Sydney’s wild waterholes, picturesque ocean baths and mid-century pools

From Palm Beach to Bondi, Sydney is famous for its beautiful beaches and sparkling harbour.

Those natural assets are only part of the reason why keen swimmer and writer Chris Baker has boldly claimed that Sydney is the best major city in the world for swimming.

In his new book, Swimming Sydney: A tale of 52 swims, he shares his love of wild waterholes, picturesque ocean pools, mid-century municipal aquatic centres, top-notch modern facilities and even a backyard pool.

“With both the human-built and the natural, we have, in sheer volume and sheer variety, probably more swimming holes and swimming venues than anywhere else.”

It was not something he fully appreciated until he lived overseas for many years.

Upon returning, it was the water that helped him feel at home again.

“It became a way that I re-acculturated myself to Sydney and that I fell in love again with Sydney through its swimming holes and its venues,” Mr Baker says.

“Our beaches are also free and that’s not the case in the rest of the world, so that’s something that’s remarkable and special about Sydney too.

“We also have some incredible wild swimming holes in places like the Royal National Park and in the Blue Mountains.” 

Personal favourite

After his 52 swims — one each week for a year no matter the weather — Mr Baker somewhat guiltily declares his personal favourite.

“I feel like a bad parent or an unfair teacher, but I think we all have a favourite,” he says.

It’s a mix of the view, history and personal connection that makes Wylie’s Baths at Coogee his number one.

“At any time of day, any time of year, there’s something incredibly compelling about the aspect of Wylie’s, then you put on top of that a beautiful Edwardian boardwalk, it’s a heritage pool and there’s the history,” Mr Baker says.

Founded by Henry Alexander Wylie, the baths honour his daughter Mina Wylie, who along with Fanny Durack became Australia’s first Olympic female swimmers when they raced in the Stockholm Games in 1912.

At what became known as Wylie’s Baths, the pair would often race each other, making it a fitting homage to their friendship and fierce rivalry.

Mr Baker often swam there as a university student, and in later life it took on special significance thanks to a close friend.

“Sadly, she died before her time — of an unlucky tumour as she called it — and appropriately we went to Wylie’s for her wake and her ashes were scattered close by.”

Mr Baker would like a similar send-off when the time comes.

“I think you could certainly pick a worse place than Wiley’s to end up floating out to the horizon.”

The joys of council pools

Sydney boasts dozens of 50-metre lap swimming pools thanks to mandatory swimming lessons for children in the 1950s and spurred on by Olympic swimming success.

Mr Baker singles out Mount Druitt pool, surrounded by parkland, as particularly special with its creative efforts to get people through the gates.

They hold a ‘Dive In’ in summer where you can watch a movie at the pool in the evening, and in winter they drain the pool and fill it with fresh water and trout for a fishing experience.

“You’ve got to love the ingenuity and the fun and the playfulness of places like Mount Druitt, where they’re not only just offering a swimming pool, but they’re offering a community and a sense of fun,” Mr Baker says.

He also visited a pool in Western Sydney where a group of asylum seekers meet regularly to let go of the stresses of the week.

Mr Baker believes we instinctively gravitate to the water to relax.

“Maybe it goes back to being in utero, I think there’s something intrinsically comforting about water.

“If you’ve had a rough day, you run a bath and you try to de-stress in the water.

“If we are feeling particularly vulnerable or if we’re feeling overwhelmed by things, it’s a way of letting go.” 

‘They all have their charms’

Michael Easton is another Sydneysider who shares a love for suburban swimming pools.

He started trying out different watering holes to swim laps with his mate a few years ago, documenting what makes each one special on Instagram in 10 photos.

They’ve now swum in 68 pools and he struggles to single out a favourite.

“They all have their charms. Some of the pools out west are really nice because they’re often located with these big grassy areas around them and it just gives this feeling of space and openness,” Mr Easton says.

“I have great memories of swimming at Mount Druitt pool in the middle of the day in the rain when we had it to ourselves.”

He says there are certain rituals associated with going to the standard council pool.

“Kids lying on the concrete to warm up, the towel change and the various unspoken rules about what you can and can’t do in each lane.

“Sometimes you get outside your culture and you realise it has just as much cultural meaning and custom associated with it.”