Wild swimming from the River Welland to the Straits of Gibraltar
Plunging into unfiltered water, heated by nothing more than Mother Nature herself might not seem the most appealing pastime in late winter.
However, to the rapidly-growing legion of wild swimming pilgrims, there is no greater pleasure on earth than taking a deep dive into our rivers and seas.
Wild swimming is among the fastest-growing forms of fitness in the country and has prospered particularly well in dark times.
The lockdown-enforced closure of pools has forced swimmers out into the open, searching for alternative venues to get their aquatic kicks.
Shayne Taylor, from Bourne, is one such devotee, and as the founding father of Lincolnshire Outdoor Swimming Tribe (LOST) is only too happy to spread the good word.
“I always have my swimming kit in the back of the car in case I drive past somewhere new that looks nice,” he said.
“Normally in winter I go out once a week or once a fortnight, but in summer it might be once or even twice a day."
It is touted as beneficial for a range of medical complaints from chronic fatigue, menopause, fibromyalgia and inflammation to anxiety and stress.
"If I've had a busy week, I come out of the water and feel reborn, revitalised and with a bizarre sense of calm," Shayne explained.
“It’s very different to the pool. You know there is a safety net and there’s also this awful reverberation of noise which you don't get in the river or sea.
“I won’t go into a swimming pool. I go to Bourne Lido, but I will be the first person there in the morning and out before people generally turn up."
LOST was formed two-and-a-half years ago, inspired by the interest Shayne attracted along the riverbank from intrigued passers-by.
But while he prefers the call of the wild to the carefully marshalled parameters of the pool, safe swimming and awareness of potential hazards is another reason behind the group's formation.
It adheres closely to the Outdoor Swimming Society’s guidelines and encourages care and caution as a priority among its members.
"We make sure members are safe and know the dangers," he added.
"I normally recce places to make sure there is easy access in and out - if you are exhausted from swimming you need to be able to get in and out easily."
The group has grown rapidly since last March and currently numbers 730 members.
“It is a whole community," Shayne said.
"From casual swimmers to sea swimmers and triathletes. It has a lovely demographic and is massively inclusive to women.
Leah Kolberg, 27, discovered the joys of wild swimming in the River Usk in Wales, and joined LOST after moving to Wittering.
As a part-time science teacher and mum of a 20-month-old, Leah does not underestimate the therapeutic benefits of a dip.
"Wild swimming has been a saviour over the past year," she said.
"Being a teacher whilst being in a pandemic has been so demanding, so getting out in the water is my chance to be me again.
"It resets me and refocuses my brain. Giving me a chance to take a break from my responsibilities.
"The mental health benefits of open water swimming are huge. It really does relax you being immersed in the outdoors."
While the latest lockdown and weather conditions have put a hold on her outdoor jaunts, she keeps in touch with the LOST network via social media..
"It's such a diverse sport, the amount of people I have met, both at locations and on social media is outstanding.
"It doesn’t matter where you are from, what background, we are all part of a collective, part of a family that share a love for the water."
Yet Shayne was not always irresistibly drawn to open water..
Despite growing up within a pebble’s throw of the Norfolk coast, it took a summer holiday in Majorca to set him on his current path,
“I was a reluctant swimmer as a child and was very wary of the sea,” he explained.
“When I was 11 we went on holiday, and one day my nan was looking after me.
“We were on a cliff about six or seven foot above the water and she asked me to come and look at some fish.
“As I did so she decided to kick me on the backside and launch me into the water. My nan was the greatest person in the world to me!
“That was the first day of our holiday and I never got out of the water in daylight hours - I was completely addicted.”
While Shayne, 45, has swum in climes as exotic as the Straits of Gibraltar, his usual haunts are the chillier waters of the Welland at Stamford and Tinwell.
And it requires some pretty extreme acclimitisation.
“Part of my training is to have a cold shower for three minutes - as cold as I can get it," he added.
"I also fill a green wheelie bin with the hose and put ice in it and then sit in it for 15 minutes."
Yet the chattering teeth and numb extremities are a small price to pay for an hour or two at his own personal Eden.
“There is a beautiful bit at Tinwell.
"There's a concrete shelf for about 20 metres going into a foot of water which then drops off to about 12 foot - it's like a natural very lovely plunge pool.
“It is an escape for me.
“When you immerse yourself in open water there are no other distractions - there is just you and this force of nature."
* For more details, visit the Lincolnshire Outdoor Swimming Tribe Fwcebook page and www.outdoorswimmingsociety.com
