Swimming
Meet the man who swims the coldest waters on earth
Swimming across the North Pole may sound like madness, but for Lewis Pugh, it's the best way to raise awareness for ocean conservation.
Lewis Pugh swims in water so cold that the cells in his fingers freeze and expand causing massive bruising. He has front crawled across a glacial lake beneath Everest, and was the first human to swim across the North Pole, where, besides hypothermia-inducing water temperatures, he faced other hazards such as leopard seal attacks and sharp floating ice blocks in his path. During his North Pole quest, the water was completely pitch black, Pugh feared that if his body gave up he would sink into the abyss, never to be seen again.
But his death-defying swims are not standalone stunts. The 47-year-old Brit is the UN Patron of the Oceans and is a qualified marine lawyer. Each of his swims send a powerful message about climate change, melting sea ice and the need to protect marine ecosystems.
Swimming for injustice
Pugh swims in water so cold that the cells in his fingers freeze
© Kelvin Trautman
Pugh’s ice water challenges take him to the edge of death, but he believes it's worth the risk: “I do these swims because I love life. The whales, the penguins and the albatrosses are truly magnificent animals, and we have absolutely no right to destroy their world.” The waves aren't confined to water, either: after meeting with Vladimir Putin’s right-hand man in The Kremlin, Pugh helped smooth the way for Russia signing the landmark Ross Sea agreement, creating a Marine Protected Area larger than Germany, France, Italy and the UK combined.
Leaving the water can be the most dangerous part
Survivors pulled from icy water run the risk of heart attacks
© Kelvin Trautman
Finishing the swim can be perilous. Pugh struggled to get back into the support boat after his latest swim. His muscles' temperature had decreased and the pressure of the boat against his chilled ribs as he scrambled inside caused massive bruising. “When I got out, I was physically and mentally finished,” he said. Survivors pulled from very cold water need to be handled very gently, otherwise they can be thrown into a dangerous heart rhythm from which Doctor Melvill ominously explains, “there is no way back.” The journey back to the tourist ship was slow to avoid bumping through the waves. And even once safely onboard, Pugh could only enjoy a tepid shower to prevent sudden shock to his heart.
Mind over matter
A contemplative moment with some of the wildlife that motivate his swims
© Kelvin Trautman
With the danger cranked up to 11, preparation is key. On Pugh's latest trip to Half-Moon Island, he travelled on a public boat with tourists who were embarking on the trip of a lifetime, but spent most of the time in his cabin. “For me, I don’t know if I’m coming back," he says. If the magnetic penguin on the outside of his door was facing up, his team would enter. If it was facing down, Pugh needed time to himself. “Inuit people have a parable about there being two wolves in your head,” explains the swimmer of the positive mindset he was trying to nurture before his swim. “There’s a good wolf and a bad wolf. The wolf who wins is the wolf you need."
Fear plays a critical part in readying the body
Pugh has a very private and focused build up to his swims
© Kelvin Trautman
Pugh strips down to just Speedos before confronting the freezing water. Anything more he says wouldn’t show the right kind of commitment to his environmental message. Just before he dives in, he’s got one more trick up his proverbial sleeve. “Fear,” he explains, “makes my core body temperature rise by 1.5°C.” This controlled core temperature warming has been scientifically recorded by Professor Tim Noakes. Incredibly it seems that Pugh’s body knows what is coming, and bolsters its defences before tackling the cold water.
'Frozen tongue' can happen
Pugh swims alongside South African kayak champ Dawid Mocke
© Kelvin Trautman
Pugh front crawls fast and aggressively during his swims. The longer he is in the water, the more the pain gets “cranked up.” His doctor Roger Melvill watches from the support boat whilst Dawid Mocke – a South African kayak champion – paddles alongside. “Dawid is right next to me and we are having a conversation all the way,” Pugh explains. Cold water swimmers, even in the relatively warm English channel, have been known to suddenly sink and drown without any prior warning. Between his furious strokes at Half-Moon Island, Pugh flicked his finger in front of him, signalling to Mocke he was still okay. However if he’d wanted help, he wouldn’t have have been able to call out. His tongue had frozen inside his mouth.
And he's not done quite yet
During his 2015 swim, the sea water was -1°C and air temperature -37°C
© Kelvin Trautman
As a teenager Lewis Pugh worked as a rescue swimmer in Camps Bay, South Africa. Swimming today, however, is often a frightening and painful experience. There are still moments though when Pugh finds real pleasure in his sport. “I love the action of swimming,” he says, and “on a warm Sunday afternoon in Dover, swimming in the Channel with club swimmers is wonderful.”
Before the 200th anniversary of Antarctica’s discovery in 2020, Pugh wants to get six more marine protected areas agreed that together will be the size of Australia. The British adventure swimmer will soon be back swimming at the seventh continent to promote #Antarctica2020. He admits he would happy if he never had to do another cold water swim again. But his continued commitment to icy water and geopolitics seems unshakeable. “It’s the moments that challenge us most that define us,” he concludes. “Are you going to go for it, or are you going to back out?"
Read more about Pugh's story here - and if you like watching icy open water challenges, Neptune Steps returns to Glasgow on March 10th.