The number of calm, clear and waveless days that present the opportunity to go freediving in Bass Strait along the Victorian Coast, the best ones are rare. The great unplanned they tend to be. So when my freedive buddy Christine and I went adventuring out in the 4.7m SWIFT inflatable boat on a cool winter’s day, everything beyond the conditions was going to be a bonus. And what a surprise we received, even amidst the milky green waters, the beauty of nature’s random acts cannot be truly anticipated.

Ice baths may look rad but can lead to stress and injury. Personal growth and resilience benefit from learning to understand how you adapt progressively towards your thresholds, finding comfort in the discomfort, without pushing. Coaching sessions for mindful cold water immersion in more manageable temperatures in beautiful settings along the Victorian and NSW coasts are just one option to build your capacity.

In the digital age, are we losing our sense of wild in Nature, happier to immerse in the curated online consumption version? What if we went back there? Is transformation possible? What do we do when we get there? And there’s wild beasts around? Freediving has become one method of returning to Nature, perhaps even a way of resurrecting our oneness. Freediving has for me been transformative, and shared lessons about connecting with Nature that I didn’t even know I needed. The unpredictable beauty of the ocean, even of life itself. When I happened upon a herd of wild Brumbies in the Snowy Mountains, freediving took me closer than I ever thought possible.