“Endless Waves: Ashfield Lake Swimmers Brave Every Season in Their Aquatic Adventure”

ASHFIELD — One might not consider a cloudy, breezy day with a light drizzle and a peak temperature of 44 degrees to be ideal for a swim, but for swimmers at Ashfield Lake, a little chill never deterred them.

Mary Link, a resident of Ashfield, mentioned that she has been swimming in the lake her entire life and has gone at least once each month since childhood. During milder winters, she would swim from the boat launch to the Ashfield Lake House, and during colder winters, she and her friends would simply create an opening in the ice for a quick dip.

“We just kept swimming,” said Link. “We swam through the autumn and continued until it froze over, and then we used a crowbar to create an opening just to take a dip.”

Last winter, Link and her friends took their plunging to another level by forming a frozen swim lane. Link invested in an 8-foot ice saw to cut a 6-foot-by-40-foot swimming lane, roughly half the size of a standard pool lap lane. After shaping the edge, Link and her fellow swimmers used crowbars to break the ice and shift the ice pieces further below the lake’s surface to clear a swimming area.

Swimmer Ricki Carroll noted that every few days, the surface would refreeze, and the group has to break it open once more, but the swim is worth the trouble.

The Mayo Clinic states that research has indicated that the occasional polar plunge offers various health benefits. Immersing oneself in water below 50 degrees can diminish inflammation, enhance metabolism and immune function, and stimulate hormone production that benefits cognitive abilities and mood.

Winter swimmers at Ashfield Lake emphasize that while the health benefits are excellent, their main motivation for jumping into the water is enjoyment.

“We simply did it for the fun of it,” Carroll remarked.

Link mentioned that the routine of swimming in frigid water has demonstrated to be a beneficial therapeutic exercise, helping the swimmers to remember to breathe, demonstrating that if they can endure a freezing swim, they can overcome anything.

“It’s incredibly refreshing,” Link noted. “Upon plunging in, your body instinctively reacts, ‘Holy s***, I need to get out’, but if you breathe and push past the panic, telling yourself it’s okay, you will be fine.”

On certain days, they swim simply in their swimsuits for a brief dip; on other occasions, the swimmers don full wetsuits and remain in the water for hours. While in swimsuits, Carroll advised that it’s safest to limit time in the water to around five minutes before drying off and warming up to prevent hypothermia.

On New Year’s Day, a few swimmers convened for an afternoon swim in the lake. The air temperature was approximately 41 degrees, while the water was substantially colder, about 32 degrees. With wind and rain, it felt even chillier.

“We all just motivated each other,” Link remarked.

Those who are interested in dipping their toes in the water are encouraged to join in. The group is present most days when the weather permits, and occasionally even when it does not, according to Carroll.

Carroll suggested that swimmers always bring a crowbar to break up any ice and have a buddy to cheer them on and ensure their safety while swimming.