Just keep swimming: Octogenarian keeps up cold water aquatics started in her youth

Nisswa resident Gisela Borgwarth, 83, began swimming in Germany's portion of the North Sea at the age of 10.

As a young girl growing up in Germany, she was a member of a group of girls who liked to keep swimming after the swimming pools were closed for the season. She called the group daredevils as they would push the limits of their endurance by swimming in the River Elbe and the North Sea.

Gisela began swimming on Gull Lake on Booming Out Bay in 1980 while married to Hanspeter Borgwarth. To this day Gisela continues swimming in Gull Lake at Hole, only now she does so at Hole in the Day Bay.

Her goal is to swim until Halloween. An exception came in 2016, when she swam until Nov. 16. According to Gisela, "The next day was a snowstorm."

On Thursday, Oct. 18, with water temperatures in the upper 40s, Gisela was back in the water. The wind was from the south and the water was calm but cold. A neighbor came out to watch as the sun rose above the horizon and illuminated her face in the blue water.

Swimming wasn't the only thing capturing her attention Thursday. "Look, a flock of swans," she exclaimed as they rose off the surface of the lake. A flock of ducks also skimmed the surface.

"I love it," she said.

For more photos of Gisela, swimming go to https://bit.ly/2J61MMa

1/2: Gisela Borgwarth of Nisswa walks into Gull Lake Thursday, Oct. 18, with the air temperature in the 30s and the water temperature in the 40s for a late season swim. Borgwarth, 83, has been swimming since age 10 and began her sport in the cold water of the North Sea in Germany. Steve Kohls / Brainerd Dispatch Gallery and Video

2/2: After her morning swim Thursday, Oct.18, Gisela Borgwarth marvels at the sight of a flock of swans as they rise off of Gull Lake near her home in Nisswa. Steve Kohls / Brainerd Dispatch Gallery and Video