Know the water before you get in
Plain guides to lakes, rivers and the sea, built on the checks swimmers have always made before getting in.
Guides, page 2
Lakes
Inlets and outlets: cold pockets and the pull
Where water enters a lake it can be colder. Where it leaves, it can pull. What to check for inlets and outlets, and how to swim around dams and spillways.
5 min read
Safety
Panic in the water: the breathing that gets you back
Why panic hits in open water, in-for-three, out-for-six breathing, and how turning onto your back to float gives you time to get your breath back.
5 min read
Lakes
Why big, deep lakes stay cold below the surface
A warm top layer can sit on cold water all summer. How lakes stratify, how to size up a lake, and what it means for your swim.
6 min read
Rivers
Weirs: why you never swim near one
What a weir is, how the current below one can hold a swimmer under, why it's so hard to judge from the bank, and why you should never swim near one.
5 min read
Sea
Rip currents: how to spot one and how to get out of one
What rip currents are, where they form, how to spot one from the beach, and the RNLI's advice on what to do if one takes you.
5 min read
Safety
Hypothermia: the signs in yourself and the person next to you
How hypothermia shows up in open water swimmers, why you keep cooling after you get out, how to warm up properly, and when to call 999.
5 min read
You & your kit
Eaten, hydrated, slept: the questions to ask yourself before a swim
When you last ate, drank and slept, and how stressed you feel: four quick questions before a swim, and what current guidance says about each.
5 min read
Sea · Start here
Safe sea swimming: the complete guide
Tides, rips, waves, lifeguards, getting in and out, cold water and who to call: the questions to ask before a sea swim.
9 min read
Rivers · Start here
Safe river swimming: the complete guide
Flow, rain, weirs, locks, tides and water quality: what to check before a UK river swim.
10 min read
Lakes · Start here
Safe lake swimming: the complete guide
What to check before a lake swim: getting in and out, depth and size, inlets and outlets, blue-green algae, permission, other users and the forecast.
10 min read
Safety
Cold water shock: what it is, and what to do in the first minute
What cold water does to your breathing and heart, why UK guidance draws the line at 15°C, how to float through the first minute, and how to get in gradually.
5 min read
You & your kit · Start here
Before you get in: the swimmer check
A one-minute check before every swim: how you're feeling, what you've packed, how you lay it out, and the rule over everything: if in doubt, get out.
8 min read
Read it here, check it there
Water temperature, tides, rainfall and the official bathing-water rating for 23,000+ spots.