Polar Bear Plunge

We Alaskans pride ourselves on being adventurous, wild, and sometimes more than a little crazy. Crazy is a word I heard many times over the past few weeks after I decided to take the jump at the 25th annual Polar Bear Plunge in Seward, Alaska. This tradition is a fundraiser for American Cancer Association in which bold, costumed Alaskans jump in to the icy cold waters of Resurrection Bay in the middle of winter.

The company I work for, Alaska Communications Systems, has sponsored the Polar Bear Plunge for over 20 years. So I decided to join the ACS team and I even convinced my best friend, Christina, to do it with me. Christina and I met at Purdue in Indiana. Christina is from Indiana, but four years ago she decided to make Alaska her home. She loves it here—I always thought she seemed like an Alaska girl. She has that streak of crazy in her that let her say “yes” to jumping into a winter ocean in a month where sub-zero temperatures are likely.

In the weeks leading up to the jump we were nervous and excited. Would our hearts stop? Would we be too cold to swim to the dock? Would we succumb to the natural reaction to inhale sharply when you are suddenly submerged in cold water? These thoughts concerned us, but we were also excited to make this jump the start of a year full of crazy, new adventures.

The morning of the jump we hit the road at 6am. Excitement and nerves helped us rise for the early two and half hour drive. A thick snow fell most of the way, beautiful in the headlights of the dark morning. As we neared Seward, the sun was beginning to rise. We pulled over for a bathroom break and took a moment to enjoy the quiet snowfall on the pink mountains.We jumped back in the car, shivering. At that point we were terrified. If we were cold just standing outside for a couple minutes, how would we survive jumping into Resurrection Bay?

After arriving, we met up with the other ACS team members, got signed in, and changed into our Android costumes. The Android Hero™ is the first Android phone in Alaska and it just launched at ACS. To celebrate this launch, the team wore lime green spandex full body suits, Android t-shirts, antennas, and lime green feather boas.

Before the plunge, all the jumpers gathered in downtown Seward for the parade. We lifted our spirits by singing and dancing through the streets, encouraged by the locals who came out to cheer us on. The parade took us all the way to the Seward Boat Harbor where we made the jump.

We counted to three and all the Androids jumped together. I don’t remember much about hitting the water. It was unbelievably cold, but I actually found it surprisingly refreshing. I was able to swim to the ladder on the dock with no problem and when I got out I felt so alive! Christina found the water extremely painful—like thousands of knives stabbing over her entire body. But we both had a wonderful time and raised a lot of money for an important cause. In total, over $100,000 was raised for cancer research. Crazy though it was, we are already planning our costumes for next year’s jump.

Winter Weirdness

This sort of ice formation may happen during one of our rare thaws, especially if there's a spot in the roof where the insulation is thin. (Hilary)

I had never noticed cobwebs in the stairway off a trail near my house - until a big freeze hit last December. It felt like I was walking through a haunted house. The webs were coated with a thick frost, and the weight of it made them hang very low. (Kyla)

Snowzilla, Anchorage's 25ft "celebrity snowman", on Christmas Day, 2008. After much bickering with the city, Snowzilla's owner was forced to tear him down the day before Christmas Eve. Much to everyone's surprise, he reappeared over night! Support for Snowzilla made national news and he was ultimately permitted to stay up throughout the Christmas season. (Samantha)

Frost is an often brutal reminder not to leave your possessions out in the cold for too long during Alaska's long winter months. I bet this cyclist was in for a surprise when he showed up for his ride home! (Samantha)

We had a large snowfall in Wasilla, Alaska followed by warm weather the next month so the snow on the roof started curling towards the house. I was afraid it might take out the window. (Cher)

The snow curls reminded me of snow boarding so I thought i'd give it a try. (Alces Browser)