Clifton Gardens Baths – Chowder Bay – NSW 2088

My experience in the pool I was the only one swimming at Clifton Gardens Baths in Chowder Bay on a sunny but chilly May morning. Well, unless you count the heron that kept bobbing up and down in the water around the shark net, or the school of pretty big fish - about 50cm long I'd guess - darting about around me in the water. Oh, and the scuba divers in their thick suits just outside the baths themselves. The air temperature might have been a brisk 13C or so but the water was warm, probably Read more [...]

Prize for artwork on Ocean Pools

There is a $1,000 prize up for grabs, organised by the people who run the excellent All Into Ocean Pools website. Deadline for entries is 31 May, so only a few days left to get your favourite ocean pool painting or photo, or any other visual media, and submit it for the 2017 Sheridan Evans award. I just submitted an entry which took less than two minutes to upload so if you share our love of ocean pools, or just have an image of your favourite, why not have a go? Here's details of who Read more [...]

Oatley Bay Baths – Oatley, NSW 2223

Oatley was named after a convict clockmaker - check out the commemorative clock tower in the village. My experience in the pool The kookaburras started chuckling as soon as we entered Oatley Pleasure Grounds and were in full cackling mode by the time we reached the edge of the water at Oatley Bay Baths. As we looked at the uninviting murky water and the cold breeze blew in from the river, we wondered if they were laughing at us for even thinking of having a dip in a pool where nobody seems Read more [...]

Oatley Park Baths – Jewfish Bay, NSW 2223

My experience in the pool Oatley Park Baths in Jewfish Bay have so many unique qualities, it’s hard to know where to begin. For a start, the shark net here is 320m long so do 3 lengths of the netting and you’ve basically finished the 1km I normally do in my 20 laps of a 50m pool. And yes, the morning we popped down to Jewfish Bay, there were a couple of guys doing just that. One of them told us that on club days, if they want to run a 1km race, they get everyone to just do a circuit Read more [...]

Gymea Bay Baths – Gymea, NSW 2227

The gymea is a type of lily. My experience in the pool Gymea Bay Baths have one of the most beautiful backdrops of Sydney's tidal baths, but boy you need to pick the right moment to come for a swim. So, first the positives about Gymea Bay. The baths are tucked away in a quiet cove surrounded by gum trees so when you get out of the car (and even more so if you catch one of the buses here which drop you off a good hike from the pool) you fill your lungs with the lovely eucalyptus scents. Then Read more [...]

Gunnamatta Bay Baths – Cronulla, NSW 2229

Named for an Aboriginal word meaning 'sandy hills' My experience in the pool You can take your pick at Gunnamatta Baths between the 50m area and the more general shark-netted swimming enclosure along the sandy beach. Locals kept telling me the water can be a degree or two warmer at the northern end (ie away from the 50m pool bit), and there were a couple of guys in that section, but I opted for the proper swimming section, which was laned off with rope markers ahead of the local swim club Read more [...]