Loch Broom, Scotland
Our 12.8km swim down the length of Loch Broom, in the Highlands of Scotland, was memorable for many reasons.
There is a house on the steep shores of the loch called Lexie's House that is very special to us. As children my brothers and I would spend our summers visiting our Grandma Wild, racing around her coppice and hiding in the bracken.
Over the years we slowly rebuilt the ruined house on the hillside, carrying all the roof timbers, lugging the bricks and carving the steps into the hillside. We transformed the ruin into a beautiful bothy replete with compost loo, hammocks and two wood-burning fires. Some of my most treasured memories are from that house, being huddled around the kettle on the stove with my brothers or watching the clouds pass over the steep mountains from the windows.
Our Grandma Wild is no longer with us, but carved into the main timber beam are the words “Rest and Be Thankful”. Every time I go back there I pull up a seat, look out the window over the hills and think of my gran.
In 2017 we returned to Lexie's and spent over five hours crawling through the chilly loch. There were countless splayed red jellyfish, a few shy seals and stretches of some of the clearest water I’ve ever seen. Then it all ended with us at Clachan Church, where our Grandma Wild is buried, laying a wreath on her grave. There is no other swim in the world that means so much to us.