decided to reverse things up today, started with 40 min sauna session at local gym. john, who is blind showed up at the gym with his guide dog Jonah. we spoke for a bit. john comes to lift weights, rowing, and treadmill about three times a week. quite an up beat guy, inspiration actually. he was surprised at learning about my daily cold plunges. asked him to consider trying it out. he jokingly said there were some things he can't see himself doing, cold plunges is one them things. we both had a good laugh over his dark humor. drove over to the park, headed off down to the creek. weather is crappy, snow and rain mix, lots of fog. walked into the creek, slid up next to a boulder, praying the sinners prayer until body relaxed. air temp 1°c, water 5.5°c, 7 min immersion session. water felt colder after doing 40 min sauna session earlier, was able to extend my immersion time. watched the rain drops bounce up off the surface of the water and my exhaled breath drift out across the creek mixing with the fog. tree's and surrounding mountains where lost to me hidden behind the winter fog. in that moment I had a glimpse of what John's life must be like. to face the fog of winter everyday and yet not let it define his attitude. we could all use that that level of resilience. oh, and a Jonah to accompany us along the way. #grownostr #coldplunges

#grownostr #coldplunges

woke up to heavy frost on our vehicles with air temp at -2.5°c, packed up, headed to the creek with water temp at 4°c. way too eager to get there. had to be careful making my way down to the creek as the rocks were especially slippery. waded over to my usual spot, leaned against the boulder. quietly repeated a prayer until body relaxed. ravens showed watching me cautiously, I could see them through my breath. 5 mins was enough, time exit. the wind kicked up pretty good this morning...20 knots. air temps got up to 6.5°c by early afternoon, gusting winds to over 35 knots. sky turned dark purple couple hours before sunset. their calling for dump of snow over night. #grownostr #coldplunges

Cold water has a way of changing people in surprising ways. #grownostr #coldwater

went for a late morning cold plunge at local recreational beach cove. the wind was blowing pretty good on the other side of the cove creating 1.5 meter waves. on this side it was calm, very beautiful. I wasn't alone as number of people were walking the same beach. seabirds were also hanging out. the water temp 6°c, air was 3°c, which is pretty mild this time of year. the group left the beach at same time I entered the water. they stopped their vehicle at my shelter watching with surprise. I waved to them, they waved back, laughing they drove off. started my prayer, body relaxed, the distant snow flurries made its way to the cove. turned my face skyward to feel snow landing on water. seabirds and gulls appear to relax coming closer. after 6 mins decided to head for the beach, dried off. hung out for two minutes in my dry robe. warmed up doing jumping jacks, few push ups, running in place. ravens hopped on top of the shelter to watch me, they seem amused. went back in water for additional 2 mins. finished with complete head immersion under the water. began to shiver, time to get out. got dressed, packed up wet clothes, headed to the car. won't get too many opportunities to do late morning plunges. grateful for holiday schedule away from work. drove to local coffee shop, finished warming up over a cup of tea planning next outing. #grownostr #coldplunges

ice lost out it hold on the lakes, rain storm was brutal pass two days. wind was around 8-10 knots with gusts up to 25-30. Air temp 2°c, water 5.4°c completed a 5 min Christmas cold plunge today. storm system came down the canyon kicked in the wind chill factor to about -1-3°c. very grateful for the full lenght dry robe my wife gifted to me this morning, wind chill was bit more bearable. much more grateful for significance the peace of Christ has made in my life. Merry Christmas to all the redeemed. #grownostr #coldplunges

slid into the creek this morning, it was dark out, leaned back against the boulder. air temp 0°c, water 5.1°c, 5 min plunge session it started to snow. did a meditative prayer for 3 mins to focus against the stinging cold. body relaxed soon after. heard some splashing sounds just over my shoulder, it was a small grey bird bathing 10 feet away. recognized it, an American Dipper, which is common in these parts. we exchanged glances as we both sat in the creek this morning. submerged my head in water one last, neighbors dog barks, timer goes off, we both leave the creek. what a rare magical moment to share the creek with another creature. the after drop from this plunge lasted for about an hour, shivered the whole time. #grownostr #coldplunges

#grownostr #coldplunges

did a morning and late afternoon cold plunge today. everything was frozen up this morning but the rains won out today. most of the snow melted into the creek. morning: air temp 0°c, water 4.5°c, 5 min session evening: air temp 2°c, water 5.4°c, 5 min session guy walking his dog stopped to chat a little before I slid into the creek. after I got in the dog wanted to go in the water too, but owner pulled him back. :) #grownostr #coldplunges

pass couple of mornings have been quite cold...air temp at -1°c, water at 5°c. frozen snow and ice finally gave way later in afternoon to rain. it will freeze over again tonight. had a few feathered locals, ravens, show up during my 6 min cold immersion session. they were watching & squawking at me, not in protest more like they were questioning. ended up shivering for about 15 mins straight once the after-drop kicked in later. it continued on and off for most of the morning at work. #grownostr #coldplunges

Winter wild swimming is goal I'm hoping to integrate into my lifestyle starting next summer. this short film seems to capture the essence of wild swimming. Watch “Chasing The Sublime” on Vimeo:

Vimeo

Chasing The Sublime

*AS SEEN ON OPRAH WINFREY'S SUPERSOUL SUNDAY 3 March 2019* Why do we put ourselves into the path of discomfort and risk? What drives us to ge...

stars were out this morning. hard icy roads made for a slow drive. should've defrosted the windshield longer, but was eager to get there. was able to make my way down to the creek from parking lot. had to be careful, lots of frost and hard ice coating rocks lining the creek banks. slid into the creek leaning against a boulder. slowing my breathing. air temp 0°c, water 4.9°c, 5 min cold session contrast to past several days the forest and creek were silent the morning. a sanctuary of sorts from outside and inward worlds been preoccupied with. cold water immersion provides a unique heterotopic space. #grownostr #coldplunges

awe inspiring, worth the watch! Watch “Bluehue” on Vimeo:

Vimeo

Bluehue

A short film about the connection to the natural world that year round naked swimming offers. Shot in the spectacular mountain lakes of Snowdonia, ...

ended up doing a 10 min cold shower this morning at 10°c. it was rain and snow with high winds all day. slushy walking around; finished off today with 40 min sauna session. #grownostr #coldshower

bought a new digital temperature gauge, my previous one stopped functioning. slid into the creek an hour after sunrise. air temp 2°c, water 4°c, 5 min plunge session. snowed another 10 cm overnight. headed out to the lake, which was frozen over to test the new digital gauge. broke through the ice to drop the sensor into the water it readout as 0°c. drove down to the habor, it tested at 5°c. temperatures are expected to drop along with additional snow heading into next week. hardness of winter is setting in now. #grownostr #coldplunges

snow storm swept through last night. had plans to get to the lake early to do my cold plunge, yet encountered someone in the ditch next to my mailbox. they were ok, no one hurt, just shook up a bit. we called tow truck company, but the trucks were quite busy pulling others out of ditches along the roadways in town. an hour later the tow truck showed up. of course by then we become new friends as we downed a few cups of coffee. it took 2 tow trucks to drag the truck up onto the road. we promised to meet up later for coffee again either this weekend or next. since I was short on time decided to give the creek a try versus long drive to the lake. it was up slightly but wuite doabke. slid into my favorite spot settled against the blouder. tree's along the creek had a heavy dusting of snow. air temp 1°c, water 0°c, 4 min session. patches of blue sky showed up today, sure things will freeze up over night. #grownostr #coldplunges

Experimental Theology The Great Seriousness and Great Blessedness of the Advent Message Richard Beck DEC 13, 2023 Jesus stands at the door knocking (Rev. 3:20). In total reality, he comes in the form of the beggar, of the dissolute human child in ragged clothes, asking for help. He confronts you in every person that you meet. As long as there are people, Christ will walk the earth as your neighbor, as the one through whom God calls you, speaks to you, makes demands on you. That is the great seriousness and great blessedness of the Advent message. Christ is standing at the door; he lives in the form of a human being among us. --Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The Great Seriousness and Great Blessedness of the Advent Message

Jesus stands at the door knocking (Rev.

ended up doing a 13 min cold shower this morning versus going to the creek. it was raining pretty steady this morning. creek would be roaring, thought perhaps by this afternoon or evening the weather would break. was hoping to a least get a cold plunge at the lake, instead the weather went from bad to worst. so end the day with a 35 min sauna session. planning to head to the lake in the morning. it looks like arctic weather will be moving for the weekend from the north. looking forward to colder weather. #grownostr #thermalism #coldplunges

showed up at creek 40 mins before sunrise. wind storm blew threw early this morning at about 3 am, several down tree's. the water level was up a bit. instead of going to the lake, decided to shift my cold plunge up stream to a deep hole that had minimal current. air temp 3.3°c, water around 1.6°c, 5 min session. after drying off, noticed the twilights of morning outlining the nearby mountain tops. only thing I could hear was towel brushing across my skin. made my way back to the vehicle, put on some dry clothes and socks. as I was leaving the entrance to the park the police pulled in. suspect a neighbor may have called them after seeing my head lamp reflecting off the pools through the trees. I'll shift my cold plunge to dusk tomorrow evening. gonna be an interesting talk one of these mornings I'm sure. #grownostr

it was raining most the night. left early this morning just in case the creek was over flowing. wanted to have time to shift my cold plunge to the lake if needed. suspected that the rain would turn to snow in higher elevations thus creek wouldn't be too high. wasn't disappointed the hríðar lost out this morning. however the wind was much worst that yesterday at 16-14 kph, which really kicked in the wind chill factor. air temp 4.5°c, wind chill 0°c, water 2.2°c, 4 min cold plunge session. there is a winter wind warning until 3 am tomorrow morning. here's to hoping that the creek level doesn't rise. #grownostr