The Wild West Swimmers
The Wild West Swimmers had fun and raised money for charity in their inaugural ten loch adventure. By Greg Hincks
On Saturday 2 September
2017, the Wild West
Swimmers, a group of
outdoor swimmers based
in the west of Scotland, held a “Ten
Lochs Challenge”. This inaugural event
involved participants swimming for
20 to 30 minutes in each of 10 lochs
in the heart of Rob Roy country in
the Trossachs region of the Scottish
Highlands. The lochs in order of
swimming were Loch Earn, Loch Voil,
Loch Lubnaig, Loch Venachar, Loch
Drunkie, Loch Achray, Loch Ard, Loch
Chon, Loch Katrine, and finally Loch
Lomond at Inversnaid.
SKINS OR WETSUITS
A total of 30 swimmers took part in the
event, which started with them hitting
the 13.8c water of Loch Earn
at 7am, before finishing
with a 6pm dip in Loch
Lomond, with some
swimmers adding
a paddle under the waterfall to
finish. The water
temperature in
the other lochs
varied from 15.1c
in Loch Lubnaig to
a mild 16.5c in Loch
Ard. Swimmers chose
to swim in either skins or
wetsuits, or a combination of
the two. A food break was scheduled
at Loch Lubnaig, and another longer
lunch break at Loch Ard.
10 X 10 CHALLENGE
Some of the group were attempting a
10 x 10 challenge by swimming one
kilometre in each loch, with a few
achieving this goal in wetsuits. Others
chose to pursue this additional goal in
skins, until the chilly water and long
day made the last few lochs that much
more difficult. Many were happy just
to take a swim in all 10 lochs over the
course of the day.
MIST RISING
The logistics were organised in
advance, with a tight schedule sent to
all swimmers who were encouraged to
carpool throughout the day. The total
distance travelled by car from Loch
Earn to Loch Lomond was around 60
miles, on top of the 100 miles return
trip from Glasgow. It must have been
an amazing sight for passing tourists
and hikers, to see 10 cars arrive at a
loch, producing 30 men and women
who immediately entered the water
and swam, only to leave again just as
quickly.
Weather conditions on the day
were ideal, with mist rising off the still
waters of Loch Earn at the
start, some fog in Loch Voil, and sunshine
breaking through
clouds at most of
the other lochs. We were also
lucky that the
wind did not
start blowing
until we arrived
at Loch Katrine,
making us very
aware that it was
early September in the
Highlands of Scotland. The air
temperature was 6c at Loch Earn when
we started, rising to a very pleasant 20c
by around 3pm at Loch Chon.
BEAMING SMILES
The day was long, but everyone who
took part agreed that the Ten Lochs
Challenge was a rewarding and fun
experience. It was joyful to see the
beaming smiles on the faces of all
the swimmers, who were having a
ball, while proudly wearing their
commemorative caps, t-shirts and
hoodies. It was a great achievement
from everyone involved, with funds
also raised for a worthy local charity.
A big thanks to all who took part, all
those who spent time organising the
logistics, and those who provided the
food at our lunch break.
Members of the Wild West
Swimmers regularly travel from
Glasgow, Stirling, Troon, Helensburgh
and further afield to swim together
in the fresh and pristine waters of
Scotland. They are fortunate to swim
year-round in the incredibly beautiful
lochs, rivers and seas of Scotland, and
are always welcoming of swimmers
from other parts of the UK and the
world.
Now, what will we do for our big
adventure next summer?
Tell us what’s going on at your club: editor@outdoorswimmer.com with the subject ‘Club News’