Going for an autumn swim

When we were getting ready for her visit, Kate had suggested we might go for a swim in Llyn Padarn. And the Sunday would be the day for that. The weather was awful, so her reasoning was we would get wet anyway. Might as well go big on it! And I had said I would be up for it. We had done it before; last March she had got me into the lake. Now it was September; it sure was going to be a lot warmer!

That Sunday we first went to feed the cats and then we set off. By the time we reached the designated swimming spot, the weather was indeed atrocious. And because it was, I had made sure I was wearing my swimming kit underneath my clothes, so I could quickly strip off and get ready. I was just going to be in a bikini with additional neoprene socks. I am a bit of a sissy when it comes to my feet!

I was working out of the boot of the car while Kate was working from the passenger seat. Unfortunately, I had parked the car at such an angle that the wind blew the rain straight into the boot. All clothes I took off get rained on immediately. Where Kate was, she was sheltered! And she had a dryrobe. So I regretted being executive. The only thing I had gained by being so prepared was that I had to just stand around in the horizontal rain, waiting for Kate to be ready. But then she was. And we could get in!

I got in relatively quickly. I suppose my several years of showering cold we are paying off. Kate was a bit hesitant. Quite unlike last time. But then we were both in! And she pointed at some trees, and suggested we swim there and back. I thought it was an excellent idea.

I was quite aware that I was in a bikini in a fairly deep lake, so I made sure to keep some speed up. I needed to keep moving! Kate had a float, so if anything would go wrong with her, at least it would be clear where she was. I could just vanish. So I wasn't being particularly social, and just went to these trees and back at good speed. But I did make sure to keep an eye on Kate. And I got back to where we came from perfectly safely. And then I got out! And went to the car to get my towel and dry off.

Visibility wasn't great

Safely back in shallow water

I was quite cold! And I hadn't managed to keep my clothes very dry, what with the wind blowing the rain into my boot. Oh well. The plan was to get to Y Caban for some hot beverage and cake. That would sort me out!

When we were there I was shivering. I ordered the only reasonable thing: hot chocolate. And I managed to make a choice from the very promising looking cakes. Kate went for tea and a different cake. And the hot chocolate helped, but I still shivered. So I ordered another one. When I had finished that, I was okay again!

With that being sorted her visit came close to an end. We went back to my place, and from there Kate went back to England. It has been really good to see her! And I thought we had made the most of the time we had. I trust she’ll be back; during this weekend, she had not been able to catch up with other Kate. And I know she wants to. So I'll stay in touch, and we'll see when she makes the trip again!