Speaking from personal experience, there are four distinct stages to a cold plunge with the North Fork Polar Bears.
The first is trepidation, as you slip off your dry robe on a windy beach and will yourself into chilly water. Then comes shock, as your body reacts to the sudden drop in temperature and you wade in up to your neck for maximum benefit.
About a minute or two later, something remarkable happens: your breathing steadies, the panic fades and after another minute or so a full-body calm settles in. The final stage arrives long after you’ve dried off: an exhilarating sense of clarity and well-being that lasts all day.
Next Sunday morning, Jan. 25, the Polar Bears are inviting the North Fork community to experience all four stages firsthand at Veterans Beach during the fourth annual North Fork Polar Plunge, a fundraising campaign supporting C.A.S.T. North Fork and the Cornell Cooperative Extension Marine Program’s Back to the Bays initiative.
North Fork Polar Bears co-founder Patricia Garcia-Gomez, who swims seven days a week, year round, said that it’s natural for the cold-water curious to feel nervous. (Last year’s event was so cold that local firefighters broke up ice in the bay along Veterans Beach so plungers could enter the water.)
“It’s very normal to be terrified — it’s scary,” Garcia-Gomez said. “It’s super normal.”
But that fear, she said, can work in participants’ favor.
“Actually the more terrified you are — on the other side is an equal measure of joy,” she said. “You might discover something that you didn’t know you could do, discover that it feels good after all. So we invite the curious to follow your curiosity, all the way to the other side and do it.”
Co-founder Dafydd Snowdon-Jones was equally encouraging, emphasizing the power of plunging together.
“Being able to tap into, and connect to, and be in a community makes such a difference,” he said. “What’s available to this community is magical.”
What began as a small group of North Fork residents slipping into winter water has blossomed into an annual campaign that has raised more than a quarter-million dollars for local causes and continues to expand.
“We didn’t even know we were a community at the very beginning,” Garcia-Gomez said. “Everything has been an organic process of sharing what we love, and it’s taken on new meaning. Once we saw that there was community, then you tap into, ‘What can we do as a community?’”
The plunge’s mental and physical health benefits remain central, Snowdon-Jones said.
“Our focus is connection,” he said. “Our focus is being with each other.”
For C.A.S.T. North Fork, the annual plunge has become one of the organization’s most distinctive and colorful fundraisers, drawing broad community support for a thrilling winter morning at the beach. This year marks a milestone, as the nonprofit is fielding its first-ever plunge team, with a staff member committing to enter the icy waters.
“We finally have a brave team member who is going to take the plunge this year, and we’re really excited about that,” said C.A.S.T. North Fork executive director Erica Steindl.
Steindl also highlighted efforts to involve young people and ensure that participation remains accessible. She stressed that plunging is not required, noting that many supporters contribute by donating to teams or offering general support.
Related: North Fork Polar Bears and Back to the Bays seed 130,000 clams in Cedar Beach Creek
The new Polar Bear Youth Initiative is being developed in collaboration with Back to the Bays and local schools. Garcia-Gomez said the idea grew out of seeing a self-organized Mattituck High School team participate last year.
“Their parents came back to us and told us what a huge difference it made for their well-being,” she said. “It gives high schoolers a way to connect with each other, to their environment, and to something positive.”
The program includes a “Junior Polar Bear” registration level for participants under 18, priced at $15, with scholarships available upon request.
“We don’t want cost to be a barrier,” Garcia-Gomez said. “If finances are an issue at all, people should just reach out.”
In addition to mental health and youth engagement, the group has added a new goal this year: removing the equivalent of 100,000 plastic bottles from the ocean through a partnership with Ocean Bottle. Each Ocean Bottle represents 1,000 plastic bottles removed, and the first 100 participants at the $125 “Ocean Hero” level receive a reusable bottle as part of their registration.
Register for the North Fork Polar Plunge here.
The Polar Bears have also expanded local partnerships, with in-kind sponsorships doubling this year and a new $750 “Seahorse Sponsor” level aimed at businesses whose livelihoods depend on the water.
“Our hope is to bring together businesses on the water to give back to the water,” Garcia-Gomez said.
Also expected at next weekend’s plunge is a Bunji Box sauna — a portable, wood-burning cedar barrel offering a post-plunge thaw. The winning team or individual will receive a free one-day sauna rental among other prizes. The East End couple behind the company first connected with the Polar Bears during a Sunday morning swim in 2024, sparking an ongoing collaboration.
Since then, Garcia-Gomez has hosted a plunge-and-sauna gathering in Orient on the night of each full moon throughout the winter, a ritual that has quickly gained a devoted following.
Snowdon-Jones has seen many converts in the past five years, and said lots of first time polar bears will leave changed.
“When you have the courage to do this,” he said, “you start to think differently about what else in your life you might have the courage to do.’”