin high.
I finished the swim feeling accomplished and I am already looking to go wild swimming again. I highly recommend it for an outdoor experience, of course it is worth reiterating that one makes sure to take all the appropriate precautions before proceeding to swim wild.
Thanks to @Fast2foto for capturing the swimming moments by drone.
You can view the footage here: