“Swimming in the wild, outdoors and without a roof over your head, is
now a mildly subversive activity... It certainly appeals to free spirits...”
I DIDN'T feel terribly subversive, sitting on a small boat in the Dalmatian
islands, and passing round my suncream-smeared copy of Waterlog, Roger
Deakin's love letter to swimming, from which the above passage is taken. But
there were definitely some free spirits among the 15 of us, mostly couples
and singles in their 20s and 30s, on this swimming holiday organised by the
specialist operator Swimtrek.
There was Emily, whose earlier Swimtrek trip had inspired her to become a
triathlete, and who would go for a 4km (2.45 miles) run before breakfast.
Richard and Helen booked the trip before realising Helen was pregnant, and
so turned it into their honeymoon. Vicki had shooed her partner off home
after the first part of their break as he didn't share her passion for the
water. Siblings Kate, Nancy and John kept up a teasing banter all week. And
18-year-old Anna, the youngest in the group, was one of the fastest, but so
slim she needed a wetsuit to stay warm, despite the 24C (75F) water. This
was not a problem for the rest of us, I was pleased to note: while most of
us were regular pool swimmers, nobody looked as though they were training
for the Olympics.
We were based at Hotel Maestral in Prvic Luka, one of two villages on
sun-bleached, car-free Prvic island, 45 minutes by ferry from the bustling
town of Sibenik. The first evening, we swam 800m around the bay so we could
be split into groups according to speed. For safety reasons the slowest
group (the “Scenic Swimmers”) would set off first, with an inflatable dinghy
alongside. The middle and fastest groups (the latter, all women, known as
“Team Barracuda”) would head off at later intervals. Our support boat,
captained by the chain-smoking Jadran, brought up the rear, the idea being
that we would all finish together. “It's not a race,” said the no-nonsense
Claire, one of our guides, assigning me firmly to the Scenic Swimmers.
Next morning, over breakfast of eggs, fruit and coffee on the Maestral's
harbourside terrace, Claire and fellow guide Lizzie gave us a safety
briefing. Then we were off. Our first swim, 2km, took us from Separina - the
other village on Prvic - to the island of Tijat, and gave me a sense of
whether I could keep up. The first shock was the buoyancy of the salt water.
You float higher, so swimming is easier and treading water is effortless.
This was useful, as we regularly had to gather together to wait for group
members, or swim up to the support boat from which Lizzie or Claire would
throw bottles of energy drinks to us.
The second shock was the taste - I soon had a furry tongue from the salt
water, which was unpleasant, although we all got used to it. And yes, I
could keep up. My front crawl was slow, but steady. Also, I have learnt to
breathe on either side, which turned out to be vital when the water was
choppy, helping me to breathe away from the waves.
Soon we bonded into our groups, and learnt to keep together for safety. Once
Lizzie pulled our group into the dinghy; out of the path of a badly crewed
yacht, since these calm waters attract amateur sailors. We all politely
averted our gaze from one unfortunate's torn Lycra - there's really nowhere
to hide if your swimsuit rips.
But most of our swims were in quieter spots. We usually did two 2km swims each
day, but a highlight was a 4km river swim in the Krka National Park - it
took me 1hr 45min, but afterwards I was glowing with energy.
Of course, all the exercise meant we could eat as much as we liked. For lunch,
Claire and Lizzie would whip up salads, including plenty of potato and pasta
for energy. One day we even got Jadran into the water - he dived for
mussels, then cooked them for us. In the evenings we devoured pasta, fish
and pizza in Prvic Luka or at an excellent seafood restaurant, Ribarski
Dvor, in Separina. A huge bowl of seafood pasta was about £4.
The fact that Croatia is such good value is one of the reasons Swimtrek
introduced trips there in 2005, explained the company's founder, Simon
Murie. Also, he said: “The Dalmatian islands are a lot less touristy than
comparative islands in Greece. Tourism on the Dalmatian coast is growing,
but most people go south of Split towards Dubrovnik, not north towards
Sibenik and the islands where we're based. They are really popular with the
sailing crowd, too.”
By the end of the week, I was dropping into bed by 9pm, exhausted and aching
gently from all the exercise. Over a beer one evening we swapped notes,
agreeing that while Roger Deakin might have been writing about swimming in
Britain, he captured the sense of camaraderie shared by all keen swimmers.
When telling friends we were taking a swimming holiday, the response was
usually one of astonishment. Yet tell someone you are going sailing or
skiing - which require far more time, money and training than swimming does
- and they don't bat an eyelid. Potty, really.
In the heat of a Croatian summer I could think of nothing more delightful than
jumping into a warm, calm sea. As I struck out towards our next landmark, a
large cross on top of a hill on the island of Kaprije, and saw the sunlight
filtering down through beautiful, clear water, I knew I had chosen the right
trip.
Need to know
Swimtrek (020-8696 6220, www.swimtrek.com)
offers a week in Croatia next summer, based at Hotel Maestral on Prvic Luka,
from £695pp, including all swims, breakfasts and lunches, but excluding
flights and evening meals. Single supplement, £100pp. BA (0870 8509850,
www.ba.com), easyJet (0905 8210905, www.easyjet.com)
fly to Split.
Further information Croatian National Tourist Office (020-8563 7979, www.croatia.hr).
Reading Waterlog by Roger Deakin (Vintage, £7.99)
Yes, and Helen & Richard are now the parents of a bouncing (nay, thudding..) baby boy, James, born 4th January 10lb4oz!
R Saunders, Lutterworth,
I agree. Croatia is simply splendid.
ben, brighton,