The Swallows and Amazons did it before breakfast. Rupert Brooke and the Bloomsbury set did it after tea. Our great-grandparents did it whenever it was hot. Wild swimming is the simple art of bathing in rivers, lakes and waterfalls, and its popularity is soaring.

If the weather cheers up this weekend, try it and you’ll understand why. Dive into a swimming hole, water rushing over you like in a spa, then clamber out to dry on warm rocks afterwards; or slide into a lowland river and drift downstream with the lazy current, staring at the sky and looking forward to your picnic on the lawns. You’ll find your stresses have washed away with the ripples.

Wild swimming is an adventure, far removed from the noise, chlorine and bacteria of a leisure-centre pool. Thankfully, our rivers are cleaner and more accessible than at any time in living memory. In Britain, a country of lakes, dales and vales, we are simply spoilt for choice. So, if you haven’t taken the plunge yet, where do you start?

I’ve spent the past five years researching 150 wildswimming spots across the country, and each one has its own charm. Here’s my personal top 10. Pick one and dive in – I can assure you, the water’s beautiful.

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1 BEST FOR LEGENDS

Cornwall Hidden in a valley only a few miles from the Arthurian castle of Tintagel, you’ll find an extraordinary double waterfall with a cascade that pours through a perfect man-sized doughnut hole. The upper pool is out of reach, but the lower “kieve” (pool in Cornish) is deep enough for an exhilarating and exorcising plunge. It was here that King Arthur is said to have brought his knights to be baptised before their quest for the Holy Grail. The modern-day guardians of the site, who run a tiny teashop in the woods above, don’t mind you bathing as long as it is done with sincerity and respect. Hundreds of coloured ribbons give the cavern a fluttering glow – like swimming on a pagan May Day.

From the village of Trethevey, follow footpath signs for St Nectan’s Kieve chapel and waterfall; near Tintagel.

Grid ref: SX 081885; postcode: PL34 0BE

2 BEST FOR SKINNY-DIPPING

Dartmoor The Dart is the setting for Charles Kingsley’s The Water Babies and it is one of the most beautiful wildswimming rivers in Britain. In a deep gorge far upstream of Newbridge, lying on the flat, hot rocks by a gurgling river, you are miles from anywhere. Dense woodland tumbles down the side of the moor, a light spray lifts off the water and the forest twitters with birdsong. This is a place made for lazy picnics and sunny afternoons. With miles of river to choose from, and not a soul in sight, why not become a water babe yourself and swim free?

The most remote river pools are midway between Newbridge and Dartmeet, on the moors above Buckfastleigh. From either village, follow the faint river path through the woods for at least two miles.

Grid ref: SX 697717; postcode: TQ13 7RS

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