I grew up next to the swooshing, murky tea-coloured Waipā River in Ngāruawāhia. Always risk-averse, childhood myths of Taniwha and the idea of the snapping teeth and slither of monster eels terrified me a bit, so I never swam in rivers. Meanwhile, the promise of an unexpected brush against slimy seaweed and the thrash of the open, vast and unknowable ocean are at once beguiling yet nerve-racking to me.
Calmer than the pummel of the sea or the dark magic of rivers, lake swimming appeals. Tucked away in Central Otago is the charming historic township St Bathans, a former goldmining town now with a population of fewer than ten. A prominent feature of the town is the sublime Blue Lake which remains a breathtaking sight no matter how many times you see it. Starting in 1864, miners sluiced through the quartz rock of 120 metre high Kildare Hill.
