Many of those bringing in the new year were seen taking to the freezing water in garish costumes and fancy dress, many wielding novelty props.
The sub-zero temperatures didn’t bother the revellers.(Image: Katielee Arrowsmith / SWNS)
Hundreds of New Year revellers have headed for the Firth of Forth to take a freezing dip in the water for the annual “Loony Dook”. Many of those taking part donned colourful fancy dress, as the event in South Queensferry celebrated its 40th anniversary.
With temperatures plunging to as low as -2C, conditions were particularly challenging this year. The Met Office is also set to put yellow and amber warnings for snow in place across much of Scotland over the coming days.
Blizzards and snow of up to 40cm has been forecast for parts of the north-east, the Highlands, Perthshire and Angus from Friday into Saturday.
However, the bitter chill didn’t stand in the way of the festivities, with people of all ages taking part, the Daily Record reports.
Some simply wore swimwear, with others sporting onesies, tartan skirts, ponchos and denim shorts, and one couple even taking the plunge in wedding gear. A curious dolphin even put in an appearance.
Similar scenes up and down the country saw brave souls take to the water in Ayrshire, Aberdeen and Fife.
The dook – an old Scots word meaning to dip or plunge – is an unconventional tradition that dates back to only 1986. The annual event sees participants run into icy waters in garish costumes to ring in the new year.
It originated as a joke among three friends in South Queensferry. While battling Hogmanay hangovers, they decided to refresh their minds and bodies by running into the Firth of Forth- and the rest is history.
They enjoyed it so much they repeated it the following year, only this time raising funds for charity as well.
Ever since, the Loony Dook has surged in popularity each year- and before long was it even mentioned in the Edinburgh Hogmanay guide and featured in the BBC’s New Year broadcast.
By 2011, the event was welcoming thousands from across the country and officially became part of Edinburgh’s Hogmanay programme—with participants now required to pay a registration fee.
By 2020, it was removed from the programme due to the pandemic and concerns over commercialisation. However, the tradition continues in the same location without an entry fee, as well as other places around Scotland’s coastline.
Earlier this week, Scottish Greens MSP Mark Ruskell warned that swimmers risked entering waters “polluted” with billions of litres of raw sewage.
The party claimed that more than 30 billion litres of sewage was discharged from overflows into Scotland’s waters in 2024, with only one third of Scotland’s 4,083 sewer overflows being monitored.
Ruskell said he wanted this year to mark a “drastic” increase in overflow monitoring, as well as upgrades to the country’s “antiquated” sewage system.