To let my child swim in the great outdoors?

[MrsMeg]

So many tragic deaths this year in rivers and quarry's. it's so so bloody sad.

The advice from the authorities seems to be consistent with people being told to stay away. But I think this is wrong - human beings always have and always will be attracted to outdoor swimming - it's one of the most natural things in the world surely?

Instead of simply telling people not to do it, shouldn't we be educating people how to do it safely?

Would be interested to hear people's thoughts, particularly non-Brits.

Is outdoor swimming on the continent the norm? What about in Australia?

My son (14) has had an amazing summer swimming with his friends in the Thames (at Lechlade, not in London!)

It's not without risk and of COURSE I worry but am I being unreasonable letting him continue?

Any outdoor swimmers care to comment?

[SquinkiesRule]

*Live vests sound nice, but I mean Life vests.

[Fairyegg]

Lots of kids swim in the sea / lakes around here. Not the river though,it's to fast flowing. Swimming lessons are a must for my dc though, and will look into getting them taught basic first aid when older. It's a risk, and I'm very sorry for the people who have lost loved ones, but driving a car etc is a risk. We just have to minimise the risk as much as much as we can eg - life jackets, full supervision etc.

[Tailtwister]

I don't think it does anyone any harm to be reminded of the dangers. A friend of mine lost her brother to drowning, also in Loch Lomond and it was put down to a combination of alcohol and the temperature of the water.

That said, we swam there for years and my brother and I sailed alone for weeks at a time over the holidays when we were 15 and 10 respectively. We understood the dangers, but I suppose you can never account for accidents. Let's just say we had a few close calls our parents never heard about.

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

To quote Arthur Ransome in Swallows and Amazon's:

"Better drowned than duffers, if not duffers won't drown"

[Turniptwirl]

I was never allowed to do more than paddle as a child, which is sensible really as I've never been a strong swimmer. This summer a friend got me swimming in a local river, where I could touch the bottom almost all the time. Obv no jumping off bridges although she apparently used to as a child! I had a fab time!

Stupidity of a few unfortunately means the official advice will be stay away, but I think as long as those doing it know their limits and stick to them, and take sensible precautions then there's nothing wrong with it. Agree that life saving and first aid courses are a good idea.

[WestieMamma]

Where I live in Sweden lake swimming is safe because there is very little movement in the water and you'd have to go out a long, long way to get out of your depth. The river where you can swim is a slow flowing meandering one.

I used to live near the Thames which is fast flowing and very dangerous. Likewise the ever popular with youngsters local gravel pits which get very deep, very quickly and are difficult to get out of.

[dontgowadingin]

It's very dangerous.
I'm a swimming teacher and give water safety talks to schools. Even strong swimmers can find them selfs in difficulty if a strong currents takes them, it's happened to me.
Out door swimming is a fantastic experience if monitored properly by trained life guards. Being watched by parents just doesn't cut it I'm afraid, an untrained rescuer will more than likely put them self in danger .

Some parents are just so bloody stupid

[MrsMeg]

gee thanks dontgowadingin

Has it ever occurred to you that people are more likely to be killed in their cars on the way to your swimming lessons then they are partaking in outdoor swimming activities?

[MrsMeg]

And wild swimming is not 'very dangerous' what an utterly stupid thing to say!

[lborolass]

I wonder if that statistic is true this summer, MsMeg, there have been so many deaths in open water in the last (say) 3 weeks that over that period I'd be fairly sure that driving has actually been a safer activity.

[SoldAtAuction]

I am Canadian, and have been swimming in lakes and rivers my whole life. Now I swim in the ocean as well, as do the kids. It feel odd to swim in pools, although I love how warm they are, they do feel very chemical-ish

[weblette]

Depends where you do your 'wild swimming' MrsMeg. The places people tend to drown in the UK such as reservoirs and flooded quarries, are not safe places to swim. Why else do you think the owners are dyeing the water to stop people using them?

So many of the deaths involve underwater roots and obstacles. You want to take the chance, fine.

My three older children, ages 13, 11 and 9 can all do bi-lateral front crawl, it has nothing to do with where they're taught and the UK being a risk-averse society, we just don't fancy our children drowning. My uncle did, age 12, swimming in a 'wild' place and he was a good swimmer.

[holidaybug]

I'd be too concerned about the hidden dangers of currents. Strong swimmers can be swept away by currents, rip tides etc.

[badguider]

I'm pretty sure there's an outdoor swimming society or association that campaign for safety advice and recommend spots for swimming - try googling.

I agree with the op and think pool swimming is like only ever running on an athletics track or cycling a stationary bike.
Our local tri club runs open water swim sessions if you want something a bit organised?

[MrsMeg]

No one wants their child to drown, do they?

Just as I'm sure the parents of the 3 teens who all died in separate car accidents in our county in the last few months (all three known to my own children through work/college etc) wanted their sons or daughters to die within months of passing their driving tests.

I just don't understand the attitude to outdoor swimming in the UK, I agree that some of these tragic deaths could probably have been avoided but isn't it time that we tried to equip people with the knowledge to swim safely. Assess the risk? Rather than just label them as stupid?

[Theas18]

Is it not about risk assessing as every activity?

We have swum abroad in without lifeguards etc eg in French rivers and lakes. However we don't swim unless others are too - and preferably locals.

Steep sided quarries and reservoirs are clearly not safe.

Tides I agree are much harder to read. Even now I don't think I'd let the kids swim in the sea without a parent. Not that I kid myself we could rescue thrm if they were in trouble - but that we, as adults,could read hazards a bit better

[Taz1212]

I grew up in the US and took all my swimming lessons in a lake- there were no local swimming pools so this was how all the kids learned how to swim. Nothing quite like waking up at 7:00 AM shivering on the beach doing warm ups then having little fish nibble at your ankles when you waded in!

We also swam in the ocean in Maine every summer. Good sized waves, freezing cold water and a fairly strong current. Fantastic!

[MamaMary]

I have swum in the sea my whole life and continue to do so every summer, from June to September regardless of whether it's a warm summer or not.

I learned to swim (in a swimming pool) aged 4 and swimming has been one of my greatest pleasures in life, particularly sea-swimming.

I actually agree that it is very dangerous, but if you are a strong, confident swimmer and act sensibly then you can greatly reduce the risks. For instance, around the coast near where I live, I know which beaches are safer to swim from and which ones to avoid completely due to currents, whirl pools, and undulating ground beneath. I also swim off rocks, but only when the sea is calm enough.

One of the worst things parents can do is give their children inflatables in the sea. Many drownings are due to children or even adults being carried out to sea on inflatables and not able to get back to shore. Don't even use arm bands. I was always taught to test my depth by putting my feet down and to not swim out of my depth.

I have swum in lakes in France and Germany but lakes are so-so: not as magical as the sea IMO.

[sydlexic]

A teenager died here, if you look across the water you calculate that it is well within your capabilities to swim that far, but the deep water is very cold it's numbs you and restricts breathing.

[weblette]

You can be as strong a swimmer as you like but so many of the open water places in the UK are man made and have hazards under the surface which can't be seen or they're very deep bodies of water with low temperatures.

Educating people about who to use them safely is pointless as they're just not safe to swim in.

Yes a lovely swim across a natural lake with sloping sides or a river with varying depths can be amazing, you're just missing the point about where these accidents are happening.

[weblette]

how not who

[LadyBigtoes]

I love it - though I only swim outdoors within my depth, and ideally when I can see the bottom - in shallow rivers and the sea. I'm very cautious with my DC as they can't swim atm and DS at 8 is showing no signs of being able to, though we are trying.

I think people are very under-informed about the signs of drowning and also what water can do when it's cold, flowing fast, deep or opaque. I only learnt about what drowning can look like - the person going quiet and helpless, not thrashing about - on here very recently.

And people generally don't tend to think of water as powerful. Water is very heavy and if it's moving fast it can knock you down and pull you away easily, even if it's shallow. Currents can pull you under the surface in a way that is invisible to people nearby once you've under. Jumping or diving into water you don't know well is obviously daft but loads of people do it.

Aside from the issue of people swimming in the summer, I'm always horrified when there are big floods and there's always footage of people larking about in floodwater or letting small children paddle right at the edge of a raging torrent, and they're always presented as harmless fun. Floods are extra dangerous as they are unpredictable.

More generally, why don't we get public information ads and warnings like we used to? They did work - we all still remember them. Even when it's on the news, they rarely get someone knowledgeable in to just explain the dangers and tell you explicitly what is and isn't safe. Instead you just get all this opinion and handwringing.

[LadyBigtoes]

I'm a strong swimmer but I wouldn't swim across a river I was in recently - I stayed close to the edge. Because I'd never been there before, couldn't see how deep it was and if it got deep and cold in the middle or had undercurrents. To me, that felt like a natural instinct to avoid the unknown, as well as being sensible. But then drinking and not wanting to look chicken probably make a lot of people do things they wouldn't do otherwise.

[Bunbaker]

"Has it ever occurred to you that people are more likely to be killed in their cars on the way to your swimming lessons then they are partaking in outdoor swimming activities?"

Why so antagonistic? Statistically more people are killed on the roads because more people drive than go wild swimming. It would be interesting to see what the pro rata deaths are.

"And wild swimming is not 'very dangerous' what an utterly stupid thing to say!"

Really!!

I have swum in lakes and the sea, but I would never swim in a river unless I knew it was safe. The problem we have round here is that there are loads of reservoirs and they are extremely dangerous places to swim in, yet every year when we have a heatwave people die from trying to swim in one.

[edwinbear]

I scuba dive and have, on occasion, found myself in stronger currents/colder water/worse visibility, (not relevant to swimming I know), than I had expected when I planned and started my dive. I have known currents to change direction during a dive. Sometimes it has been quite scary even when properly trained, equipped and with other suitably trained and equipped buddies, whilst being followed by a dive boat. Personally, I would never swim in open water I didn't know (without someone who knew it well) and neither would I allow my children to.