Best way to spend Boxing Day morning

A big thank you to my friend Julie who travelled to Brightlingsea from Oxfordshire before the latest round of restrictions were imposed to stay here with a friend. She braved the early start of 9am to come down the prom and watch me go into a pretty lively sea. Water temperature remained at 7.5 degrees, which is the same as when I last swam a week ago, although there has been some fluctuation during the week. I often get asked if I swim every day and the answer is that I would if I could. Brightlingsea is very affected by the tides which limits the opportunities for sea swimming, especially in the winter. That’s because, for example, when the tide has been in this week it has been dark and swimming in the winter in the dark is something I am yet to experience. I could jump in the car and travel up the coast to Holland-on-Sea or maybe Frinton-on-Sea or Walton-on-the-Naze but I quite like the environmentally friendliness of jumping on my bike and cycling to and from the water. Consequently during the month there will are usually at least two 7 day periods when I am ‘tethered to the land’. The up side of course is that the first swim after a week’s break is also extra bracing!!