Harper Herzog reacts Saturday after jumping in the Deschutes River while participating in the Polar Plunge.

It looked sunny and warm along the western bank of the Deschutes River Saturday but it felt a lot colder for those who participated in the 16th annual Polar Plunge at Riverbend Park in Bend.

Matt Barker, of Bend, said he thought the plunge would be quick until he realized he had to wade into the river.

“Pretty cold … actually not as bad as I thought it would be,” he said. “I thought by the time I got out there, you’d be freezing. But I still had the courage to go deeper.”

Barb and Roy West sat on the bank and watched, along with Ozzie, their 11-year-old black lab, who was splashing in the water and digging up stones.

The Wests were not plunging, but said they came to support the brave souls as they barreled into the ice cold water.

“We just came down for the screaming, I think,” Roy West said laughing.

This year’s plunge featured a new event, a 5k/10k, and participants could choose to run and plunge.

The Polar Plunge is dedicated to raising funds and awareness for Special Olympics Oregon. This year featured coffee, snacks, and food carts along the walking path. Exotic smells wafted from the La Paella tent across from the changing stations, as people waited for the plungers to arrive for the cold dip.

Tonya Robertson is the new Central Oregon Polar Plunge manager. She is in charge of facilitating donations and teams for the plunge, but had never decided to dive in until Saturday. Robertson said she was motivated to step into the role because her son, Talon, has a rare disease called Phelan-McDermid Syndrome.

“I wanted to raise awareness and have him participate in Special Olympics,” Robertson said.

She added the organization’s goal is to raise $40,000, and the last time she checked, it had already reached around $30,000. Donations will be accepted until March, she added.

Kim Sutherland said as a physical therapist, the Special Olympics is dear to her heart. This year is her first time plunging, and she even came up with a name for her three person team: the “Brrr” team.

One of her team members, Cassie O’Brien, a psychologist in Bend, rounded the corner and crossed the finish line. After receiving her medal, she walked toward the park and joined Sutherland.

O’Brien turned 50 in November, and decided taking the plunge would be the perfect gift to give herself for such an important milestone.

“So, I have to do 50 hard things, in my 50th year,” O’Brien said. “And the plunge is definitely the hardest thing I’ll do all year. Because I hate cold water.”

Because of the pandemic, the Polar Plunge went virtual in 2021, so this year organizers of the event were glad to be back in person.

This year, there were about 200 registered, and around 250 people expected to participate Kirsten Goetz, vice president for Special Olympics Oregon said.

Nick and April Davis, two volunteers with Search and Rescue at the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Office plunged together for the first time.

The couple — standing and dripping in the chilly breeze — decided to come out after seeing a Facebook post about the event a couple of weeks ago.

“This is a way to do something with the community other than in a search and rescue capacity,” April Davis said. She said the water was pretty cold, but not as bad as she expected it to be.

Mike Vetterick, with his long beard and multicolored unicorn speedo, said the plunge was “exhilarating.”