"The sun had been shining on the water all day, and I set off and swam comfortably into the amazing clear water, marvelling at the brightness of everything.

The swimmer is content to be borne on his way full of mysteries, doubts, and uncertainties.

He is a leaf on the stream, free at last from his petty little purposes in life."

For some people, this would be the ideal swimming location — clean and modern, with convenient changing rooms, big fluffy robes and, best of all, hot water.

But a growing number of people across Britain are looking for a completely different kind of experience.

To a "wild swimmer", secluded rivers, lakes, and rock pools are where it's at.

And over the last few years, there's been a steady flow of books, magazine articles, and TV features feeding a growing obsession with swimming in the great outdoors.

And if one book can claim to have rekindled our passion in wild swimming, then surely this must be it.

Roger Deakin's Waterlog.

Roger Deakin was an environmentalist, broadcaster, and writer, and he worked for a variety of papers and wildlife magazines.