Swimming with Nessie. - Rated 
I took this book on my 4 month jaunt around the Highlands and Islands of Scotland this spring/summer and although I couldn't get to all the wild spots I would have liked I did a couple combined with some rather lovely sea swimming. (Although I wouldn't recommend staying in the water too long at Holy Isle across the shore from Arran in April, nearly gave myself hypothermia but worth it!)
Not having a car was a bit of a restriction as to where I could get to however I did manage Loch Ness, although not from the spot suggested in the book which was on the busy A80 Inverness to Fort no, I chose to take my dip from the much more secluded east shore and I have to say it was the most SPECTACULAR swim of my life thus far! I swam at the north end near Dores so had amazing views right down the stretch of the loch embanked by mountains. Glorious.
My second dip came at Randolphs Leap near Forres, a fast flowing river filled with salmon. Make sure you're a strong swimmer for this one and the climb down to the water wasn't too easy either but another excellent swim.
Shame I couldn't reach the Faerie pools of Skye without a car but a swim at the point of Sleat made up for that when I thought I was in the Maldives!
Buy the book to experience what swimming should be like.
Inspirational! - Rated
Wild (River) Swimming is a wonderful book. It's not just a map of good places to swim, picnic, defy Health and Safety with your grandchildren, it's a compendium for cool outdoor living during a hot British summer. It simply makes you lust for anticyclones and rapid changes of the climate in an upward direction! It's why we need global warming.
Seriously, many of the locations are severely chilly but as the book so rightly says, once you have immersed and removed yourself to a sunny rock or stream bank, the urge is on to get back in and swim and splash around. Apparently it's all in something called an endorphin and we can all enjoy them!
Our first forays have been to Exmoor and what delights awaited us. We thought we might have been whisked away to another time and place at Cloud Hill and the "secret" pool upstream will be remembered for years to come.
The only equipment needed for wild swimming is a pack towel and an (optional in some places) swimsuit. But water sandals are a definite luxury (Keens or Tevas are recommended) when the stream or lake bed is stony.
Bravo, Daniel, a great guide!
Excellent book! - Rated
I bought this book for a friend's birthday, she's going to love it! Its full of great pictures and easy to follow directions to the more elusive swimming spots. I'd recommend it to any outdoorsy person!
The art of taking a wilderness dip is far from lost - Rated
This is my first review but felt compelled to write a little something about this book. I bought this for a country wide, camping and adventure tour this summer and thought what better way to adventure than to dive into some of Britain's lakes, rivers and waterfalls, but the book far outweighed expectations.
The photos are superb and regularly have me daydreaming about shedding my clothes and worries and taking a refreshing plunge into the crystal waters. Directions on how to get to the water is also fantastic. One of my favourite features of the book is the sectioning off of swimming locations under headings, such as 'great for paddling','literary swims' or 'skinny-dipping'. The book will tell you the spots that are good for taking a picnic or bikes to and can really help in dreaming up little adventures. Not only a great guide book but also has information on how to build a riverside sauna or on building a raft for setting sail. Some of the history behind some of the swimming spots is also interesting. Great book, and a great buy for lovers of the great outdoors
Wild Swimming - Rated
There are very many things that I love about this book. So far I've had it a very short time and have already had an incredibly therapeutic swim, about 10 miles from where I have lived for over 20 years, which I had no idea was there. It was the most beautiful spot and the pub recommended in the book was such a find, being friendly, serving good beer and food, having a gorgeous wildflower garden and being over a thousand years old.
Having this book means I am much more likely to get out and swim in beautiful places, and not just paddle, worried about currents, debris and pond weed. So all those good intentions are finally coming good and I can entice friends along too. It's definitely going to be the basis of many UK holidays to come.
I'm also impressed that the directions are so concise yet so clear and straightforward to follow - rare for a guide book.
I can't recommend this book enough.
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