Carsington Reservoir: Rare opportunity to open-air swim at Peak District beauty spot

If pursuing outdoor activities was one of your new year’s resolutions that has yet to see the light of day, fear not.

People can unleash their fun-loving, adventurous streak at a local beauty spot in Derbyshire.

Carsington Reservoir is the stunning location where Severn Trent will host a trial swim session.

The event is running in conjunction with Pacesetter Events, an experienced operator whose previous events include Dambuster Triathlon at Rutland Water dam boasting panoramic views.

It is the first time in the water company’s history that an event of this calibre has been organised at Carsington Water.

The session will take place on Thursday, July 11, 2024 from 6.30pm to 8.30pm.

According to weather site Metcheck, Golden Hour (the illuminating time, one hour before sunrise and sunset) is set to take place at 7.47pm.

This means you could potentially enjoy the blazing display of the sun retreating, as you swim in the reservoir that is amongst the deepest in the UK.

If successful, Severn Trent will look to introduce other events in the future.

Donna Marshall, visitor engagement manager at Severn Trent said: “We know that outdoor swimming has grown in popularity over the years.

“This is something we’ve wanted to introduce for a while, so we're really pleased to be able to offer this pilot session at Carsington.

“Pacesetter Events are a brilliant company with loads of experience of operating open water swimming events at other similar locations like Rutland Water, so they’re well aware of the potential risks involved in swimming in reservoirs and how to mitigate them.”

Reservoirs contain many dangers that could result in even experienced swimmers getting into difficulty.

Even on a hot day, the temperature of the water can be extremely cold.

Reservoirs also often have hidden dangers such as unseen currents beneath the surface and soft, muddy banks making navigation difficult.

Donna added: “We have always said that people should not enter the water at any of our reservoirs unless taking part in a supervised and structured activity and this absolutely remains the case.

“Reservoirs can be really dangerous places so it's important that people only ever enter the water to take part in a managed, organised event.

“There will be lots of measures in place to ensure that the swim event will be as safe as possible.”

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Paul Cowling from Pacesetter Events, said: “We’re really pleased to be able to support Severn Trent in trialling open water swimming at Carsington Water.

“It's an amazing location with all of the on-site resources that we'd need for this event and we’ve worked really closely with Severn Trent to find safe swimming routes on the reservoir.

“Swimming has very different risks to other water-based sports like paddle-boarding or canoeing.

“To make sure everyone enjoys the session safely, swimmers will be required to use swim floats and wear swimming hats for every session, along with wetsuits if the temperature is below 16 degrees.

“We’ll have trained teams and safety boats on hand to provide support.”

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Carsington was chosen as the location for the trial as it has the on-site infrastructure needed.

There is a car park, toilets and the location is said to have consistently met the water quality testing requirements needed for swimming.

Each session costs £32 with all money going towards the operation of future sessions.

For more information or to register to take part in the session, visit the website by clicking here.