Wild Swimming Is Booming… But Where Can You Actually Do It?

Across the UK, rivers, lakes and coastal spots are drawing in a fast-growing wave of swimmers, chasing not just cold-water highs, but a deeper connection to nature.

But as the trend accelerates, a quieter issue is emerging: where can people actually swim safely, legally and without the crowds? 

In England especially, much of the country’s river network remains privately owned, with access often unclear or restricted. As a result, swimmers are increasingly seeking out places where they can enjoy the experience without uncertainty. Everyone wants somewhere calm, unspoilt, and reliably accessible, for swimming or just being with nature. 

That shift is beginning to shape how people think about land, lifestyle, and even ownership. For some, it is also changing what they look for in a woodland - not just a place to spend time with friends and family, but a setting where water, and a place to swim, is part of the picture too.

Near the River Avon, a group of privately owned woods share communal access to the river and a carefully created natural swimming pool, offering each owner a rare combination of woodland seclusion and direct, dependable access to open water for swimming. The wider site is managed by woodlands.co.uk, who oversee the shared amenities, coordinate maintenance of the woodland tracks, and ensure the surrounding woodland is cared for on behalf of all owners.

It’s a response to a growing appetite for something simple but increasingly hard to find: space, nature and a place to swim.

Dan Sharp, who owns one of the woods and regularly swims in the Avon, says the experience is difficult to replicate elsewhere:

“You can drive for hours trying to find a good swimming spot, and even then, you’re never quite sure what you’ll get. Here, it’s completely different. You walk through your own woodland, down to the river, and it’s just there, quiet, unchanged. I swim most days when I can. It’s become part of life.”

Wild swimming organisations such as the Outdoor Swimming Society and Swim England have helped bring greater awareness to the activity in recent years, alongside guidance on safety and responsible access. But for many swimmers, the challenge isn’t willingness, it’s finding the right environment.

Places that offer both natural beauty and a sense of security are increasingly valued, particularly as more people move away from crowded public spots towards quieter, more personal experiences.

A current example is Conigre Wood in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire. Now available to purchase through woodlands.co.uk, the new owners can combine private woodland with access to the river and natural swimming environment within the wider site.

As interest in wild swimming continues to grow, it’s no longer just about getting into the water. It’s about where you enter, how you experience it, and whether you can return to the same stretch of river again and again.

For a growing number of people purchasing their own little piece of woodland calm with river or lake access, that consistency, and that connection, is becoming the real luxury.

For full particulars for Conigre Wood: https://www.woodlands.co.uk/buying-a-wood/central-england/conigre-wood#12/51.3413/-2.2223

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Editors notes

Founded with a mission to make woodland ownership accessible and enjoyable, Woodlands.co.uk offers private woodlands for sale across the UK. The company provides resources and guidance for new owners to explore creative ways of managing their woodlands for personal and community benefit. Whether for conservation, leisure, or environmental education, Woodlands.co.uk empowers individuals to steward and protect their woodlands for generations to come.