Winter bath in Falkträsket

Skellefteå

Swimming outdoors in winter has shown good health effects. Studies claim that winter bathers, among other things, have lower blood pressure, withstand the cold better, and become more stress-resistant - not to mention all the endorphins that get a rush of joy after a winter dip.

Updated information January 2025:
From December 21st year 2024, the association will saw open the ice wake in Falkträsket at least once a week. In the time between the sawings, the bathers themselves will be responsible for making the holes.
The most convenient way to change is directly on the jetty. There is usually no well-trodden path to the changing cabins.
The parking lot is plowed by the municipality. If you have a shovel in your car, please help keep the path down open and the jetty free of snow.
The association's costs for chainsaws and fuel will be covered by volunteers who donate money in connection with their baths. Each person decides for themselves how much they want to contribute. Swish is posted on signs at the jetty.
Then time will tell whether the association should increase participation as helpers at the wake bath.
Stackgrönnan is on hiatus for a while as renovations are underway, so no heated facilities are available at the moment.

We wish you all a nice winter swimming season!

ATTENTION! Join the Facebook group Vinterbad in Skellefteå where they post information about meeting for winter bathing.
 

In theory, it might not sound like the best of ideas. A winter bath. To only undress when the thermometer reads -20 degrees goes against all human common sense. But once you discover that it's not so dangerous to bob around among sleet and ice crystals, that rush of happiness comes and settles like warm cotton around your heart - and the risk is that you become a winter bather for life.

Tips and advice

Equipment:

  • Normal swimwear that you use when swimming in a bathhouse. 
  • A bathrobe or a large bathing sheet to protect your body when moving between the dressing rooms to the swimming spot. 
  • Warm hat. 
  • Big shoes that are easy to put on when your feet are wet. Something even better is bath shoes which you can wear all the way from the dressing rooms, during the bath and afterwards (Crocs). 
  • You can use gloves made out of neoprene, but it is not necessary. 

Before bathing: 

  • We do not recommend that you use the sauna before swimming since it strains the body more than if you do it after. 
  • Feel free to warm up before the swim with some physical activity, such as taking a fast-paced walk or doing physical exercises. 
  • Depending on the cold air, wind and moisture can feel colder or less cold when walking between the dressing rooms and the hole. Your daily fitness is also a factor. 
  • Do feel free to tell us if there is something we need to know. It can be anxiety, or that you have certain habits when winter swimming, or any conditions that you might have. 

Facts

Dark & Cold friends organize courses in winter swimming around Skellefteå and are also organizers of Winter swimming.