Swim Chats

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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Contact me at swimchatswithshona at gmail dot com
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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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Support the podcast via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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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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Support the podcast via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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This episode was originally released on 11/04/25.
Our first 'swim history' episode! Featuring special guest John Hancock, a marathon swimmer and the organiser of this year's ANZAC Day swim in Wellington. In this episode John tells the story of the brave, accomplished, and fascinating Sir Bernard Freyberg who painted himself in black and undertook a stealthy nighttime swim in Gallipoli during World War One. We also discuss a few other notable swimmers in history: John F Kennedy, Kahe Te-Rau-o-te-Rangi, and Mao Zedong. Finally, John Hancock reflects on his own 'big' swims, across Lake Taupō and Cook Strait / Raukawa Moana.
Lots of background links for this one – it is a history episode, after all!
⁠⁠Shona's family war tortoise⁠⁠ (Great War Stories, NZHistory.govt. nz).
⁠⁠ANZAC biscuit recipe⁠⁠ (Edmonds Cooking)
⁠Bernard Freyberg's Wikipedia page⁠
⁠Image of Freyberg⁠ (taken in 1904 at Te Aro Baths in Wellington) is courtesy of ⁠Horowhenua Historical Society inc, Levin, New Zealand⁠
'⁠Debunking Freyberg's Mexican myth⁠' – NZ International Review
'⁠When Sir Bernard tried to swim the Channel⁠' – Greymouth Evening Star, August 1950, via paperspast.natlib.govt.nz
⁠Kahe Te-Rau-o-te-Rangi,⁠ who swam from Kāpiti Island to the mainland in 1824 (Eleanor Spragg. 'Te Rau-o-te-rangi, Kahe', Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, first published in 1990, updated July, 2013. Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand)
'⁠The swim that changed Chinese history⁠' (Mao Zedong's river swims) The China Project, 14 July 2021.
'⁠Caroline Kennedy recreates her father JFK's heroic wartime swim⁠.' CNN, August 2023. (correction: JFK's crew were attacked by a Japanese boat, not a plane as I incorrectly stated in this episode)
John Hancock talks about his ⁠Cook Strait⁠ and ⁠Lake Taupō ⁠swims on the Effortless Swimming podcast
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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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Support the Swim Chats podcast ($5 per month) via ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon.com/SwimChats⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠
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Contact me via [email protected]
Hit 'Follow' so you don't miss an episode.
Thanks for listening! :-)