Stephan Bogardus has made cold plunging a part of his regular health routine. (Photo credit: Jeremy Garretson)
Last year, I wrote a story for Southforker on cold plunging. A good friend of mine had started leaving his pool open all winter and jumping in pretty much daily. Of course, I thought he was crazy but then I started looking, and asking, around. My friend certainly was by no means unique to the practice.
It made me wonder: If this is happening in the Hamptons, there must be some prolific plungers of the Sound on the North Fork. Indeed, there are (shot with a cool vision by Jeremy Garretson).
News staff reporter Chris Francescani took on the assignment for Northforker, and found there is no less enthusiasm for the bay, creeks and Sound. To wit: the North Fork Polar Bears Club started in 2020 with three members, and in four short years it’s grown to over 130.
It’s not like you get immune to cold. It’s always cold. But there’s this magic moment [for] about a minute and a half in where your body relaxes, and all your sensation is awake, and you’re incredibly present,” says Patricia Garcia-Gomez, co-founder of the North Fork Polar Bears Club. “You hear the world and you see the world and whatever you had on your mind is gone. You’re just in this pure presence.”
Read the story (or listen to the podcast!) here.
Amy Zavatto is the Editor-in-Chief for southforker, northforker and Long Island Wine Press. She's a wine, spirits, and food journalist whose work appears in Wine Enthusiast, InsideHook.com, MarthaStewart.com, the New York Post, Liquor.com, SevenFifty Daily, Imbibe, Men’s Journal and many others. She's the author of The Big Book of Bourbon Cocktails, Prosecco Made Me Do It: 60 Seriously Sparkling Cocktails, Forager’s Cocktails: Botanical Mixology with Fresh, Natural Ingredients, and The Architecture of the Cocktail. She is a respected judge for the American Craft Spirits Association’s annual small-production spirits competition, and has moderated numerous panels on the topics of wine, spirits, cocktails, and regional foodways. She is the former Deputy Editor for the regional celebratory publications, Edible Manhattan and Edible Brooklyn, as well as the former Executive Director of the Long Island Merlot Alliance. She is a member of the New York chapter of the international organization of women leaders in food, wine, and spirits, Les Dames d’Escoffier. The proud daughter of a butcher, Amy is originally from Shelter Island, N.Y., where she developed a deep respect for the East End’s natural beauty and the importance of preserving and celebrating it and its people.
