The plunge must go on

Murray Broemeling could manage just one short sentence through clenched teeth Friday after she waded out of the icy Snake River at the Hells Canyon Resort marina.

“I can’t feel my skin,” the 14-year-old Clarkston resident said, the beach towel her only defense against the cutting breeze at water’s edge.

Her dad, Daren Broemeling, was responsible for her frigid state, having convinced Murray to join him on his fifth New Year’s Day plunge into the river.

“She said she would do it with me, so I’m holding her accountable,” he said.

Jett Vallandigham, the organizer of the Polar Bear Plunge for the last 20 years, canceled the official event earlier this week over concerns that it would violate Washington coronavirus restrictions on large gatherings. But that didn’t preclude people from showing up on their own, and several dozen made the jump, including several kids.

The third member of the Broemeling group was Murray’s friend, Brigid Coates, 15, also of Clarkston. Her face twisted in discomfort as she waded up the marina boat ramp, but she played it off once her feet were back on dry land.

“I’m fine,” she deadpanned. “It was fine.”

Jumpers plunged into the water in small family groups starting at about noon, the traditional plunge time. It was a stark contrast from years past when the marina’s docks were weighed down with hundreds of participants and wave after wave hopped off into the depths.

Jamie Rockefeller, of Clarkston, guessed that she was on her 10th plunge as she waited in a warm car with her husband, Andy O’Neill, shortly before noon.

“It’s just a good way to start the new year and it’s something different,” she said before describing her basic preparations. “A little tequila is good beforehand. Other than that, nothing really. Just put on my swimsuit and go.”

The water temperature in the Snake River was about 37 degrees around noon, several degrees lower than it was last year. Rockefeller said she could tell.

“It was good and cold,” she chattered.

Daren Broemeling seemed like an unfazed veteran cold-water swimmer, wearing only swim trunks and shoes as he waited in the chilly wind for his turn to jump.

“It kind of started out almost as a dare quite a few years ago,” he said. “It’s not as bad as you think it is. You’re not going to screw around and play.”

And Broemeling said he was glad that so many people still showed up, in spite of the cancellation.

“You’re not going to come here and do it by yourself, because then you’d never be able to talk yourself into it,” he said. “It’s just a lot of fun to do.”

Rachel Kanooth huddled in a thick gray bathrobe after jumping in with her 10-year-old twins, Savannah and Micah. Kanooth confessed that she may have been responsible for goading several other families to join hers in continuing the annual tradition. She shivered as she handed out hot cocoa and candy canes to anyone who wanted some.

“I’m just so proud that so many came,” she said.

Mills may be contacted at jmills@lmtribune.com or at (208) 310-1901, ext. 2266.