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| ints:wild_swimming [2025/11/27 11:24] – asimong | ints:wild_swimming [2025/12/17 04:30] (current) – external edit 127.0.0.1 | ||
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| It was a different story in the UK as the 20th century progressed. Local authorities discouraged it, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents wanted it stopped (but not mountaineering, | It was a different story in the UK as the 20th century progressed. Local authorities discouraged it, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents wanted it stopped (but not mountaineering, | ||
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| Also, British water bodies are generally less polluted than they were 50 years ago, as manufacturing industries have been exported to the Far East. Whatever that means for the global environment or our economy, it means cleaner rivers, lakes and coastal seas in the UK, which is one of the reasons that wild swimming is taking off again - although agricultural runoff and sewage discharges are a problem, so it's best to [check the state of water bodies](https:// | Also, British water bodies are generally less polluted than they were 50 years ago, as manufacturing industries have been exported to the Far East. Whatever that means for the global environment or our economy, it means cleaner rivers, lakes and coastal seas in the UK, which is one of the reasons that wild swimming is taking off again - although agricultural runoff and sewage discharges are a problem, so it's best to [check the state of water bodies](https:// | ||
| - | . | - It's free - you don't even need to buy any kit (unless you want to get a wetsuit for cold weather swimming). | ||
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| ## What can I do? | ## What can I do? | ||
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| - However, there won't be life guards, and you may not be aware of hazards. Wild swimming is not completely risk-free, just like mountain climbing, canoeing or mountain biking. All you can do is try to understand the risks and not be reckless. | - However, there won't be life guards, and you may not be aware of hazards. Wild swimming is not completely risk-free, just like mountain climbing, canoeing or mountain biking. All you can do is try to understand the risks and not be reckless. | ||
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| - You may want to get a wet suit, as it keeps you warmer, which means you can stay in the water longer in cold weather, and it's safer as it makes you more buoyant. | - You may want to get a wet suit, as it keeps you warmer, which means you can stay in the water longer in cold weather, and it's safer as it makes you more buoyant. | ||
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| - [More safety advice](https:// | - [More safety advice](https:// | ||
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| **Legalities** | **Legalities** | ||
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| In Scotland it's clear - you can swim anywhere. In England and Wales, it's much less clear, but it's certainly not illegal to swim in most open water. | In Scotland it's clear - you can swim anywhere. In England and Wales, it's much less clear, but it's certainly not illegal to swim in most open water. | ||
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| Landowners next to watercourses own some of the bed, and angling clubs own fishing rights - but no-one owns the water, and that's all you're touching, apart from getting in and out. So check that there' | Landowners next to watercourses own some of the bed, and angling clubs own fishing rights - but no-one owns the water, and that's all you're touching, apart from getting in and out. So check that there' | ||
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| - Just do it - it's not cold once you're in, and when you get out you feel tingly and warm all over. | - Just do it - it's not cold once you're in, and when you get out you feel tingly and warm all over. | ||
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| - Most of us have had a dip in the sea in summer, but if you've never swum in a lake or river before, it may feel weird at first - there might be mud squelching between your toes, water weeds brushing your legs, a duck floating past; but you'll get used to it. | - Most of us have had a dip in the sea in summer, but if you've never swum in a lake or river before, it may feel weird at first - there might be mud squelching between your toes, water weeds brushing your legs, a duck floating past; but you'll get used to it. | ||
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| Join the [Outdoor Swimming Society](http:// | Join the [Outdoor Swimming Society](http:// | ||
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| You can help wild swimmers even if you don't do it yourself, by: | You can help wild swimmers even if you don't do it yourself, by: | ||
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| - Not using garden chemicals either, as they will be washed into groundwater and eventually into watercourses. | - Not using garden chemicals either, as they will be washed into groundwater and eventually into watercourses. | ||
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