Venturing upstream.
I ventured upstream today. Not by much, but there were a few teenagers hanging around where I usually enter the river. So I got in higher up. I've got in there before, and it's a beautiful place to swim. A bit like having my own pool. One of the rules of wild swimming is always find a safe place to enter and exit the water. It's quite an important one from a safety perspective. I'd swum there before so I knew I was ok. Or so I thought. The problem was that I'd swum there last in the middle of a hot spell. We've had a lot of rain since then. The water level was higher, so the exit was deeper. It wasn't quite as easy to get out as I remembered. Now don't start fearing for my safety. Mum, I'm looking at you... I still got out fairly easily. The bank was a bit more slippy than previously. It was more of a scramble than a dignified exit, and mud was involved. So my thoughts today are, don't assume that the old, familiar ways are the best, or the ...