Husband and wife take the plunge ahead of harbour swim pilot

Two people have sampled open water swimming in the Bristol harbour ahead of a five-week swimming pilot launching in spring.

“It tasted nice,” said David Quartermain, 59, emerging from the murky waters donning a wetsuit, goggles and float.

“It was a shock getting in – I’m a big softie and women are much tougher than men. But it was great, really refreshing and the water quality was spot on.”

“I know they are really big on doing the testing down here so that was fresh and there was good visibility down in the water. Water tasted nice, weirdly enough. It was a good experience and I’d definitely come again.”

Along with Karen Quartermain, 48, the pair, both experienced swimmers, became the first legal swimmers in Bristol harbour as they took a dip into the expanse of water overlooking the Cottage Inn by Baltic Wharf.

Announced in February, the pilot came after growing calls from campaigners and thousands of petitioners to scrap an unpopular ban on swimming in the harbour and the River Avon and make wild swimming safer.

Members of the public will be able to swim in a designated area with a pontoon, lifeguards, safety boats and regular water quality sampling. The council previously said that swimming could not take place in the harbour, which is a working area, for health and safety reasons.

Ellie King, cabinet member for public health and communities, told Bristol24/7: “We’ve listened to a lot of residents’ wishes to have more open water swimming opportunities.

“We’ve seen such an increase in how many people are open water swimming in recent years, with all its health and mental health benefits.

“It’s brilliant to be able to offer it in a way that is permitted and has all those regulations in place so that people can enjoy it in a safe way.”

The councillor for Hillfields said the water by Baltic Wharf is tested weekly and is “the cleanest part of the harbour”, regularly testing ‘good’ or ‘excellent’

Asked why Bristol City Council had decided to lift the swimming ban, King said: “It’s taken a while to get to a position where we can deliver this with all the safety mechanisms that we need to be able to do it.

“It’s been really great though to respond to the people that have wanted this and to bring it forward in this way.”

“But we did need to do it in that way that we could. We’ve seen the health of water increase recently, with beavers recently spotted in our waterways and increasing our fish and biodiversity.”

“We just needed to ensure that the water is of good enough quality to swim in and that we’ve got the safety mechanisms in place so that people can enjoy themselves.”

The swimming pilot will run every Saturday and Sunday from 8am to 10am, from April 29 until May 28.

Up to 80 people will be allowed to swim in each one-hour session, booked in advance online, and costing £7 which covers the cost of lifeguards, safety boats and a pontoon.

All photos & video: Betty Woolerton

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