Cold Water Swimming Scotland

09/09/2023

Bring it back

It has been hot, way too hot for lovers of the cold. But soon the cold will be returning to our loch and we will swim in our icy element again. The mornings are getting more hushed and atmospheric. Soon, we will be doing the morning swims with lamps on the shore and lights on the tow floats. Suspended in the moonlit black water like swimming in the space between the stars. Thanks to Mandie and Dannie for this picture from yesterday morning. You are welcome to join us fellow aquanaut.

www.wildswimadventures.com

08/09/2023

Run, then Swim!

As part of the Lochwinnoch Feel Good Festival, Wild Swim Adventures is running two events this Sunday 10th September: the Family Fun Run at 10am, a one-mile out and back starting in the public park, and the Wild Swim Taster Session, picking up folk new to wild swimming in a minibus from the same park and taking them up to our local spot, guided and supervised by Patrick and I as RLSS Open Water Lifeguards. We have a good number of spaces in the running race and three last seats on the bus for the swim. You can book in online through the link below. Also OK so show up on the day but please do so 30 mins early so we can get your details and run the events on time. If swimming, bring swimsuit, towel, goggles, trainers you are happy to swim in, and warm clothes. Info and booking here:
https://www.wildswimadventures.com/feel-good-festival

08/09/2023

Lifeguarding is great, especially congratulating swimmers at the end of their epic effort but never moreso than when a good friend from your own open swim group appears unexpectedly! Here's our Jon from Barcraigs Open Swimming Group looking incredibly happy for the distance swum! At Go Swim Loch Lomond last Sat 2nd Sept 23. Thanks to Lomo Watersport for capturing the photo (and being our very own local producer of the best open water kit).

www.wildswimadventures.com

03/09/2023

Patrick and I had an amazing day lifeguarding Go Swim Loch Lomond on Sat 2nd October. Hugely impressive efforts from the swimmers, a great atmosphere of adventure and camaraderie, and everyone safely out of the water in a well-organised event. Plus, a rather beautiful setting for a sunny September day in Scotland!



www.wildswimadventures.com

28/08/2023

** Men's Fire, Ice & Feast, Wed 20th Sept 6-9pm, East Neuk, Fife **

Join expert foraging Chef, Jayson, from East Neuk Seaweed, and cold exposure coach, Drew, from Wild Swim Adventures for an evening of delicious food cooked by Jayson around the firepit where you will refuel and rewarm having safely taken a turn getting cold and calm in the ice bath coached by Drew.

Designed as ongoing monthly training for men who have completed the Foraging & Fortitude intro course but newcomers are also very welcome.

There is a chair with your name on it around the fire! Join us to get cold, get calm, get warm and get fed great food.

Click the image above to book on Eventbrite

Join Forager Jayson & Cold Water Swimmer Drew for a mens chill & grill night! Ice baths followed by fireside foraged gourmet feast.

15/08/2023

** Men's Fire, Ice & Feast, 30th August 6-9pm, East Neuk of Fife **

Join expert foraging Chef, Jayson, from East Neuk Seaweed, and cold exposure coach, Drew, from Wild Swim Adventures for an evening of delicious food cooked by Jayson around the firepit where you will refuel and rewarm having safely taken a turn getting cold and calm in the ice bath coached by Drew.

Designed as ongoing monthly training for men who have completed the Foraging & Fortitude intro course but newcomers are also very welcome.

There is a chair with your name on it around the fire! Join us to get cold, get calm, get warm and get fed great food.

Booking is at www.eastneukseaweed.co.uk. Click on the 'All Workshops' tab and choose 'Fire, Ice and Feast: 30th August'.

Get cold.
Get calm.
All about cold water swimming in Scotland.

12/08/2023

Join us on 19th August! Swim the highland rivers with us!

Group experiences like this epic day on the East coast below, beautifully filmed by Bill Bruce at Different Video are what we live for, what we specialise in as Qualified RLSS Lifeguards, and what we are running in a different format in a whole day swim adventure up to Glen Etive and Glen Falloch next Saturday 19th August. We have a few places left and booking will close next Tuesday so we can finalise the logistics. If you want to join, do not leave it until later in the week, do it now! Patrick and I cannot wait to meet you and swim out in the cold high water with you.

If this video resonates with you or people you love who might be interested please share it on your own feed widely, we want to meet them and open the door into the water with and for them.

Booking at:

https://www.wildswimadventures.com/projects-6



Bill Bruce & Different Video:
https://vimeo.com/differentvideo

12/08/2023

30/07/2023

*** Friday 4th Aug - Foraging & Fortitude ***

One-day workshop for men led by foraging and cold exposure experts will teach you everything you need to know to safely and sustainably collect a range of seaweed and cook it and access the health benefits of cold water swimming and cold immersion training at home. Participants must be able to swim but no other experience is required. Spaces are limited so book yours now through the eventbrite link below!

A masterclass in sustainable seaweed foraging and cold water exposure for men's physical health and mental well being.

29/07/2023

We will be running a wild swimming taster session in this years Lochwinnoch Feelgood Festival. The link below will take you to information on all the events being run (an amazing range this year) and how to book.

https://www.facebook.com/lochwinnochfeelgoodfestival

27/07/2023

*** Men's Fire & Ice - July ***

Places still available for the session this Sat 29th July 7pm. Enjoy the chat around the fire pit, including a short info session on cold water exposure before taking your turn in the 10 degree ice bath and rewarming around the fire. The info focus this time is on the mental health boost so commonly experienced by people doing cold water exposure. Booking is £5 to cover the cost of firewood, ice, drinks and snacks and you can book on the website below choosing the Men's Fire & Ice (Garden) option on the Groups page:

www.wildswimadventures.com

24/07/2023

ROLE OF A LIFEGUARD

Protect life
Alleviate suffering
Prevent things from getting worse
Promote recovery

Patrick and I love that role definition from the Royal Life Saving Society UK - RLSS UK which is why we just put ourselves through a 100 hour test of our partnership forged in the grip of cold Scottish water, now tested with 14 hours of driving and 3 days of training and assessments in Lifeguarding, CPR and intimidating timed deep water rescues from a lake in Cambridge with a very calm and fair RLSS assessor on the jetty (thanks Andy).

Deeply proud to say Patrick and I are now both qualified RLSS Open Water Lifeguards all the better placed to support the growing community of cold water enthusiasts around us, swimming without suits, encouraging each other, forging our friendships in the cold and the adventure of it all.

We are so grateful to you all for the energy that is building within the group. It inspires us to take next steps and do things like this. Now, don't any of you damn dare to require CPR! If you do we will not be on speaking terms in that moment, of course, and you will have to buy us a pint once speaking terms are resumed!

What you can be completely confident of is that, whatever happens, whatever the conditions, Patrick and I will come to your rescue if you need it. We love this group, we will always protect it : >

If you know us, and you have read this far, you will know exactly how important this qualification is for Patrick and I. We invested a lot of ourselves into it and both coming out as Lifeguards is catalytic for our plans. So, when you have a sec, we would be deeply grateful if you could make a comment, like the post and share it out to your communities of people who care about getting into the wild too and all the adventures it brings, especially the partnerships. What would we do without the partnerships?

FYI We could not find a RLSS Open Water LIfeguard course in Scotland. The nearest with dates we could do was run by Will Bews at the Boat Driving Hub near Cambridge and we cannot recommend his training course highly enough. You can reach Will here: info@theboatdrivinghub.co.uk

Bridget Peacock