New Year’s Eve swimmers plunge into the 6 degree cold Moossee BE
Published: Sunday, Dec 31st 2023, 14:10
Back to Live Feed
Dozens of people plunged into the 5.5 degree cold Lake Moossee in the canton of Bern for a New Year's Eve swim on Sunday lunchtime. Around fifty swimmers took part in the end-of-year event, as reported by a Keystone-SDA video journalist.
The daredevils included children and adults alike. They entered the lido in bathing suits, some with gloves and caps, and marched or swam a few lengths in the ice-cold water.
The purpose of the New Year's Eve swim is, as has been customary in other countries for centuries, to plunge into the ice-cold water at the end of the year, wash away old burdens and "sins" and thus enter a new year cleansed. The event is organized by the winter swimming club "Ysheilige Moossee". It has been held since 1999.
Moossee is a lake near Moosseedorf, about ten kilometers north of the city of Bern, which has been a nature reserve since 1963. There were prehistoric pile dwellings on the lake. A dugout canoe made of lime wood was discovered during excavations in 2011. The boat, which is around 6500 years old and almost six meters long, is accessible to visitors on the shore.
©Keystone/SDA
English 
German 
French 
Spanish 
Arabic