Cheese and Onion Sandwiches奶酪洋葱三明治

One of my earliest memories of river swimming is in the upper reaches of the River Swale in Swaledale in the Yorkshire Dales. It was a hot summer day and I remember my mum and grandma lugging our big blue cool box and bundles of blankets and towels through narrow stiles and across fields， past grazing sheep. With my brother and sister—and two dogs in tow—it must have been the school holidays， a day out in the Dales to keep us occupied as the weeks of what seemed like endless summer holiday stretched ahead.

说到下河游泳，我最早的记忆里有一段是在约克郡谷地斯韦尔代尔的斯韦尔河上游。那是个炎炎夏日，我记得妈妈和奶奶费劲地拽着我们家的蓝色大冷藏箱，上面还放着扎成捆的毛巾和毯子。她们一路走过狭窄的台阶，穿过田野，路过一群正吃着青草的羊。我和弟弟妹妹同行，后面还跟着两条狗，想必那时正值学校放假。即将到来的几周暑假好似漫漫无期，谷地一日游让我们有了点事干。

When we talk of river swimming we often think of big rivers and long swims： challenges like the Dart 10k， the Thames Marathon and the Bantham Swoosh are all bucket list swims for UK swimmers. One of my favorite river swims ever was the Little Red Lighthouse 10k in New York in the River Hudson. But swimming is more than distance and challenge， it is playtime， setting aside our daily worries and cares， reconnecting with nature and ourselves.

每每提到下河游泳，我们脑海中浮现的往往是在大河中长距离游泳，诸如达特河十公里赛、泰晤士河马拉松游泳赛、班特姆河速游赛之类的都是英国游泳者梦想参加的比赛。我最喜欢的河泳比赛之一是纽约州哈德孙河的小红灯塔十公里赛。然而，游泳不仅关乎距离和挑战，还是一段娱乐时光，可以让我们暂时忘却生活中的烦恼和忧虑，重建与自然和自我的连接。

I can still feel the cool water that pushed against my body as my brother and I played in the river on that summer day 40-odd years ago. The Swale is Britain’s fastest flowing river but as the young river1 tumbles down Swaledale from its source there are rapids and small waterfalls to play in. We pushed against the current， holding on to cold and slippy rocks， as my sister played in the shallows， our skin the colour of tea in the peaty water. No doubt there were cheese and onion sandwiches for our picnic lunch on the grass by the river， spread out on our massive picnic blanket that was always covered in sand and dog hair， watched over by beady-eyed2 sheep.

四十多年前的那个夏日，我和弟弟在河水中嬉戏玩闹，清凉的河水拍打着我的身体，那种感觉至今记忆犹新。斯韦尔河是英国流速最快的河流。这条幼年期河流从源头奔流而下穿过斯韦尔代尔，形成数条湍流和多个小瀑布。我们逆着水流，紧紧抓住冰冷湿滑的岩石，妹妹则在浅滩玩耍。河中泥水把我们的皮肤染成茶色。毫无疑问，我们中午在河边草地上的野餐必然有奶酪洋葱三明治。我们把三明治摆在总是沾有沙子与狗毛的巨大野餐毯上，惹得羊群睁大眼睛盯着看。

While you might not want to eat cheese and onion sandwiches on a dog hair-covered blanket， playing around in the shallows of our smaller rivers is a happy way to spend some time thinking of nothing but the present. Especially in a summer heatwave， why not follow your local river to its upper reaches where the water is cooler？ Rapids and waterfalls， sudden deep pools where you can lazily float as the sunshine dapples through the trees， explore how reconnecting with playtime makes you feel.

或许你并不愿意坐在沾着狗毛的野餐毯上吃奶酪洋葱三明治，但在我们这边小河的浅滩上玩耍是一种令人愉悦的消遣方式，能让我们除了当下，什么都不用想。尤其是在暑气逼人的夏日，为何不沿着当地的河流溯流而上，去感受上游更加清凉的河水呢？湍流、瀑布，还有不期而遇的深潭，就在阳光穿过树叶，投下斑驳光影之时，你可以懒洋洋地漂浮在水面上，细细品味重拾娱乐时光是何种感受。

My local river in Cumbria， the Kent， and its tributaries likewise affords many opportunities for play： from death-defying leaps into deep pools to waterfall jacuzzi tubs （which in the winter are bone-bitingly cold） and short deep stretches where you can swim into the current and not get very far at all！ This month I challenge you to forget your Garmin3， tow float and training plan and to just dick about in the shallows for an hour. Cheese and onion sandwiches are optional！

我家乡坎布里亚郡的肯特河及其数条支流也给我们提供了许多玩耍的好去处。人们可以舍命纵身跃入深谭，可以坐进瀑布下的“按摩浴缸”（但在冬天会冰寒彻骨），还可以在不长的深水区顺流游泳，根本不必担心游得太远！本月，我邀请你摘掉运动手表，扔掉拖拽浮漂，忘掉训练计划，在浅滩随便扑腾一个小时。至于是否要吃奶酪洋葱三明治，全由你选择！

（译者单位：湖北省宜都市第一中学）

1河流地貌发育的幼年期，总体特点是侵蚀强烈，河流以下切侵蚀（包括溯源侵蚀）为主，河谷深，地表起伏大。 2 beady-eyed机警地盯着的；目光锐利的。

3此处以知名智能穿戴品牌“佳明”来指代智能运动手表。