Rydal Caves and Grasmere

Rydal Caves and Grasmere

By Karen Quartermain

February 13, 2022

Another weekend of walking and talking but this time it was a more challenging terrain with the added hindrance of torrential rain throughout. Does that stop hardy outdoor swimmers? Does it heck.

We met at Rydal and our first stop was Rydal Caves. Dripping with ghost stories and the perfect acoustics for a spontaneous rendition of Londons Burning. Why ? Why not lol.

This adventure was quite a challenge due to the relentless rain. Luckily everyone dressed for the occasion and it is amazing how distracted you become from the conditions when you have good conversation.

First swim opportunity following a walk from the caves was to Grasmere. With day forever the boy scout setting up a tarpauline to offer some form of shelter for changing.

Following a short swim in Grasmere we then started making our way to Rydal for the second and last dip of the day. The original plan was a picnic, but nobody wanted to sit in the rain, we snacked whilst we walked and continued our walk.

The walk offered so much, from jumping small streams that had been made from the rain to negotiating stepping stones . It was fabulous.

As we arrived at swim 2 the rain actually stopped. There were some who chose not to take on a 2nd swim having been drenched enough for a day, whilst others embraced it again. Rydal water was a crispy 5.8 degrees.

This was another super successful day with another amazing group of people.