In Search of the Fairy Island

Some weeks ago, David and I took a day trip to Snowdonia. The choice of swim spot was decided rather late so I had to research the legends after the swim. We headed west towards Llyn y Dywarchen. In fact there are two Llyn y Dywarchen’s in Snowdonia. We visited the one near Llyn y Gader, where I had taken an Easter swim that April.

Llyn y Dywarchen has it’s very own little parking bay directly outside a gate that leads to a boat house. The lake is leased by the Angler’s Society, which made my heart sink a little, but on arrival, the llyn was deserted.

We followed a path towards the south side of the llyn, from where I took my swim. The water had chilled to 13°c and the breeze was fresh. It was nice to see the changing of the light on the mountains all around and the colours come to life.

On coming home and preparing the video for YouTube, I researched several legends around the llyn. Much like Llyn Cwellyn, fairies featured heavily.

One tale was of a shepherd coming upon a group of fairies, falling in love with one of them and then having to guess her name to marry her. Once married she was bound by a curse never to be touched by iron, and during one mishap, she touched an iron object and vanished back to the fairy realm.

However, there was one truth about the llyn and that it once had a floating island. In 1698 astronomer Edmund Halley, (of Halley’s comet fame), swam to the island and said the island was a floating piece of turf that had detached from the shore. Others believed the floating island was fairy made. So the banished fairy could still see her husband, the floating island was made so she could float on the llyn while her husband was on shore, from there they conversed. When the winds blew the island to shore, you could see the lovers kiss.

The island is no longer, but tales of the fairy folk remain.

Do you believe in fairies?

Christine x

1001 Outdoor Swimming Tips

A few weeks ago I was contacted by Vertebrae Publishing regarding publicising a new swimming book that was being published. I thought about it and decided to agree. They sent me a copy of Calum Maclean‘s book, 1001 Outdoor Swimming Tips.

After a week or so of planning, David and I headed towards North Wales to Llyn Cwmorthin a slate quarry we had previously visited in 2016. I had already sketched a rough plan of the video, we just needed lots of footage. The day was a mix of sunny spells and gusts. It remained dry and we got some great footage of the old quarry buildings and of the 14°C swim. The location was very busy with walkers and tours of the mines below. The swim wasn’t very secluded and there was a mean current that made swimming difficult. I was in the water for around 15 minutes and was tired after I got out.

Cwmorthin Slate Quarry, Blaenau Ffestiniog (slate capital of the world), was established in the early 1800’s, and was in operation until the late 1990’s, changing ownership on several occasions. Visiting today it’s like stepping back in time. A walk around the old ruins of terraced houses and chapels, feels like walking alongside ghosts. Indeed, during the late Victorian era, poor working conditions gave rise to the name locally as The Slaughterhouse due to 20+ deaths during a 20 year period. Once Cwmorthin was connected to Oakeley Quarry it became part of the largest slate mine in the world. 90,000+ tons of slate left the quarry between 1861 and 1876. The area today is marked with the signs of slate industry, huge scree mountains of broken slate dominates the land.

Have you visited a quarry?

Tempted to try wild swimming?

Thanks for reading,

Christine xx

A Year in Photos – 2021

I can’t quite believe it’s that time again, time to sit down and reflect on the past year. Though we have had far more freedoms than 2020, sadly Covid-19 is still hanging around and affecting daily life, be that buses not running, Asda delivery being three hours late to appointments being rescheduled. In some ways 2021 has been far more stressful than 2020, with concerns over David’s health. However, we have both tried to use our time together wisely. Like anyone’s year, we have had some ups and downs, from pet finches passing away to our boiler breaking, laughing during family games nights and silly fun during the summer in our £3 paddle pool. Below, find 12 pictures from my 2021.

January:

Our 2021 got off to a great start. Just before lockdown three was announced, David and I took a trip to Formby Beach with Riley and blew away the new year cobwebs!

riley-at-the-beach

February:

February was a slow month. Though I didn’t actively participate in Country Walking’s #walk1000miles this year, I did take daily walks. On a cold February day, I dragged a less enthused David and a more excitable Riley to our local park, Sefton to feed the coots and gulls.

feeding birds 2

March:

Though the UK was still in lockdown during March, Liverpool hosted River of Light, a trail of 11 illuminated art works dotted along the waterfront. David and I, with Riley took in some of the sculptures.

absorbed-by-light

April:

To our sadness our boiler decided to give up the ghost and broke in April. It beeped at us scarily, so we switched it off and hunted for a new one. We had had this boiler since we bought the house in 2012 and it had been used by its previous owners, so it was time for an overhaul. It took us three weeks to decided on a new replacement but ‘touch wood’ everything has been working smoothly since it’s installation.

new-boiler

May:

Eager to restart my cold water swimming season, come the Spring Bank Holiday, David and I took a two hour drive to Snowdonia, for my first swim at Llyn Gwynant!

llyn gwynant

June:

Though June is undoubtedly all about The Wildlife Trusts’ 30 Days Wild, June for me was a very traumatic month. Five years on from helping Hoppy the pigeon, and seeing her regularly since then, we took her in a second time after noticing she had become sluggish and was having difficulty flying. We fought for two long weeks to treat Hoppy but sadly we couldn’t save her, and she quietly passed away 😥 I shed many tears for this beautiful soul. She is now resting under the honeysuckle in our yarden.

hoppy and harri

July:

I revisited the Anglican Cathedral’s art instillation of thousands of Peace Doves. Each dove had a message of love or remembrance written on it. Many of the art exhibits I’ve visited this year have had light central to their displays. From the dark days of 2020 to an emergence of light in 2021?

Peace Doves

August:

August is David’s birth month and we spent his birthday walking along the paths of RSPB Leighton Moss. We never saw the bearded tits but we did have a nice walk in nature and David tried out his new telephoto lens.

david

September:

During the Covid restrictions of 2020, I had to cancel my much awaited trip to the Trossachs. Luckily, we managed to book for 2021 and in hindsight we had much better weather! I took in over 10 swims and we watched some beautiful sunsets from the loch-side cabin. It was perfect!

sunset

October:

October is my birthday month and since it’s around Halloween, I’ve always loved this time of year. For my obligatory birthday swim, I took in the tremendously inspiring Snowdon Massif from the cold waters of Llynnay Mymbyr.

Birthday swim at Llynnau Mymbyr

November:

David and I managed to get in another short break before the end of the year, and spent a few days in the Lake District. As the weather wasn’t great on our journey north, we took in a visit to Safari Zoo and saw one of my favourite animals, the red panda!

Red Panda

December:

For the past few years I have tried to do a Christmas swim but been unable to make plans. Thankfully, this year I managed to get to a very cold, misty but beautiful Bassenthwaite Lake and have my first swim in December. It was baltic!

Christmas swim at Bassenthwaite

So that was a snapshot of my year, how has your 2021 been?

I wish you all good health and happiness for the new year ahead!

Thanks for your continued support,

Christine xx

Birthday Swim 2021 – Llynnau Mymbyr

For the past couple of years (excluding 2020), it has been a tradition of mine to have a cold water swim on my birthday! This year was no exception. Having tried to swim in Llynnau Mymbyr a couple of times this year, it was the obvious destination. David and I awoke early and drove two hours towards the village of Capel Curig. We arrived at 9am and unlike the last time we visited, when there was a triathlon on, the area was quiet and subdued. We found roadside parking overlooking the two llyns (llynnau) and donned our new walking boots and heavy rucksacks.

A short path snakes along the south side which we followed looking for lakeside access. The walk was pleasant through a conifer forest, where sheep grazed and coal tits flew among the boughs. We had to course over swollen streams and pools of mud. We walked to the end of the path where a barbed fence blocked our way, so we had to retrace our steps and look for a path through sphagnum moss and fallen trees for lake access.

We finally got to the lakeside. The water levels were high and most of the beach was submersed. We quickly made camp as there was a cool wind blowing and I got dressed into my swimming paraphernalia. David had gifted me a new GoPro to replace Wilson, so I strapped him to my chest and slowly waded in.

The last time I was in water was in September and swimming in October I found the temperature had cooled to single figures. Due to the water levels being so high I plunged into the water, waist high and decided to just go for it and swim! So I did, and boy did I gasp aloud! The cold of the water took my breath away but in my head I just kept saying, ‘keep swimming!’ The water made my skin tingle and it was an effort to move my limbs but I soon got used to the chill and swam for about 10 minutes. The views from the water were spectacular, the Snowdon Massif was lit in golden autumn light and I was mesmerised. I wish I could have stayed in the water longer but that would have been foolish. As I was climbing out of the water I spotted a flash of blue and a kingfisher bobbed past. Glorious!

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  swim Llynnau Mymbyr

I got dry on land using my new OS towel map of Snowdonia. It was soft to the touch and made me feel warm and dry. I had a quick hot coffee when I was dressed to warm up my core.

It was a blissful birthday swim and I was so lucky to have been able to experience it with David who stood on the shore and took video for our YouTube channel. I look forward to using my new GoPro on the next swim/walk adventure, especially with the superior video quality.

Have you visited Llynnau Mymbyr? I couldn’t find any Welsh myths regarding this lake but that doesn’t mean there isn’t any.

Thanks for reading,

Christine xx

My October

My birthday month hasn’t been so kind to me this year. It’s been a month of severe stresses and worries and not much fun in between. David has had many trips to the hospital this month, after his pneumonia diagnosis during the summer. We all feared the worst but after a PET scan, we finally got some good news that it wasn’t the disease we all dreaded. However, the specialist doesn’t really know what is wrong with David’s lung and there will be another scan in three months time. Fingers crossed all will be well.

The beginning of October, saw David and I take a visit to the annual Apple Festival at Gorse Hill Nature Reserve. However, this years festival wasn’t as good as previous years and the selection of apples was limited. We did come away with some sunset and ellison orange but even the apples weren’t at their best this year.

Our aviary lost yet another resident, the lady gouldian finch, Nero. Nero suffered from neurological issues and had become paralysed down one side. He did manage heroically but in the end he passed away. Fly free little one.

• 

During an early morning start at work, I witnessed a wonderful autumn sunrise with mist enshrouded fields. It was a beautiful beginning to a day.

We had another success with our pigeon rehabilitation. Mocha came to us with a runny tummy and breathing issues. We treated for coccidiosis, a parasite that affects the digestive system. We saw an improvement after two days of giving the medication and then Mocha stayed with us for a further five days when we treated for canker, and kept her warm. Her respiratory difficulties eased and we released her back to the wild, but not before giving her a white leg ring, so we can keep track of who we have helped. Soon our yarden visitors will all have leg bracelets on. 🙂

In October, we finished watching all 10 series of Stargate, which we thoroughly enjoyed! We also watched the controversial Squid Game, which was both horrific and sad in equal measure and we have just finished the second series of the supernatural Locke and Key. Do you have any recommendations on what to watch next?

It’s that time of year again when sparrowhawk visits increase. One Saturday we were visited by a male sparrowhawk who stayed around the area for over half an hour. He managed to get a meal a few days later.

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  sparrowhawk

At the end of October we made a quick visit to Liverpool’s City Centre to see the River of Light Festival. We visited the light festival in March, but I though this October’s selection of lights were better than in March!

David’s family had a get together for Halloween. Some of us dressed up. I went as a Jaffa from Stargate. I wanted to go as Teal’c but the bald wig I bought didn’t cover my hair so I had to go as a makeshift Jaffa instead. Did you do anything fun for Halloween?

For the past couple of years I’ve celebrated my birthday with a cold water swim! This year, since The Lake District was underwater with streams that were once paths, I decided to choose Snowdonia as the place to celebrate. Llynnau Mymbyr was the llyn I chose and it was such a wonderful birthday swim with the Snowdon massif looking glorious in rich autumn sunshine. I dried off with my new towel, the ordinance survey map of Snowdonia.

That was my October, how was yours? Do you like this time of year with the crisp mornings and golden trees or like me, just want to hibernate?

Thanks for reading,

Christine xx

Here Lies Excalibur!

Llyn Ogwen wasn’t the first choice for a swim on our most recent trip to Wales. I had planned on swimming in Llynnau Mymbyr but on the day, as we drove passed Llynnau Mymbyr there were lots of people about on bikes and in the llyn itself there were canoes and large pink inflatable buoys! I later found out that there was a snowman triathlon happening at Capel Curig, of which there were 750m of open water swimming, 31km of road cycling and 6.1km multi terrain running. I didn’t really want to be swimming with a load of other swimmers and dodging large inflatable buoys, so we quickly ditched the day’s plan and headed to another llyn I had yet to swim in. We headed for Llyn Ogwen, a llyn I had visited on multiple occasions, most notable in 2017 when we walked all around it’s rugged footpath but had not graced it’s waters.

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  Llyn Ogwen

Just like many places in Snowdonia, Llyn Ogwen has ties with the mythology of King Arthur. Llyn Ogwen is presumed to be the llyn where Sir Bedivere cast Excalibur into after Arthur’s death. Indeed in 2017 a team of NT rangers noticed something buried in mud during work maintaining the paths. After excavation it was found to be that of a sword, dating from the 6th Century, coinciding with the time of King Arthur!

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  llyn ogwen swim

After dodging a stream of triathlon bikes, we arrived at parking near Llyn Ogwen at a very reasonable £3 for four hours and then made the short journey across the road to the rocky shore of the llyn. The July heatwave had dissipated and the water was fresh and cold. Since David had been struggling with a chest infection for weeks, it was only a quick swim. Indeed the whole adventure to Wales was short and sweet, but I aim to get back to swim in Llynnau Mymbyr sooner, rather than later.

Have you visited Llyn Ogwen or the surrounding area?

Thanks for reading,

Christine xx

Spread the Word Not the Weed

This Spring Bank Holiday, an adventure happened!

It had been eight months since I was in the water and was ecstatic when David suggested a day out on the recent bank holiday. ‘Yes please’! I said. I was desperate for an adventure and feeling very stuck in a rut due to Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions. I never thought I would leave the city again!

David and I quickly slipped back into adventure mode. We got up at 6am, a beautiful day was already awaiting us. We drove two hours to Snowdonia, Wales. I was fearful that we wouldn’t get parking as I assumed (and rightly so) that lots of people would flock towards Wales due to the holiday and the lovely weather. Thankfully, all went to plan. It was like the days of old when David and I headed, carefree to the countryside to swim, walk or explore.

I had already decided, weeks in advance where I wanted my first wild swim of 2021 to be. Last March, before lockdown One, David and I had taken a similar trip to Snowdonia in the hope of starting off my wild swim season of 2020, however on the day the weather was against me and I had to make do with sightseeing and photographing these beauty spots.

I’d first visited the shores of Llyn Gwynant in 2016 and since then I had been eager to swim there. It’s taken me almost five years for that wish to become a reality.

I must admit I had butterflies in my tummy on pulling up alongside the llyn. I hadn’t swam in such a long time and worried I wouldn’t be able to cope with the temperatures or the audience. Thankfully, I clenched my teeth and said, ‘let’s do this!’ I wished in 2020 that I had taken the opportunity to swim in this beautiful place before travel to Wales was restricted, I wasn’t going to let it slip through my fingers again. With the mournful call of a cuckoo singing from the hills, David and I sauntered towards the shoreline where two tents had been put up illegally. I wasn’t going to let them deter me, so I quickly made camp and got my swim paraphernalia ready.

The entrance to the llyn was relatively easy, no clambering over rocks thankfully. I just waded in slowly, getting used to the cool waters. I was waist deep in water when I decided to push out and commit to the swim. I was in the water for around 15 minutes. I couldn’t tell the temperature as Terence my thermometer broke in 2019 and the replacement I ordered never arrived. 😦 I surmised around 14 degrees. The water was crystal clear and little minnows jumped for joy in the shallows. I would have jumped for joy too if there wasn’t so many tourists around! I swam about, admiring the elephant rock where intrepid divers jump from. I didn’t stray too far from the shore as I was out of practice and fitness. I enjoyed my time at Llyn Gwynant and so glad I managed to get to swim there, eventually!

Llyn Padarn was another llyn I had visited several times over the years and had not been able to capitalise upon. However the swim at Padarn was a very different experience to that of Gwynant.

A campaign was launched a few years ago by the Outdoor Swimming Society to remind swimmers to ‘spread the word not the weed.’ Swimmers were asked to be diligent in the cleaning of their equipment and clothes when going on swims, as small pieces of vegetation could hitch a ride into more cleaner waters and contaminate them. One such weed, New Zealand pygmyweed has been a scourge in the Lake District. This non native, invasive plant outgrows native aquatic plants and also depletes the oxygen levels in the water causing wildlife to die. The advice regarding #spreadthewordnottheweed is that if you are planning to do more than one swim, then to swim in the order of cleanest waters first and to make sure that all equipment is washed and dried for the next swim. These simple measures can help in the control of the spread of invasive organisms.

With this in mind we headed towards Llyn Padarn which at 11am on a sunny bank holiday was already teaming with holidaymakers and day trippers. I had never seen so many people enjoying the water. There were swimmers, paddle-boarders and canoeists. With the same determined mindset as Gwynant we headed towards the pier and waited for a quiet moment to enter the water. While I got prepared and dressed into a new swimsuit, David took pictures of cute cygnets.

The swim at Padarn reminded me of Coniston. It wasn’t the most enjoyable swim and when I noticed the murky, brown hue of the water I knew this was dirtier than Gwynant. Indeed the water had a very discernible pond aroma. Not very pleasant to tell the truth. I swam about for another 15 minutes but I was glad when I managed to scramble out from the pier. I was able to tick this llyn off my Snowdonia wild swim map but I doubt I’ll be returning.

It may have seemed that the day ended on a down but in reality I was buoyant with being back in the water after such a long time. I hope that it won’t be too long before I am in the water again – and until then…

Thanks for reading,

Christine xx

My May

May 2021 has been another rather uneventful month. The weather has been horrendous, cold and wet for most, and the warm weather we have hoped for has been very sporadic.

It was our houseiversary last week. 9 years of having the keys to our lovely home! I still remember the moment I got the call to come and collect the keys to the house on the 25th. It was a hot, sunny May day in 2012. 2012 had been quite a year for me! David picked me up from my then work at the University of Liverpool before heading down to the Dock Road to collect the keys. We got home and opened the front door and stood in shock. ‘What do we do now!’ we thought. Buying a home can sometimes be rather anticlimactic but then a further year and a half of demolishing walls, an outhouse, getting a new roof and exterior doors is hard work! However it is all worth it in the end when you come home after a hard days work to your loved ones and fur/feather babies. I love my home and the life I have made with David! Long may it continue!

Last year before Covid struck and lockdowns were galore, Peter Walker’s Peace Doves were planned to be installed at Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral. I was excited to see this beautiful art installation of thousands of paper doves with messages of hope and love written on them, suspended from the vaulted ceiling. Then the exhibition was cancelled due to Covid. However there is light at the end of the tunnel. The night doesn’t last forever! This May it was announced that the Peace Doves were once again coming to Liverpool. One negative of Covid’s social distancing is that it has taken away all the spontaneity out of life, one now has to book before going anywhere. Gone were the days when you just woke up and felt like going the zoo. You now have to plan/book days in advance! Anyway, (rant over) I did mange to book tickets to see these Peace Doves. The installation was beautiful and quite moving.

The book I am reading this month, (or trying to read) is Davie Goulson’s The Garden Jungle: or Gardening to Save the Planet.

Which ties in nicely with the plants I have bought for the yarden. There were a few casualties during winter so I managed to purchase another salvia and forget-me-not plant to add to my spring flowering plants.

David and I have been watching a few films this month, most notably my favourite trilogy (save for The Lord of the Rings), How to Train your Dragon! I just love the friendship of Hiccup and Toothless. Who doesn’t love Toothless?

I have also caught up with the second season of ITV’s Innocent. The second series is based in Keswick with lovely panoramas of Derwentwater.

David managed to rescue three pigeons in one evening a few weekends ago. He captured and released one which had string around its feet and then quickly took in another two. One ailed sadly and passed away two days after but the second we managed to treat for canker and mites and she was so feisty that she had to be released and for the past few weeks now she has been visiting the yarden daily. It’s so nice to be able to help wildlife once in a while.

In the quite moments of life, I’ve been following an osprey webcam from the Dyfi Osprey Project. It’s quite stressful watching a wildlife cam, you invest so much emotion into it, however it’s been a privilege to follow the ups and downs of this osprey nest of Telyn and Idris as they raise their two young. Good luck to the two bobs!

Surprisingly, an adventure happened at the end of an uneventful May! The Spring Bank Holiday brought with it some lovely warm temperatures of over 23°C and David suggested we go on a day out. I had already decided where I wanted my first swim of 2021 to be and so on the 30th we were up at 6am on a beautiful clear, warm day and headed towards Snowdonia, Wales. We stopped off at two llyns during the day, Gwynant was my first swim of the year and Padarn the second!

May has been a quiet month, how’s your’s been?

Take care,

Christine x

#walk1000miles 2020

Welcome to my fourth and final #walk1000miles post!

2020 has been the fourth year I’ve participated in the initiative by Country Walking Magazine. For the past 12 months, I’ve been busy counting my miles daily and tallying my weekly totals. I’ve counted workouts on the cross-trainer, walks to work (they’ve not been many this year!), exercising the family dog, Riley and of course holidays and days out with David!

Though 2020 has been a challenging year in itself, my overall mileage for 2020 has been 1,495 miles, only five miles from the 1,500 milestone, but some 484 miles from 2019’s total. However, I’m pleased with my tally for 2020, what with lock-downs, not working for eight months and not going on many holidays, I’m amazed I walked as much as I did!

This year I’ve also been counting the miles Riley has walked with me. My daily Riley walks have kept me sane. His grand total for 2020 is: 792! Well done Riley!

As in previous posts, I’ve split the year into seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter, and give the miles for each of the three months. It will be good to see how different my mileage accumulates over the year and how it differs per season and against previous years totals.

So without further ado, let’s begin with my favourite season of all, spring!

Spring: (March, April and May)

Before the chaos that was Covid-19 and of people stock pilling the likes of toilet paper! David and I managed to go on a few day trips: the first to Grasmere, the Lake District, the second to Snowdonia, Wales. Then lock-down, part one was initiated and I was (eventually) furloughed. I made the most of the days off work and walked Riley every day.

Total miles for spring = 379. 2

Previous year totals: 2017 – 332, 2018 – 481, and 2019 – 495.

Summer: (June, July and August)

Thankfully lock-down was phased out and it felt like life was getting back to some semblance of how it used to be. The Wildlife Trusts’ 30 Days Wild eased David and I back out walking at local nature reserves and in July we took a day trip to the Lake District to tick off some wild swims. My swim tally this year has been abysmal! We took our one and only weekend break in August to the Lake District once again, and chose walks/lakes that I knew would be less crowded.

Total miles for summer = 384.5

Previous year totals: 2017 – 382, 2018 – 442 and 2019 – 461.

Autumn: (September, October and November)

Sadly there was talk on the wind of a second lock-down and the country was put into tiers which limited travel. David and I kept local, save for a perfect swim/walk to Buttermere with 500 miler (Proclaimer), Riley in tow. A cancelled birthday trip to Scotland was replaced with a laughter filled walk to Formby Beach.

Total miles for autumn = 348.1

Previous year totals: 2017 – 321, 2018 – 479 and 2019 – 457.

Winter: (December, January and February)

The beginning of 2020 was a bit slow adventure wise, a broken toe did little to aid walking. Daily Riley walks were the only highlight of this dark, damp season.

Total miles for winter = 383.2

Previous year totals: 2017 – 281, 2018 – 469  and 2019 – 566.

Grand Total for 2020 – 1,495 miles.

Previous years totals: 2017 – 1,316, 2018 – 1,871 and 2019 – 1,979.

Achieving #walk1000miles in a year is greatly satisfying and addictive, why not give the challenge a go yourself?

#walk1000miles also has a fun, supportive Facebook group. Through participation in this group my name was among the many others on the We Did 1000 Miles page of the January 2021 edition of Country walking Magazine.

I’ve not signed up to 2021’s challenge, however I am continuing my walking but just not counting my miles as religiously as I have in the past. Walking is such an easy, free activity, much underrated if you ask me. I will continue walking the miles I do and see how I go. How about you? Do you feel inspired to give the challenge a go?

If you fancy signing up, click the link below and join thousands more, walking that little bit more than they did last year!

https://www.walk1000miles.co.uk

Thanks for reading, Christine x

Overdue…

My last wild swim was in October 2019 when I swam in Glaslyn and Llyn Llydaw, below a foreboding Snowdon.

Glaslyn

Llyn Llydaw

I so wanted to extend my swim season but I never got to Coniston, The Lake District on New Years Day as planned!

As winter waned I tried paddling in Grasmere with Riley but secretly wished I had brought my swimsuit.

Riley at Grasmere

Trying to cling onto some vestige of normality during the madness surrounding Covid-19, David and I, took a day trip to Snowdonia, in the hope I would get in a swim. However on that March day, it was too windy to swim. I’ve found that wind is a swimmers’ bane. Well it’s mine at least! So I had to make do with pictures of Llyn Padarn and Llyn Gwynant. I aim to go back to these llyns by the end of the year!

Llyn Padarn

Llyn Gwynant

Then lockdown happened.

At first it was ok, I enjoyed going on daily walks with Riley but as the weeks progressed, I grew restless for adventure, and my desire to wild swim increased.

Riley playing with his buddie

Riley and David

Since lockdown has been relaxed I’ve made plans to head towards Coniston on several occasions. However the weather forecast hasn’t been favourable. High winds and squally weather isn’t the optimum for me, so I’ve waited and waited.

That was until Sunday 12th July 2020.

With favourable weather forecast, David and I got up readily at 6am to head towards our planned excursion of the day, Coniston Water. Suzanna Cruickshank’s book Swimming Wild in the Lake District, suggested Brown Howe car park had easy access to the water, so we headed there. We drove an uneventful two hours from Liverpool to Coniston. On arrival we were very lucky as we got the last remaining parking space at 9am!

In these strange Corona times, paying for parking has got more or less easier, (depends if you enjoyed using cash for parking). We paid via contactless but we still had to touch the keypad for plus, so many hours! There were however lots of antibacterial foam sprays around the car park and toilets for cleansing.

With parking paid for all day, at £5.50 we relaxed and gathered our gear. The walk to Coniston Water’s shoreline was just a five minute saunter, although at 9am the shoreline was busy, busy, busy, with families enjoying the water. There were people swimming, paddle boarding, hopping into canoes or just sitting in inflatables. It was all a little overwhelming actually! We are not used to so much people traffic! We walked a few paces before we found a suitable shingle beach, though it was occupied by a family. I was adamant to swim in Coniston Water, it’s the only large lake I’ve not swam in, so I decided to ask if we could join them. They were welcoming and we set up camp next to them.

I prefer my swims to be less cluttered with humanity but Coniston Water was awash with people that I really couldn’t avoid them. We did all respect each others space and social distancing was in evidence. There was not a cough or a sneeze to be heard and I quickly took to the water for a fifteen minute swim. My first of 2020! Finally, I’ve got into the water!

Coniston Water

The shallows around Brown Howe are not very deep and I never swam out of my comfort zone. Coniston Water will never be my favourite swim but I am grateful to be able to tick it off my swim map!

Once dry and changed into another swimsuit, David and I headed towards Beacon Tarn, which was an hours walk from Brown Howe. We puffed and panted on a not so very steep path through Blawith Common. Quarantine has effected our fitness. We are so out of condition! Have you felt that way too? Keeping us entertained on our walk were fritillary and skipper butterflies which bobbed about the ferns, too quick for me to take a picture though. It didn’t take long for the vista to open up, Dow Crag and Coniston Old Man to the west and Coniston Water to the east. It was so nice to be back in the fells!

David on the path

Pano of Old Man and Coniston Water

David on the path again

Beacon Tarn

On arrival at Beacon Tarn there were a few campers and naturists!! It was hard to avert our eyes! David found a wonderful spot for me to enter the water and we quickly made base. I faffed about getting ready with a mean wind from the south. The water was colder than Coniston but after getting into the water I soon warmed up and had a most peaceful swim. Though there were a few people about, it was much quieter than Coniston and we all respected the serenity of the area.

Beacon Tarn swim

Beacon Tarn swim

Beacon Tarn swim

From where I swam the shore shelved sharply and you got swimming quickly but visibility in the water was poor. I had a wonderful fifteen minutes swim with pipits bobbing over the water and azure damselflies zipping about the shoreline. The sun peaked out from behind a cloud every now and again which made getting dry much easier.

We picnicked while other people took to the waters before we made our way back towards Brown Howe car park.

I am so relieved to be back swimming. Have you missed doing an activity due to covid?

Thanks for reading,

Christine x