Poetry captures the sensory delights and desires (and sometimes death and despair) of swimming and the allure of open water. In this episode, returning guest Sinéad Kehoe and I take turns reading some of our favourite swim poems, mostly organised by theme, location, or general vibe. Mermaids, grottos, drowning, thrashing waves, darting fish, and naked swims are all captured in these verses. We also got inspired and penned a couple of our own poems!

There are no deep dives or literary deconstructions here, and we only read a few lines of the longer poems, so even if poetry isn’t your usual gig let the words wash over you – enjoy the rolling tides and shades of blue conjured by these poems.

Here’s the full list, in reading order:

‘Mana of the Sea’ by DH Lawrence

‘Sonnet to the Sea’ by John Keats

‘The Sea’ and ‘Ode to the Sea’ by Pablo Neruda

‘E Rere Kau Mai’ Māori whakatauki/proverb (Whanganui iwi)

‘And My Heart Goes Swimming’ by Roma Pōtiki

‘Sea Swimming in Spring (Instant Poem)’ by Rachel McAlpine

‘Morning Swim’ by Maxine Kumin

‘Water is my Prayer’ from the blog Swimming at Dawn

‘From Sauna to Sea on a Rainy Autumn Day’ by Shona Riddell

‘Full Moon’ haiku by Matsuo Basho

‘Maggie and Milly and Molly and May’ by ee cummings

‘Not Waving but Drowning’ by Stevie Smith

‘The Mermaid’ by William Butler Yeats

‘Swimming’ by Mao Zedong

‘Aquatic Nocturne’ by Sylvia Path

‘Nude Swim’ by Anne Sexton

‘The Otter’ by Seamus Heaney

‘The Swimmer’ by Mary Oliver

‘Salted’ by Pippa Best

‘Pearl Diver’ by Lady Nakatomi

‘Winter Swims, Saturday Morning, Claude’s Cove’ by Sinéad Kehoe

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Swimming With Lord Byron episode with John Hancock

Kate Camp’s episode about her swimming and sea poems

Swimming films, books and music episode (also with Sinead)

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Zoe Studd is the co-founder and ‘Chief Enthusiasm Officer’ of Mountains to Sea Wellington and the Project Lead of Love Rimurimu. She helps people of all ages to connect with marine and freshwater environments, and leads marine restoration projects. She’s full of ideas and energy, supported by an incredible team of staff and volunteers. On the MTSW website it says: ‘From experience comes joy, and from joy comes connection’ and I think we can all agree with that!

In this episode we talk about how MTSW got started nine years ago, the free programmes they run (like the summer community snorkels and freshwater/awa exploration by night), the challenges that come with running a marine charitable trust (like this year’s Moa Point wastewater treatment plant failure…), NZ’s first seaweed festival, seaweed products (including gin!), and Zoe’s own relationship with the water including her morning ‘bobs’ in the dark at Titahi Bay.

• Visit the Mountains to Sea Wellington website, follow them on Facebook/Instagram, and become a volunteer

• Check out Imagination’s rimurimu gin

• Visit the Love Rimurimu website to learn more about seaweed regeneration, and follow them on Facebook and Instagram

Upcoming event: Sunrise Seaweed Swim, Sunday June 28 2026 at 7am (sunrise at 7:50), Worser Bay Beach, followed by warm drinks and kai at the Worser Bay Boating Club. Organised by Love Rimurimu. All welcome!

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NZ author Nicola McCloy’s new book ‘Jump In: An Insider’s Guide to New Zealand’s Best Beaches, Lakes, Rivers, Pools and Hot Springs’ was published in late 2025, with stunning photos and tips on the best places to swim.

Writing the book involved plenty of personal research as Nicola trekked around the country to experience some of NZ’s most beautiful and epic (but also accessible) swim locations. With support and advice from local communities, Nicola’s swim journey was full of wonderful and unexpected surprises. She talks about how she chose the locations in the book, growing up as a water baby in Invercargill, and swimming with a plethora of marine life in the Hauraki Gulf (her social media includes ‘sh*t photos of well-camouflaged stingrays’ taken with her trusty GoPro) and the Goat Island Marine Reserve.

Towards the end of this episode we talk about whio (pronounced fee-or): these are NZ native ducks (blue ducks) and precious to spot in the wild.

Buy ‘Jump In’ from your local bookstore or borrow from the library (NZ authors receive some money when their books are in the library). If you own a copy already, put it in your car and go on a swimmer's road trip! Published by HarperCollins.

Photo of Nicola swimming in Lake Pukaki, South Island.

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Wen Erh Hsu completed the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming (English Channel, Catalina Channel and 20 Bridges in Manhattan) within one season in 2024. She is the first Taiwanese person to swim solo across the English Channel and her Facebook page ‘Wen’s Swimming Club’ has more than 10,000 followers.

On this episode Wen talks about her journey from pool swimmer in Taiwan to ultramarathon training in the UK, as well as the importance of staying positive during challenging swims – such as when the water is ‘less warm' than ideal, when you're swimming the Catalina Channel overnight through the pitch black, or when a turbulent swim across the Cook Strait can not be completed (solution: book in for another go!).

Wen also talks about life in Taipei, where she coaches new swimmers and encourages people to join the wonderful world of open water swimming.

Follow Wen’s Swimming Club on Facebook

Wen's page on Openwaterpedia

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Bunbathers ponytail swim cap giveaway – see the Instagram post for details on how to enter.

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Seti Afoa is the Director of Samoa Events, a swim business that offers tours, events, and retreats in Moananui (the Pacific Ocean).

Seti was born in Samoa, in a coastal village on the island of Upolu. As was common for Samoan kids of his generation, swimming out of his depth was not encouraged. His family moved to South Auckland when he was about 13 and as an adult he began visiting swimming pools with his wife. He joined a pool squad, then ventured into the open water in Kohimarama. Gradually Seti’s distances and confidence increased until he swam the Rangitoto Double (about 10km) and in 2012 he completed a swim now known as ‘Seti’s Triangle’ – a 14km swim between Kohimarama Beach, Rangitoto Wharf and Browns Island.

In 2012 Seti also began running tours for people who wanted to swim in Samoa. The Samoa Swim Series was born, as well as cycling and running events. He began helping ultramarathon swimmers achieve their own epic swims, including across the Apolima Strait (22.3km). These days he also organises swim tours in French Polynesia, the Cook Islands, Tonga, and runs the Rotoroa Swim Island Retreat in Auckland.

Seti says he is not a fast swimmer, describing himself as the ‘mayor of the slow lane’, but he’s an inspiration. We talk about his swim journey, what it’s like running a swim business, and also how swimmers can overcome their fear of the deep.

Visit Seti’s Samoa Events website

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Jono Ridler swam down the east coast of the North Island (1600km over 90 days) to raise awareness of destructive sea bottom trawling in NZ – find out more at⁠ ⁠swim4theocean.com⁠⁠.

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This episode was published on March 26 to coincide with Epilepsy Awareness Day (#PurpleDay).

Kate Wareham is a Wellington pool and open water swimmer, the CEO of Volunteer Service Abroad (VSA), and last year she was diagnosed with epilepsy, a neurological condition that can cause recurring, unprovoked seizures.

Kate experienced her first seizure in 2025 while in Italy on holiday with her family, a day or two after completing a lake swim event. Since her diagnosis she has been learning to navigate life as a swimmer with epilepsy, a condition that affects about 1% of the world’s population.

In this episode Kate shares her experience of having a seizure while overseas, the life changes that have come with her diagnosis, how others have supported her at the pool and in the sea, and how she manages swimming with epilepsy.

Visit ⁠Epilepsy NZ⁠ to learn more.

Health and safety notes: Every swimmer is different and every person with epilepsy is different, so talk to your medical health professional for advice on exercising safely after a diagnosis. If you have epilepsy, don’t swim alone and tell someone (e.g. pool lifeguards) that you have epilepsy. If a swimmer experiences a seizure, get them out of the water and cushion their head, but don’t attempt to restrain them.

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Jono Ridler is swimming down the east coast of the North Island (1600km over 90 days) to end bottom trawling in NZ – find out more at ⁠swim4theocean.com⁠ and sign the petition.

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Dr Abi Lafbery has a PhD in outdoor swimming from Lancaster University in the UK. Her thesis focussed on the health, thoughts, experiences and behaviours of wild/open water swimmers, the health of the water they swim in, and swimmers’ impacts on waterways. For almost five years she was researching and writing about swimming, flora and fauna, pollution, and climate.

In this episode we talk about Abi’s own swimming in Cornwall, the Lake District, and on the wild, post-industrial coast of North West England; what she discovered from her research and interviews with outdoor swimmers; the ‘immersive knowledge’ (Abi coined this term!) that we develop from getting into open water and observing what is around us; issues, rights, and decision-making around access to waterways and water quality; how swimming can be environmental, comforting, liberating, or even a ‘wild’ act that transcends societal boundaries; and our connections to water, other people, and ourselves.

Read Abi’s articles:

• ​In hot water: swimming and climate change (Outdoor Swimmer magazine, January 2026 – paywalled)
• ​Outdoor swimming is becoming a sanctuary for female swimmers in the UK (The Conversation, December 2025)

In this episode I mention Jono Ridler, who is swimming down the east coast of the North Island (1600km over 90 days) to end bottom trawling in NZ – find out more at swim4theocean.com and sign the petition.

Abi also mentions ‘sea gooseberries’ and I wondered if they were the same as salps – apparently they are similar but not identical! Sea gooseberries are ctenophores (comb jellies), while salps are barrel-shaped tunicates that swim by pumping water. Both are harmless, non-stinging, and jelly-like.

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Contact me via swimchatswithshona@gmail.com

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Thanks for listening! :-)