Posted by Katharine on May 14, 2004 at 10:10:50 from 62.254.0.18 user Katharine.
In Reply to: Re: How cold is too cold for swimming? posted by Adam Quinan on May 14, 2004 at 02:32:52:
Rob Fryer of RALSA (River and Lake Swimming Association) suggests 53 degrees F as the level below which you should wear a wetsuit, 60 as a good starting temperature for inexperienced wild swimmers, and 70 as the temperature at which the water begins to lose its 'tang'.
As Ed says, it is very subjective. How cold you feel also depends on the air temperature and windchill. The other thing that I think is very important is the variation in different parts of the lake. On 2nd May we were swimming off one of the islands, in a shallow stretch (about 3 feet deep) with a rocky bottom. It had been sunny for at least a couple of days beforehand. It was my first outdoor swim of the year so I was cautious and avoided going out of my depth in case of cramps. The water temperatures in the deeper parts of the lake may have been a lot colder, but where we were it was not even 'tingly'.
Mind you, we could have done with a flask of hot tea for afterwards.
If anyone is interested in outdoor swimming I would recommend Rob Fryer's article on safety on the RALSA website.