Dresses as a jelly fish with her three friends, Kitti Vrba gets ready to welcome in the new year during the Surf City Splash on Sunday, January 1, 2023. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
It was a fresh, yet frigid, start to the new year.
Revelers ran, dipped and soaked in the salt water to kick off 2023 during Surf City Splash, a tradition that’s been happening in Huntington Beach for more than two decades.
Crowds filled in through the morning, some decked out in costumes for the festivities. Then at high noon, following a countdown, splashers took to the water.
New Year’s Day revelers take a dip into the 57-degree Pacific Ocean on Sunday, January 1, 2023, a Huntington Beach tradition to welcome in the new year. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Dozens of New Year’s Day revelers run towards the 57-degree ocean for the annual Surf City Splash on
Sunday, January 1, 2023. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Denise Stanek, left, and Jen Smith share a New Year’s Day hug after taking the Surf City Splash, an annual tradition, on Sunday, January 1, 2023. They were with a group of long-time friends, all dressed as flamingos, which represents, among other things — beauty, balance and elegance. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Rich Heibel and his 6-year-old son, Kai, head towards the Pacific Ocean during the annual Surf City Splash on Sunday, January 1, 2023. Kai says the 57-degree water felt cold but it didn’t stop him from going in a second time.(Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Alfred Warren Nguyen of Torrance is ready to take the Surf City Splash, an annual tradition that was canceled last year because of an oil spill. He and dozens others braved rough surf and 57-degree water on Sunday, January 1, 2023. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
New Year’s Day revelers join together for a group hug in the pounding, cold surf during the annual Surf City Splash on Sunday, January 1, 2023. Lifeguards estimated the water to be 57 degrees, the air 59 degrees and the surf 5-to-8-feet high. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
New Year’s Day revelers take a dip into the 57-degree Pacific Ocean on Sunday, January 1, 2023, during the annual Surf City Splash to welcome in the new year. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Jesse Wilson, dressed as Batman, and his sidekick son, Gabriel Marion, 2, dressed as Darth Vadar America, leave the ocean after taking the traditional New Year’s Day Surf City Splash on Sunday, January 1, 2023. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Long-time friends from left: Jen Smith, Denise Stanek, Erica Crittenden, Lisa Hopkins and Julie Green take part in the annual Surf City Splash to celebrate the new year on
Sunday, January 1, 2023. They dressed as flamingos to symbolize beauty, balance, elegance and strength. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Dresses as a jelly fish with her three friends, Kitti Vrba gets ready to welcome in the new year during the Surf City Splash on Sunday, January 1, 2023. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Alfred Warren Nguyen of Torrance is ready to take the Surf City Splash, an annual tradition that was canceled last year because of an oil spill. He and dozens others braved rough surf and 57-degree water on Sunday, January 1, 2023. (Photo by Mindy Schauer, Orange County Register/SCNG)
The past few years, the event has been officially canceled due to winds, pandemic closures and dirty water – some still took the dip on their own. But this year, despite recent rains and cold weather, the tradition carried on with screams and squeals as the cold water sent chills through bodies.
The event started 23 years ago on a dare between a few church friends, a wild and wacky way to wash off the old and bring in the new. Then, others took notice and started showing up year after year.
Early years drew 100 people, then 200. Some later years drew upward 1,000 people.
This year, the splash benefited the Surfrider Foundation, its new organizer. The event kicked off with breakfast burritos for purchase and signups for people who wanted to pay the $25 for official certificates proving they braved the plunge.
Laylan Connelly started as a journalist in 2002 after earning a degree in journalism from the University of Southern California. Through the years, she has covered several cities for The Orange County Register, starting as a beat reporter in Irvine before focusing on coastal cities such as Newport Beach, Dana Point and Laguna Beach. In 2007, she was selected for a prestigious Knight New Media fellowship focusing on digital media at UC Berkeley, where she learned skills to adapt to the ever-changing online landscape. About the same time, she began covering the 42-miles of Orange County coastline, focusing on lifestyle, environment, surf culture and anything having to do with the beach. Her coastal coverage now extends up the California coast into Long Beach and the South Bay.
