The Coldest Swim Of My Life at the Bondi Beach Pool

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From the minute I first laid eyes on the pool overlooking Bondi Beach somewhere on the internet, I knew I had to swim there. The image of cloudless skies and crystal clear water crashing on the rocks beside the pool had in a daze. Coming in at 50 metres in length, its Olympic size had me giddy with excitement. Its position overlooking one of the most beloved beaches in the world was the icing on the cake.

If there was swimming heaven, this would be it.

Or so I thought.

That image stayed in my mind over the years. Dreams of swimming in it pushed me forward as I struggled through the final laps of my first one mile swim. I imagined how it would feel to swim under the heat of the sun; how delicious the cool water would feel on my skin. I could imagine the pool glittering as I sliced through it lap by lap.

Swimming in that pool was a firm fixture on my bucket list.

As I started tentatively planning a trip to Australia, I realised this bucket list goal could actually happen. I kept wondering if I was insane, and whether or not I should actually book the trip. I mean, who flies 10,000 miles for a two week trip?

Me, it turns out.

Planning to spend more time in Bondi? Check out my post on the best things to do in Bondi!

Arriving At Bondi Beach

On day 10 of my jaunt along the east coast of Australia, I finally arrived in Sydney and checked into my awesome hostel right on Bondi Beach. Having already completed the Bondi to Bronte coastal walk that morning, the empty afternoon stretched out in front of me. It was my first full day in Sydney, and the pool was right in my line of sight. I was so close I could almost taste it.

For some reason, though, I was dubious about whether or not to spend my afternoon swimming there. Bondi that day was actually pretty chilly, and the skies were cloudy and overcast. I took a book down to the beach, procrastinating. To be honest, I was waiting for the sun to come out. I admit it – I wanted my own version of the perfect photo of the sun-drenched pool overlooking the ocean and the beach.

A spot of rain landed on my book.

I took this as a sign to get my ass in gear and get into that pool. After all, I reasoned with myself, rain doesn’t make much of a difference when you’re already soaking wet.

Rushing to a nearby shop and purchasing some hugely overpriced goggles (I knew I would forget to pack something) I headed across Bondi Beach in the direction of the Icebergs Pool. Walking down the steps to the reception, I felt a flutter of both nerves and excitement. I hadn’t swam a mile in longer than I would have liked. Being me, though, I had decided a while back that swimming anything less than a full mile once I finally got to the Bondi Beach Pool would be a waste.

Arriving at the ticket desk, I paid the $9 entry fee, then headed to the locker room.

History of the Bondi Beach Pool

The Bondi Beach pool, called Bondi Icebergs, has been standing on the southern end of Bondi Beach for over 100 years! Consisting of a 50-metre lane swimming pool and a smaller kids pool, it’s popular for serious swimmers and families alike. The Bondi Icebergs Pool is open to the public year round, but every Sunday from May-September it’s home to the Bondi Icebergs Winter Swimming Club, which sounds like one of the most hardcore swimming clubs in the history of the world.

Here’s what I mean:

To get into the club, you have to be vouched for by not one, but two long-standing members of the club. Sounds kind of nepotistical, but simple enough, right?

Wrong.

Once you’ve found two willing members to vouch for you, you have to attend a 1.5 hour induction.

Okay, manageable, fine.

But we’re not there yet.

Once you’ve found two willing members to vouch for you, and have attended the 1.5 hour induction, you have to swim there three out of four Sundays each month between May and September for FIVE YEARS before you’re allowed into the club. If you don’t meet your three-Sundays-per-month quota and can’t provide written evidence to excuse you, you’re suspended. Yikes!

Don’t get me wrong here. I really like swimming. But I think I’m in the majority when I say that’s a bit much. Luckily, I was just there for a casual swim.

Dipping My Toes Into The Bondi Pool

Stepping out of the locker room, I could see two others already swimming, so, picking an empty lane to myself, I perched my goggles on my forehead and lowered myself into the pool.

Immediately, the air was knocked out of me and my breathing became shallow as I tried to calm my body from the sudden shock of the unexpectedly FREEZING water. I quickly understood why the pool is called ‘Icebergs’. I was certain I’d just taken a full-body plunge in the arctic. Surely, I wasn’t still on Bondi Beach, in the heart of the Australian summer?

Looking over the edge of the pool confirmed that yes, I was still in Bondi. The temperature of the pool was just a cruel trick.

Realising that the dudes on the reception desk were probably laughing at me by this point, I reluctantly submerged myself underwater before swimming my first length of the pool. Each stroke was an attempt to distract myself from the ice cream headache that was rapidly intensifying.

At last, a few laps in, my muscles started to loosen as I eased into the familiar feeling of swimming lengths. Next, I tried to do the maths in my head to keep it busy as I pushed forward. One mile is pretty much 1610 metres. This pool is 50 metres. That means I’ll have to swim… erm… well…

I can barely do maths at the best of times, so I was asking a lot of myself here.

30? No, it’s like 32 and a bit…

Okay, let’s go with 33 lengths to be sure.

5 down, 28 to go.

I laughed to myself as I came up for air. Why do I do this to myself?

The Coldest and The Saltiest

Just a few more lengths in, my lips and the inside of my mouth started to tingle. Was that… salt?!

I very quickly realised that 1) the pool is not heated, and 2) it’s filled with seawater. This had me excited – I had never swam lengths in saltwater! The novelty soon wore off though, and I realised just how thirsty the salty water was making me.

15 down, 18 to go.

16 down, 17 to go.

18 down, 16 to go…

Being unable to stand the taste and the overwhelming thirst any longer, I took a pause to chug some water from my bottle. I pretty much never pause mid-swim, but at that moment I really didn’t care about bending my rules. Almost gagging, I couldn’t believe how sweet normal tap water tasted after all that salt.

As I launched into my next length, I spotted a newcomer to the pool, covered from head to toe in a wetsuit. I wished I had got the memo!

One feeling I just couldn’t shift was pure confusion. I had swam in unheated outdoor pools before. Heck, I was still swimming the London Fields Lido in October. How could water in a British pool in October be warmer than an Australian pool in summer? It made no sense!

25 down, 8 to go.

26 down, 7 to go…

I was nearly there. I had only warmed slightly compared to the initial, gasping shock on entering the water. Unsurprisingly, none of the people who had been in the pool when I got in were there anymore. A whole new cast of swimmers had taken their place. I noticed that most people only hung out in the pool for 10 minutes, maximum, before heading straight to the sauna. I couldn’t blame them.

All I could think about was that sauna as I paddled through my final few laps.

The image of this very pool had propelled me through the final strokes of my first 1 mile swim. Now, it was the image of a warm sauna that was propelling me to the end of this swim. I was starting to feel a cramp in my left calf (which I was certain was due to the water temperature), and a creeping stiffness in my shoulders, which was probably just because I hadn’t been swimming for a couple weeks.

32 down, 1 to go…

The Final Lap

Finally launching myself off the wall of the pool for my last length, I poured every ounce of remaining energy into getting to the other side as quickly as possible. Slapping my hand down on the wall, marking the completion of my mile-long swim in the Bondi Beach pool, I tore off my goggles, panting, before a huge grin spread across my face.

Sometimes, things don’t totally go to plan. It’s going to be cloudy and rainy when you expect brilliant sunshine. The pool is going to be a couple degrees above zero when you expected tropical water. Sometimes, you’re going to want nothing more than to leave a place you dreamed about. I was so happy that I didn’t care. I swam a mile! In the pool at Bondi Beach! And now I could get out of that dreaded icy pool and warm up!

Dragging my weary body out of the pool and towards the promising steamy windows of the sauna, I yanked open the door, collapsed onto a bench there, and let my body go limp as the steam nursed me back to life.

I hope you enjoyed reading about my experience swimming at the Bondi Icebergs Swimming Pool! If you want to read more about my travels in Australia, head over to my Australia page, where I keep all my posts about this awesome country!

Have you swam in the Bondi Beach pool? Did you also feel like you were going to freeze to death? Let me know in the comments!