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阅读理解（1） A Wild swimming－taking a dip in rivers, lakes and waterfalls－is fantastic fun and has great health benefits. However, many avoidable drownings even deaths have happened, so people are asking: is wild swimming safe? One of my favourite locations is Gullet Quarry, a beautiful pool that reaches more than 18℃ in summer. Yet there have been two drownings of local boys there this month. The water is warmer than that in the sea, and there are no currents and no particular underwater obstructions. Many swimmers swim there all year round because it's really a safer place to swim than the sea. But is wild swimming really dangerous? I believe it is behavior and activities around swimming that are dangerous, rather than the location. You might be surprised to learn that outdoor swimming is rated as a moderate risk, while other seemingly safe activities, such as fishing and sailing, are high risk. The advice I give to beginners is to know your limits and build up experience slowly. Water can be very cold. Though cold water doesn't kill you, it'll make you much less buoyant. So swim 10% of the distance you can do until you have adapted to it. Above all, stay close to the bank or shore. Cold water can cause shocks, so enter slowly and be careful to jump into deep water. Nowadays, we're losing basic outdoor skills and common sense. Half of children over seven can't swim a length of a pool, and fewer haven't swum outdoors. So I don't believe that fencing up wild swimming locations will improve safety.Instead, | 
