December in the swim community

NOWCA Wild explores a magical swimming spot on the Isle of Skye, and Mental Health Swims reflects on a challenging yet rewarding 2024.

NOWCA: NOWCA Wild explores Fairy Pools on the Isle of Skye

Words and photo by Emily S

If you’re looking for a breathtaking day out, the Fairy Pools in Skye are an absolute must – but don’t go if you’re in a rush! We visited on a sunny day in August 2024, and after a few days of rain, the pools were crystal clear and inviting. Surprisingly, the road was quiet as we arrived at the Forestry Commission Car Park around 10.30am, though signs of heavy traffic were clear.

For £6, you get parking and access to toilets before setting off on the well-marked path to the pools. The pools seemed endless, with one stunning cascade after another. Though it was a gloriously sunny day, I was surprised to find no one in the water. Of course, I couldn’t resist: I waded up to a secluded pool, earning an amused round of applause from onlookers. The water was cool, around 13°C, and absolutely refreshing. Swimming through narrow gorges with views of the surrounding mountains was simply magical.

After a few hours, we made our way back, only to hit a traffic queue that turned our 10-minute drive into an hour and a half! With help from fellow visitors, we navigated passing places, reminding us that patience is key here. But the day? Totally worth it.

Explore this swim spot, and many others, on the NOWCA Wild app – free to download for iOS and Android: nowcawild.co.uk

Mental Health Swims: Our highlights of 2024

Well, that went fast! We cannot believe 2024 is coming to a close – and what a year it has been for Mental Health Swims. Stay up to date with our outdoor swimming community news for November 2024.

It has been another tough year for us with funding becoming harder to secure for mental health services and we’ve had our fair share of challenges, but we wanted to share some of our best bits from 2024 with you. Our highlights included:

• Officially launching Swim Together in England and Wales with the support of Swim England and Swim Wales.
• Receiving funding from the National Lottery, Awards for All England and the People’s Postcode Lottery.
• Welcoming three new part-time team members to help us with funding opportunities, social media and admin assistance.
• Attending the March for Clean Water and attending the Mind Physical Activity Panel away day where we planned more collective work towards campaigning for better mental health awareness and services
• Our founder Rachel being awarded an MBE
• Sending out our big participant survey to capture invaluable feedback so we can continue to be led by our community
• Upgrading our swim host training to ensure volunteers are empowered and educated
• Training 52 new volunteers.

Thank you so much to everyone who has supported and championed us, we really couldn’t do it without you! Wishing you all the best for 2025 – Rachel, James, Bea, Debs, Laura and Sarah