This week, we’ve launched our first trial episode of a new series we’re calling: ‘SwimTrekkers'. In the coming months, so long as this kind of content speaks to you, we’ll be reaching out to more of the fascinating individuals who’ve joined us on trips around the world, since we started out in 2003...
Up first, we have the inspiring Catherine McKenna – a Canadian lawyer and former politician in the Liberal Party (who served as a Cabinet minister from 2015-2021). Catherine was the minister of environment and climate change from 2015-19. Then the minister of infrastructure and communities from 2019-21.
In 2021, Catherine decided not to seek re-election in the federal election. Instead, she founded the Climate and Nature Solutions advisory firm and served as chair of the United Nations High-Level Expert Group on the Net-Zero Emissions Commitments of Non-State Entities. Besides Catherine (appearing from The Glebe in Ottawa, where wildfires were raging these past few weeks), you’ll meet Ash and Reggie (holding the fort on Brighton beachfront at SwimTrek HQ) and Jack (based out in Sydney, hunkered down for the Aussie winter).
Together, we all sat in three different time zones to chat about Catherine’s open water origins, SwimTrek adventures in St Kitts and the British Virgin Islands, as well as the future of sustainable travel and how our operations should evolve in the coming years.
Enjoy!
Jack: ‘What are your first memories of swimming outdoors?’
Catherine: ‘My first memories of swimming outdoors are with my Dad. It's actually quite sad. He just passed away, but he was such a huge swimmer. He was Irish. So when I was little we would go to Ireland and we would swim in the Irish Sea and it was absolutely freezing, but I didn't really care. I just loved swimming with him. He taught me how to swim, although I'd like to say I had a better front crawl than him. He also loved body surfing and there was just something about the connection with the ocean and how alive it was. I just loved it. Where we lived in Canada, we would go to the lakes and some of our really Great Lakes. They literally are _Great Lakes. They have big waves, so it's absolutely gorgeous. And you actually can get away from it all. My life can get so busy and bonkers that getting in the water and just putting your head down, with no noise other than the churning water, it's just an amazing experience. I start lake swimming probably at the beginning of May, although I do wear a wetsuit. I hate wetsuits, by the way, but I do wear one and an insulated cap. I have friends who swim all year-round in Canada. They'll go all the time. I actually do prefer warmer water. I'll just be like frank about that. So, that's when I go to a pool.'_
‘My first memories of swimming outdoors are with my Dad. It's actually quite sad. He just passed away, but he was such a huge swimmer. He was Irish. So when I was little we would go to Ireland and we would swim in the Irish Sea and it was absolutely freezing, but I didn't really care…’
Reggie: What made you want to go on a SwimTrek?
Catherine: ‘Well, this is kind of a funny story. So, I was a politician – Minister of Environment and Climate change and then Minister of Infrastructure. We had like this terrible election. It was not a fun election and it was so much door knocking, but it was not fun. There was like an inspiring election when we were elected. I was part of Justin Trudeau's government. We were elected in 2015, and that was amazing. The second time was not amazing and I knew it was going to be really hard, so I booked a SwimTrek.’
‘I'd never gone on a SwimTrek before. I actually saw your bathing caps, so good marketing! I decided I was just going to book it ahead of time. So, I thought when I get through this election, which I hate, I’ll go. I just had a backpack and didn't know anyone. I just got on a plane and showed up in the British Virgin Islands. I was like, completely out of it. I was so exhausted and just got on and you were there, Reggie – we had a really nice group. I didn't mention that I had just come from kind of Bonkers Land, but it was great. And I knew I would need this. I actually am quite good at knowing when I need to recharge and just get away from it all. So, the whole point was to go and disconnect. It was lucky we had no Canadians, so no one recognised me. You put your head down and you just go swim. So, it was particularly nice because I really needed to get away. And I needed a break and you know, you kind of go there and you realise no one outside of your little bubble cares. It was just really beautiful swimming.’
Reggie: It's big ocean swims there – some of the crossings between the islands can be pretty wild! So, what can companies like SwimTrek do to make travel more sustainable?
Catherine: ‘So, that is like, you know, the elephant in the room that when you do this kind of tourism, even if there's a light footprint – I think SwimTrek has a pretty light footprint – you have to get on a plane and that is a significant source of emissions. Many people try to be mindful of that and you do things locally, but [plane emissions] are a big contributor to climate change. That certainly was on my mind and I think we all need to be thinking about that and also how do we not fly everywhere and swim more locally.’
‘I think it was also interesting being there because they were just recovering from the pandemic and a hurricane too. Obviously that was very challenging for them and from talking to local staff I learned about those realities. I also worked in development, I mean they rely on tourism. I mean, it doesn't take away the carbon emissions related to flights, but there is a positive local impact and that's really the opportunity when folks like tour operators are mindful of the impact they have. So, offering local options is great and I've seen SwimTrek has lots of local options. Then also being mindful of the local community and how you can support them.’
‘A lot of these communities are very connected to the water. They care greatly about water. They care greatly about tackling plastic pollution. So it’s important to be mindful of that and educate folks about these areas, like the British Virgin Islands. I didn't know a lot about the marine life. I also didn't know a lot about the history, or the politics. I think that's all part of it. I mean, we're all connected and I think the more when you go to places you can learn about those places and care about those places that will pay dividends down the road. I mean certainly for me, as Minister, you're thinking about how do you help people have a sustainable economy? How do you care about plastics in Canada that ends up, you know, in the ocean somewhere else? How do you think about climate change and exacerbating weather events for communities where they have no money? That sounds like a lot of deep thoughts, you know, since you're just going on a swim trip. I just think SwimTrek has a real opportunity to consider those angles.’
‘A lot of these communities are very connected to the water. They care greatly about water. They care greatly about tackling plastic pollution. So, it’s important to be mindful of that and educate folks about these areas, like the British Virgin Islands…’
Reggie: I just had a meeting with Brighton University this morning. We were talking about how to approach SwimTrek trips in a more environmentally friendly way. We're looking at auditing and assessing our operations and we’re discussing how important that ‘bottom up’ change is, instead of waiting for ‘top down’ regulation to set the parameters for how we operate. We just have to start doing something now.
Catherine: ‘Good. I'm excited about that because I also just did a report for the UN Secretary General and it's really about how you make sure that you are clear about what your goals are. How are you actually reducing emissions? Are you counting emissions, reducing emissions and making sure you invest in more sustainable operations? That is good to hear because I think ultimately it is really up to everyone to think about what is their impact. How do you minimise it? Also, how do you contribute to building a better world? So, it's not just your own impact it’s about positive change as a whole.
Jack: That journey to get back to the outdoors – when you switch from the pool to open water you're forced to enter a new environment and meet new wildlife and everything like that. There's so much that is unexpected and people have concerns about deep and cold water and all those other surprises. So, what was it that made you want to swim outdoors? Why wouldn't you just stay in the pool the whole time?
Catherine: ‘Now, I was a competitive swimmer in pool events. So, I did hours and hours in a pool, and, in a way, it was a real shift to outdoor swimming. I didn't really get it right away. When you're in a pool it's a lot is about your time and technique. Everyone's in these very short sets, but especially as I've gotten older I grew to love the idea that you can swim outdoors and you have a destination. I quite like that. Now, I go into a pool and I'm like: ‘This is the most boring thing in the whole world’. I used to swim backstroke and I laughed when I was competing - I think I was so bored looking at the bottom of the pool.’
‘I mean, when we were on the trip to the British Virgin Islands, we were seeing rays, turtles, fish and all this cool coral. You can just go into the zone and be aware of your environment and how fortunate you are to have these wild places. It reminds you how important it is that we protect these places. And you do also see the impact of humans on in water. You see plastics. You see bottles and cans. All of these things have a huge impact on the species that are there. Of course, there are things you don’t see. Often you don't see the pollution. You don't see the warming, but you do feel it. Those are things that remind us about the connection we have with nature and how much we as a species rely on the natural environment and have to protect it. Part of me is acutely aware that we could lose this.’
‘It is pretty magical, so if you haven't done it, if you're just a pool swimmer, don't be scared. It's fine.’
‘[Outdoor swimming] can remind us about the connection we have with nature and how much we as a species rely on the natural environment and have to protect it. Part of me is acutely aware that we could lose this.’
Jack: Roger Deakin wrote a book called ‘Waterlog’ that kind of kicked off wild swimming in the UK. There was something he wrote in another book, like: ‘All of us carry about in our heads places we shall never forget because we experienced such intensity of life there’. I think there's always somewhere you've swam that seems to stay with you for a long time. So, what was your most memorable swim?
Catherine: ‘I'll give you my top one. So, I went with our Inuit leader, Natan Obed – who’s this really awesome guy – and we went to the Torngat Mountains in Canada. It's in the Arctic in Labrador, although the Inuit called this area: Nunatsiavut. There they have this glacial lake. And I just went and put my bathing suit on. I mean, people thought that I was bonkers, but I just went in and it was freezing cold. It was just so beautiful.’
‘There were these massive cliffs around us and someone took a picture under the water and it had these layers of colour. I can't describe it. It was so magical, and even though it's really cold, like in a way that was kind of the point – it was shocking. And you go in and and actually different water temperatures have a different impact on your body, but you're like acutely aware of it, right? Swimming isn’t just the water. It’s not just the swim. It’s like the journey. It’s the experience. It’s the surroundings. That's what's very different from a pool. It's the air. It was just the fact I was in such a special place where not a lot of people really get to. I was also with someone from the community and it meant so much for him to show me this place. He was so proud. That was just one of those moments. It's funny though, some of the folk were like: ‘What is she doing?’’
‘But I just swim… I just swim.’’
‘Swimming isn’t just the water. It’s not just the swim. It’s like the journey. It’s the experience. It’s the surroundings. That's what's very different from a pool.’
If you enjoyed this interview, please let us know in the comments section below - or, if you have notes on what we could do to improve this series, don't hesitate to send them to us directly: marketing@swimtrek.com...
