Queenstown's Chilli Dips are literally embracing chilly dips.
The group of cold water swimmers was started by UK-born Amy Loveridge, who moved to the Whakatipu after a stint in Australia.
Cold dips had become a hobby for her while she was in the UK — she found herself "craving" one in Australia, but that was "quite hard to achieve".
"I find that my brain always feels busy, and the only thing I’ve found to calm it down is cold swimming — it just makes me breathe and relax."
Loveridge talked to her new work friends about her passion for cold water swimming and found lots of them were keen to give it a go, but didn’t have the courage to do it on their own.
So, Chilli Dips was formed.
Initially Loveridge gathered a group of cold dippers through word-of-mouth who immersed themselves in Lake Whakatipu and other rivers throughout the Basin — the group’s Instagram page, @queenstownchillidips, launched at the beginning of last month, now has almost 250 followers.
Last Saturday, 20 hardy souls turned up at Bob’s Cove to take a plunge.
Loveridge says anyone’s welcome, even if they’ve never tried cold-water immersion before.
"For first-timers, I tend to recommend focusing on the scenery, which makes it so much easier.
"When people take a minute to take in their surroundings, they manage to breathe and start enjoying themselves, and the benefits of plunging."
Those benefits include slowing the brain down, releasing endorphins, boosting the immune system, and meeting other people.
She recommends those new to the practice step out of their comfort zone, but also listen to their bodies, advising them to stay in the water for 3 to 5 minutes.
"Usually first-timers are quite hesitant to begin with, but lots end up staying in for an extra 2 minutes."
The Chilli Dips meet weekly — their next swim’s this Saturday at 2pm; the group’s meeting at Park St, near the Queenstown Gardens.
Anyone keen on joining in should bring their swimwear, a towel, a warm change of clothes, a hot drink in a flask to warm up afterwards and "good vibes".
In the future, though, Loveridge would love to take the Chilli Dips to a glacier — "it would be the peak combination of cold and beautiful scenery", she says.
