Originally published in The Sunday Times Scotland, 24 September 2006 Outdoor swimming may be choppy, cold and sometimes scary, but once you get used to not being able to see the bottom it is intoxicating. And right now the sport …
Withington Baths, Manchester’s last chance to swim like an Edwardian I’m splashing around in dappled sunlight – it brings out the bottle green of the tiles. The roof’s steel rafters cast geometric shadows across the swimming pool’s water. Seven-year old …
Submersive revelation at Joyce’s swimming hole The salt swell lifted and fell. Close by a fishing boat trawled. In the misty distance, container ships churned towards port. Moments earlier, I had splashed off the granite outcrop known as The Forty …
Peterborough’s outdoor aqua centre is a Spanish-themed treat Early on a crisp April morning Peterborough Lido is a shimmering dream. Cool air notwithstanding, sunbeams light the water, mature trees provide backdrop, and a handful of senior swimmers beat up …
After the longest hot stretch in recent memory, I had expected a pulsating throng at Tooting Bec Lido. Instead, it was a surprisingly select gathering of refugees from the sweltering Smoke who assembled at the venerable south London oasis on …
Chill factor: Tooting Bec’s million gallon antidote to overheating Read more »
Reaching the riverbank in Grantchester, my instinct was to first test the water’s temperature. The grassy bank is nearly two feet above the lapping surface so I inched forward from a sitting position before fully committing. It wasn’t to be. …
Few are the major cities that afford outdoor swimming at their very centre. Geneva, by virtue of its site at the head of one of Western Europe’s largest lakes, has always been an exception. There are several points at which …
Bathing on a building site is an improbable antidote to June in the city. Nonetheless, the Kings Cross Pond Club provides an enchanting, if unusual, oasis as the mercury rises. This temporary installation in the midst of the vast goods-yard redevelopment …