You wouldn't? But I heard that "Lake, river, ocean, or even hot springs, you got to shower off or you'll get swimmer's itch or worse." I guess it was the phrase "you got to" that jumped out at me. Because, of course you don't got to. Right?
For years I plunged the Atlantic ocean with my board. I loved Bude, Newquay, Sennen, blabbered beach talk like a total bore. A selfish obsession, chased waves. Probably the central feature of my life over and above career, for example. Then we moved house to the channel coast. I got older, do miss it very much. Down here in Brighton there is a serious swimmers’ club. A part of me would like to focus, join them, swim the channel. Another side of me wants ten thousand and I’ll be off to Hossegor, Bordeaux in a shot for a last decade in the proper water. As for pools I find them spooky, spent a lot of time in pools. Rivers are fine, though swimming in the Thames tastes a little silty, lumps in stream, negotiate through your teeth.
Love them all. It's a tough choice, but I would order them ocean first, then lake, then river. I love the surge of the ocean; even on a calm day there is raw powers surging through the water. High alpine lake are deliciously cold after a long hike. Colorado whitewater will always keep me present.
I have no issue with showers. I do have an issue with someone saying, "If you do not do what I say you will get bilharzia" or some such utter ... dunno ... BS? I have never, ever had swimmer's itch. I have swum in rivers, lakes and the sea, often. Tonnes of times. Never had swimmer's itch.
Weeell, my surfing pal showered under a little waterfall, contained all the run-off from the fields during the mad cow epidemic, no offense. He contracted some terrible condition - Gwymbarry syndrome? Polio type effects, had to crawl around his house. We were never quite sure if the events were related. He had to go to India eventually, drink bhang lhasies, sunbathe. That cured him.
Or an obvious interpretation of a bizarre comment. What "worse" were you contemplating if we didn't follow your "must shower" directive?
Shower after the sea - in winter - equals terrible chill-blanes, scratching pain, rubber around your ankles 'Pull my legs off,' you scream to your wife. But does she come, no. A man must remove his own wetsuit. All wrong.
Not only must he remove his own wetsuit, but apparently his own legs. Seems a bit harsh - I guess it would mean no anaesthetic!
@BayView - yeah, it was hellish at the time. He couldn't get a diagnosis. I'd advise against surfing the sewage outfall. We used to ride the 'shit pipe.' One guy leaped with his board, low-tide as the spout gushed. He had to go home, wash his mouth out.
Oh, legs, oh a different matter. Well, that guy 'had to' ride on his knees because he'd lost sensation...I thought nothing of it at the time, maybe only 'god, everybody thinks he can't stand up.' They were right but in the wrong way.
http://www.bbc.com/culture/story/20150703-beneath-the-surface-the-hidden-depths-of-swimming-pools The BBC works in mysterious ways. Just put up yesterday -- much reference to the pool in fiction.
Swimming pool. Not quite sure why it was left out of the choices, perhaps to uncover the nonconformers?
While I like swimming, there are some sights that no one should have to suffer. One of them is me in a swimming suit.
I would need to buy them for everyone else. I can live in denial easily, everyone else... I'm not so confident haha
The pool! A hotel pool! Wait.....is that not a choice? A lake then. I have some good memories of lakes.
