It’s my favourite time of year. Not for gardening, or bulbs or seed starts, but for dipping. As a proud member of the Daring Dippers of the Salish Sea, I pride myself on my year-round dips in the ocean. My fellow Dippers and I have been strolling into the salt water in a variety of locations for years. I’m kind of the newbie with only my third winter under my swimsuit.
Entering into the ocean in the winter is almost a meditative experience, with deep concentration on keeping breath even and shoulders away from the ears.
But in the spring, as the water warms and the sun shines less feebly, awareness — and breath — become easier. It’s not freezing cold, but still very bracing. Last week the water was 9.5C, up from a low of about 6C in December and January. The water gradually warms through the spring and summer, and by the time fall comes our bodies are entirely used to the invigorating ocean water.
Once or twice a week, one of the group will send a message to the others and after a wee bit of backing and forthing about ride shares or timing, we meet at the beach. Henderson, Davis Bay, Snickett Park or Porpoise Bay Park are our favourite haunts. We spread out towels out and remove our clothing while catching up. Sometimes, if the sun is shining, we will sit on the logs and discuss children, or politics, or what to make for dinner. Finally, one of us makes a move to put neoprene boots on. We adjust our knitted hats—Barb made them, all in different colours—and don our gloves. We amble down to the shore and slowly but with purpose enter the water. There is no rushing, no slowing down, just a gradual enfolding of our bodies into the sea. We are usually silent for a moment, aside from some gasps as certain body parts greet the cold water. We keep to the guideline of one minute in the water for each degree of water temperature, and depending on discussions we are having we can stay in longer until one of us exclaims about the cold.
We leave the water as we went in, with deliberateness and respect. We remove our wet gear, sip tea and get dressed. In a few minutes we are ready to enter our lives again
We use equipment in winter; long sleeved swimsuits or wetsuits, neoprene boots and gloves, and toques. On shore we have small bathmats to stand on as we change, big towels or change robes and warm socks. Sometimes our equipment includes hot tea and cookies. As the weather and the ocean warms, we will shed all our equipment except swim shoes which help us scramble over the rocks on the shore.
Cold water dipping has been popular for several years, mostly in Scandinavian countries. Just Google it. You’ll find all kinds of rituals, equipment and health benefits.
If you’re interested in hanging out, you’ll find the Daring Dippers of the Salish Sea on WhatsApp and Facebook. Additionally, there are many small ad hoc groups, two friends or three neighbours, who dip on a regular basis around the Coast.
