Today was the second day of my "London Lidothon" and I managed to make it to another three pools - starting with the pool that I didn't make it to yesterday.
Pool #4: The Serpentine Lido, Hyde Park
After some ineffectual wandering around Knightsbridge trying to find Hyde Park I finally made it to the lido on the Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park around 11:30am. Unlike all the other pools that I visited on this trip, this lido consists of a section of the lake that has been roped off for swimmers - although you still have to share it with various geese and other water fowl.
In the context of the lake the lido area seems relatively small but it's actually over 100m long so swimming a few laps can quickly add up to a considerable distance. I wore my swim cap for the first time because I was afraid that the water would be cold, but it didn't seem too bad (according to the lifeguard the water temperature was 21C/68F) and it was pretty quiet. It's pretty neat to swim in a lake! And the lido staff were really nice, so this was a real treat overall.
See http://www.serpentinelido.com/ and http://www.serpentineswimmingclub.com/
Afterwards I got a sandwich and a cup of tea at the Lido Cafe next door and then headed off to the next pool...
Pool #5: Parliament Hill Lido
With my wet towel making me feel a bit like Arthur Dent from "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy", I took the tube from Knightsbridge to Leicester Square, changing to the Northern Line to get to Kentish Town, then walked to Parliament Hill and arrived at the lido around 1:40pm. It's a great brick building with an enormous 60m pool with an unusual stainless-steel lining that shimmered in the sun and made the pool look like a small lake.
This definitely felt like the coldest pool that I swam in! and I wore my swim cap again (the lifeguard told me that the water temperature was 20C but it felt much cooler to me - possibly because the sky began to cloud over and a cool breeze developed, creating waves on the surface of the pool).
I really liked this lido, the staff were really nice again but also had a great sense of humour (for example, when knocking on the reception door to deposit my clothes before swimming, the attendant inside said "What's the password?"; and another attendant warned me that it was especially busy just before I entered the near empty pool - maybe you had to be there for that one). And there were lots of colourful photos on the walls that celebrated the lido's history.
Not to mention the very cool multicoloured cubicles in the vast changing room. Overall I really liked this place and my only regret (aside from the temperature of the water) was that I didn't have longer to spend there.
See http://www.camden.gov.uk/ccm/content/contacts/non-council-contacts/contact-parliament-hill-lido.en
Pool #6: London Fields Lido
From Gospel Oask station (next to Parliament Hill) I took an overground train to Hackney Central and then walked to London Fields and got to the lido around 3:40pm.
The London Fields Lido is a heated pool (I didn't get the temperature but it felt a lot warmer than Parliament Hill!) so although it's much smaller than most of the other pools it was also a lot more popular. The pool is lined with multicoloured changing cubicles and lockers that are very reminiscent of those at Tooting Bec Lido, with the swimming area divided into different sections for lap swimmers of different speeds.
I swam around in the "slow" lane for a while looking at the darkening sky until I finally decided I had to leave and get back to my friends in Datchet, since we were planning to have dinner that evening in Windsor (thanks again to them for letting me stay for the two days!).
See http://www.hackney.gov.uk/c-londonfields-lido.htm
I had a lot of fun and I'm really glad that I made the effort to visit the pools. But after two days of swimming I'm also ready for a rest! So tomorrow I'm heading home. A couple of acknowledgements are due however before I finish:
- Janet Smith's "Liquid Assets", Kate Rew's book "Wild Swim", and the websites Lidothon'09 and Oliver Merrington's Lidos in the United Kingdom were all sources of invaluable information,
- London Transport did amazing work moving me around London, and
- My friends Steve and Ingrid have been fabulous hosts allowing me to stay at their place while engaged in this little adventure.
No comments:
Post a Comment