Polar Plunge

[world2c]

Linda,

Go out to the Departure Lounge to the month of your trip. Look for your trip and departure date. You will find more posting there. I am going on the 29 November trip. I have reserved camping and plan to do the polar plunge.

Good luck!

[trumpeteerav]

I was on the early November cruise this year and the day for the polar plunge was the absolute coldest day we had on the trip. It was truly insane. About 60 of us ended up going in and that was spread out over 2 groups. I was in the second wave to hit and since nobody died of a heart attack in the first group we figured it was ok. The water temp was 28 degrees F. The wind was blowing 40 mph and there were 4 foot waves. The crew started getting nervous by the time the last of us were getting out of there because it was taking 4 guys to push the zodiacs off the beach it was so choppy . The spot at Deception Bay that is supposed to be warm because of the volcano stuff had too many icebergs around it so we had to go in further around and there was no relief from the cold. They stacked garbage bags full of towels on the snow and after you came out of the water you got a towel and then tried to put your clothes back on. Most people just put their coat and boots on and carried their clothes and ran for the zodiacs. The sauna was PACKED. It was so cold after coming out of the water I couldn't feel anything. I thought I was standing on my towel but I looked down and realized I was still standing in the snow. One Brit went in naked so that kept things lively. All in all I would do it again....It was one of the highlights of the trip without a doubt.

[jen_the_rockhopper]

I was on the early November cruise this year and the day for the polar plunge was the absolute coldest day we had on the trip. It was truly insane. About 60 of us ended up going in and that was spread out over 2 groups. I was in the second wave to hit and since nobody died of a heart attack in the first group we figured it was ok. The water temp was 28 degrees F. The wind was blowing 40 mph and there were 4 foot waves. The crew started getting nervous by the time the last of us were getting out of there because it was taking 4 guys to push the zodiacs off the beach it was so choppy . The spot at Deception Bay that is supposed to be warm because of the volcano stuff had too many icebergs around it so we had to go in further around and there was no relief from the cold. They stacked garbage bags full of towels on the snow and after you came out of the water you got a towel and then tried to put your clothes back on. Most people just put their coat and boots on and carried their clothes and ran for the zodiacs. The sauna was PACKED. It was so cold after coming out of the water I couldn't feel anything. I thought I was standing on my towel but I looked down and realized I was still standing in the snow. One Brit went in naked so that kept things lively. All in all I would do it again....It was one of the highlights of the trip without a doubt.

that rocks! I am soooo looking forward to this! All my friends think I am crazy LOL

[giskard]

I definitely enjoyed the polar plunge a lot. Ours was done from the beach of Deception Island, on what was also one of the coldest days of the trip. -3ºC water and a windchill of -18ºC... and yes, you lose quite a bit of sensation because of the cold, but I didn't really notice that until after I got back out of the water. The shock of the cold water sort of makes your lungs stop working, so I didn't succeed in actually swimming a few strokes.

A small group of us had the superb opportunity of doing it again a few days later, this time by diving off the side of the ship while anchored in Paradise Bay. The water obviously was as cold, but the sun was out that day and there was hardly any wind, which made for much better circumstances. This time I remembered to take a deep breath before I hit the water and was able to swim around a little bit. Absolutely amazing experience!

[chrisburridge]

I booked too late for camping, or kayaks, but the polar plunge is a MUST. I didn't know about it in the Arctic and had no bathing gear, this time I'll be more prepared - roll on jan 11th!!
the information here is really useful, thanks all.