BIRCH BAY, Wash. — Birch Bay in Whatcom County missed its opportunity to make history.
Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce was set to break a world record with the city’s 43rd Annual Polar Bear Plunge.
However, Birch Bay’s Polar Bear Plunge fell short of the Guinness World Record.
The Chamber of Commerce says that two major factors kept the event from breaking the record on New Year’s Day.
Participants remain waist-deep in the water for 60 seconds.
Organizers also needed an accurate count of all participants.
An accurate count couldn’t be taken because non-participants were in the plunge zones at the start of the attempt.
And many participants didn’t remain waist-deep in the water for the required time.
Sola, Norway, still has the record with 3,134 participants in December 2025.
Although Birch Bay wasn’t able to break the record, they are looking forward to increased tourism from the event.
The record remains unbroken.
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