Thousands of people across Canada shrieked, shivered and smiled their way into a new year on Monday as they took part in the long-standing tradition of Jan. 1 polar bear dips.

Canadians have been marking New YearB次元官网网址檚 Day with plunges into lakes, oceans and rivers made frigid by typical January conditions since at least 1920, and scheduled events in cities spanning Halifax to Vancouver were poised to maintain the ritual.

Joanie McNally, from Sackville, N.S., lost no time in kicking off this yearB次元官网网址檚 polar dips when she ran into the icy ocean water at Queensland Beach on Nova ScotiaB次元官网网址檚 South Shore at 9 a.m. Monday morning. In doing so, she also fulfilled a long-standing personal goal.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e always at this beach, but this is the first time (swimming) when itB次元官网网址檚 on the more frigid side,B次元官网网址� she said moments before taking the plunge.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a bit of a challenge to start the new year on the right track.B次元官网网址�

The temperature sat around -5 C as McNally and 11 other swimmers stripped off their winter jackets, mittens and hats and went off into the icy waves.

McNallyB次元官网网址檚 husband and daughter, along with a handful of other spectators, cheered and hollered for the group as they ran from the frozen sand to the chilly water.

Dave Morash, also from the Sackville area, said it was the coldest polar plunge heB次元官网网址檚 done in at least six years.

Morash and a small group of fellow high school teachers have been doing the plunge together since 2018, but he says this was the first time since then that the temperature has been below zero on New YearB次元官网网址檚 Day.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 invigorating, itB次元官网网址檚 like all of your nerve endings start tingling,B次元官网网址� he said immediately after the dip.

B次元官网网址淚 always refer to it as a reboot, you sort of reboot your system like a computer. So here we go, here comes 2024,B次元官网网址� he said with a laugh as he dried off.

MondayB次元官网网址檚 swim, while launching new traditions for some, also marked a departure from New YearB次元官网网址檚 Days past in Halifax.

For many years, swimmers jumped into the ocean from a city wharf as part of the Herring Cove Polar Bear Dip. The non-profit organization that put on the event since 1994 cancelled the 2021 dip due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and it has not resumed since.

A recent social media post from the Herring Cove Polar Dip organization said it is B次元官网网址渉oping to look at options going forwardB次元官网网址� for future events and asked for volunteer support.

When Halifax resident Darrell Robert found out there would not be an organized dip yet again this year, he suggested in comments on social media that people meet at Queensland Beach for an impromptu swim.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 nice to corral people and motivate each other to do something new on a new year,B次元官网网址� he said, adding he was pleased to see so many faces show up at the beach Monday morning.

B次元官网网址淚 like to see people get together as a community, I think itB次元官网网址檚 great and itB次元官网网址檚 a great start to the new year.B次元官网网址�

Small groups of cold-water swimmers were expected to do their own polar plunges throughout Nova Scotia. More than 20 swimmers in Halifax took an icy plunge into the Northwest Arm at Sir Sandford Fleming Park.

The weather was warmer and the crowds were substantially larger on the other side of the country where thousands of people plunged into VancouverB次元官网网址檚 English Bay.

Outside temperatures for the cityB次元官网网址檚 104th event sat at 6 C and organizers said the water was about two degrees warmer, as participants, some dressed as Elvis or wearing hats shaped like rubber ducks, took the plunge.

This year was Anne RainbowB次元官网网址檚 20th polar bear swim. She said past New YearB次元官网网址檚 dips have come with snow on the ground.

B次元官网网址淭hatB次元官网网址檚 when I learned to wear shoes,B次元官网网址� she joked, noting the red, bare feet of other participants who had just exited the water.

She said the relatively warm weather this year meant she was able to go in for a second dip.

B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 addicted to it. I love it,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淛ust the energy, the cleansing. The feeling of making you feel like youB次元官网网址檙e ready to start a new year.B次元官网网址�

RainbowB次元官网网址檚 friend Cindy Wells has watched the event in the past but decided to participate for the first time this year.

B次元官网网址淚 needed to start new for 2024. It was a crazy 2023,B次元官网网址� she said.

Similar events, many of which were intended to raise money for charity, were set to take place in locations including Charlottetown and Saint John, N.B.

In Oakville, Ont., a city just west of Toronto, the return of sub-zero temperatures following days of unseasonably mild conditions proved no deterrent for the roughly 850 people who took part in a plunge at Coronation Park. The swim in Lake Ontario was intended to raise money for charity World Vision Canada.

CEO Michael Messenger said this yearB次元官网网址檚 dip has so far raised $100,000 towards projects that help provide clean water in developing countries.

The 39th annual Oakville plunge marked the first such dip for 11-year-old Luca Tarabokia.

B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 pretty excited for it because the waves look awesome and I like the waves,B次元官网网址� Tarabokia said.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 my first time. I want to do it again next year if it goes well.B次元官网网址�

His mother, Jane Moran, called Tarabokia the B次元官网网址渃old water representativeB次元官网网址� for their family.

B次元官网网址淵ouB次元官网网址檝e got to have a certain fortitude to be able to do this and I really, really admire those who are able to do it, but IB次元官网网址檓 not one of them,B次元官网网址� she said with a laugh.

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