WATCH: Not a n-ice day for wild swimming in the Cairngorms' most popular loch
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Wild swimming in the lochs of Badenoch and Strathspey is now all the rage.
But those brave souls looking yesterday to head into Loch Morlich – a hot spot for wild swimmers so to speak – would have faced quite a challenge getting into the icy waters.
Broken shards of ice crashed against the shoreline in the unusually choppy waters despite it being a relatively mild day.
Scott Fleming, who runs the Pine Marten Bar and Scran just a stone's throw from the loch, said he had never seen the waters in such a way, describing it as 'surreal'.
He said: "I was very surprised to see it. I have seen the loch frozen over many times before but have not seen it in such strange weather conditions.
"It was very surreal to watch."
The 31-year-old joker – known for his exploits locally on social media – even waded into the freezing water wearing nothing but shorts and a beanie hat.
But he had to admit that he was just not up to it compared to the wild swimmers who swim in the loch all the way through the year.
He said: "I went to go and try and push myself into the dark cold abyss of Loch Morlich but I did not get very far! I only made it up to just below my knees."
There has been plenty of reaction to Mr Fleming's post of 'wild scenes' at the popular beauty spot.
Neil Saunders joked: "Plenty of ice for your whisky but a Scotsman would never touch the stuff."
Kirsty Paton said: "Wow, what a moody day. The ice is amazing."
Catriona Allan said: 2Wow, that doesn;t even look real."
And Fiona Black posted: "That's crazy, David Attenborough would explain it nicely."
