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Okanagan polar bear dips: Start 2024 with an icy plunge

File photo. CRIS is coming back in 2023 with their polar bear dip. Submitted

Three weeks from now, brave souls across the Okanagan will be plunging into local lakes on Jan. 1.

It’s quite the spectacle, seeing people willingly run headlong into ice-cold water to kickstart the new year.

And Summerland, B.C., will be one of the local communities holding an annual polar bear dip.

This year’s dip in Summerland, the community’s 38th annual edition, will take place at Sun-Oka Beach at noon and is hosted by the local Kinsmen club. It’s also a fundraiser for the volunteer organization.

Click to play video: 'Summerland Polar Bear Swim 2018'
Summerland Polar Bear Swim 2018

Post-dip, attendees can enjoy warm fires, hot dogs and hot chocolate. Penticton Search and Rescue will be on hand to help out.

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Peachland will also be hosting its annual polar bear dip, on Jan. 1 at 1 p.m., though a pre-event check-in is required. The check-in runs from noon to 12:45 p.m.

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And in Kelowna, the annual polar bear dip will raise funds for CRIS Adaptive, a non-profit organization that helps make outdoor recreation accessible throughout the Okanagan.

Tickets are $20 each. The event will take place at Tugboat Bay, with festivities running from 1 to 3 p.m., and the cold plunge taking place at 2 p.m.

Naramata will also be hosting a polar bear dip at Centre Beach at noon. And in Osoyoos, the fifth annual desert dip will take place at noon at Gyro Beach.

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