The Art of Wild Swimming Ireland - Anna Deacon & Vicky Allan - Book Review

This month we are very excited to review the hot off-the-press ‘The Art of Wild Swimming Ireland’ by Anna Deacon & Vicky Allan from Black & White Publishing. We’ve long been fans of theirs on social media and have loved their down-to-earth and fun-filled approach to wild swimming so we leapt at the opportunity to review their new book. At first glance, you’re treated to an awe-inspiring photo of a lone swimmer half submerged in an au-natural infinity pool looking out over a majestic lough. Alongside this sits the tagline “Everything you need to know and over 100 amazing locations”. We are huge advocates of helping people embark on their own wild swimming journey so couldn’t wait to dive into this practical guide to all things Irish.

But first some background on Anna & Vicky. Anna has worked as a photographer for the last 10 years. She’s been published in many magazines and newspapers and primarily enjoys photographing the great outdoors. Vicky is an award-winning journalist and author. She has won awards for her travel writing, feature writing and for her articles campaigning against violence against women. She too has always loved the outdoors and wild places. As you can see they make quite the formidable duo and their skills and talent naturally complement each other. On social media, they always come across as two people who don’t take themselves too seriously and we love this humble approach to dipping outdoors. As likely to be crashing through an icy pond as they are in full fabulous fancy dress.

“Breathe, breathe, breathe! And don’t forget no one cares about your wobbly bits, get your beautiful body into that bikini, swimsuit or shorts and take the plunge - you won’t regret it!”

Tip for a newbie

First up the guide is expertly designed, the more compact size makes it perfect for packing away in your rucksack or car. The book opens with the quote ‘To Our Swim Clans With Love’. This quote really sets the tone for a brilliant ode to the Irish swimming community. But it is the images throughout which really pull you into the wild swimming world of Ireland. From sunrise dippers streaming into the water at Ely Lodge Forest to the mirrored sands of Byles Quay. From couples frolicking in the splash of Tourmakeady Waterfall to the light smile of 80-year-old Paddy Conaggan as he climbs the waterside steps of his 315th swim of the year

The images throughout are brilliant and the book is packed full to the gills with incredible shots. This helps pull you in and I was stopping regularly throughout to write down the name of a swim location from the caption of a photograph. Excellent for any budding Irish swim list.

One thing that really sets this book apart is the attention to detail. One of our favourite sections was called “Where the Wild Things Are” which focuses on what to do when encountering aquatic life. They give you a brilliant checklist to follow to make sure your wildlife etiquette is up to scratch. 1. Keep a Lookout, 2. Do not approach, 3. Make steady and predictable movements, 4. Don’t chase, 5. Be quiet, 6. Allow an escape route and finally 7. Do not approach mothers. Another great touch is the use of the What3Words location of each spot which will really help the swimmer find that difficult-to-locate waterfall or pool. It’s detailed and practical pieces like this that make the guide so useful and digestible.

But what truly elevates this book is the fact that it wholeheartedly embraces the local community and the history of Irish swimming. Many guides are almost coldly geographical. As if the only points of interest are distance, shape and topology. But this guide is different. Anna and Vicky have cleverly decided to use local experts to illuminate the swims. This not only brings a unique and rooted perspective to the locations but also highlights unknown and undiscovered spots. We all know that local swimmers’ guidance always leads to the most magical swim spots.

Whether it’s Claire Ryan an ice Miler who shares her favourite spots close to Dublin or Mark Eaton from Kinsale who highlights his favourite swim patch nestled next to a beautiful historic coastal town. It’s the local knowledge that brings Ireland to life. But beyond this local in-depth knowledge of swim locations the insider knowledge brings another huge benefit to the reader, the why. Each swimmer shares their perspective on what swimming means to them and why that particular location is so special. This means each location is brought to you by a passionate evangelist, the local swimmer who loves that spot like no other. Cona Gallagher shares;

“My journey into wild swimming has been one of self-love and body acceptance. I was involved in a car accident in 2019 which left me with a deformation on my right hip…. I stumbled across my love for wild swimming during the covid pandemic. Here was something that set my soul on fire. Why would I let hating one small part of my body stop me from doing that?”

This passionate and heartwarming tale helps bring the reader in and when Cona goes on to share her favourite swim locations in Ulster you can imagine the effect each spot had on her as she went through a positive transformation via wild swimming.

Alongside the practical, Anna & Vicky’s humour shines throughout. Whether it’s the page on 27 different Irish words for water, of which ou favourite is ‘Folt Finna An Farraige’ which means ‘the white-crested waves of the sea’. Or the joyous images of beaming smiles and a whole chapter dedicated to “It’s All About the Craic”. There’s even a section on how to create a swim community and it’s this sense of fun and love of swimmers that is the prevailing undercurrent that runs throughout.

“We swim in the cold water of the Atlantic because it is a humbling experience because it brings us back to the present moment and helps us heal our worries or anxiety or fears. We leave all of that in the sea every time and come out feeling empowered. If we can throw ourselves in the cold Atlantic waters every day, what else are we capable of?”

Dog’s Bay

This is truly a wonderful guide, when you combine top-class photography with top-class writing the results are spectacular. But when you add into the mix a genuine love and passionate curiosity for the community behind the wild swimming, that is where you get to the ‘art’ of the matter. Anna & Vicky explain why these 100 locations matter so much to the Irish swimming community and this framework is what leaves you ready to book the first flight/ferry there and discover the places for yourself.

One final thing to mention is that the price of admission is almost entirely worth it for the Chocolate Banana Bread recipe alone, trust us, it’s an absolute winner!

You can check out the book and get a copy of it - now