Originally published 2019-02-28.
In the last week of January 2019, while the polar vortex was closing schools and freezing pipes across the Midwest, two men in thick wetsuits paddled into Lake Superior at Marquette, Michigan, to surf. One was Daniel Schetter, known locally as "Surfer Dan". The other was his friend Allen Finau. Photographer Devon Hains went with them twice that week, and his pictures of beards turned into icicles, ice-coated wetsuits and a pair of tridents went viral.
The photos are real and the conditions were brutal: temperatures below zero Fahrenheit and wind chills near minus 30, according to MLive, as reported by WBIR. By 7 February the images had been shared more than 40,000 times on Facebook. Below is the story behind them, the photos with what each one shows, and why cold-water surfing is safe only for people with years of experience and the right gear.
The polar vortex of January 2019
The cold that week was historic. According to Wikipedia's account of the cold wave, a sudden warming high in the stratosphere weakened the polar vortex and split it into lobes, and one lobe sat over central Canada and the northern United States for about a week. The worst of it in the Midwest came on 30 and 31 January.
Michigan's governor declared a state of emergency on 28 January. Mail delivery was suspended across most of the state on 30 and 31 January, hundreds of schools and businesses shut for the week, and residents were asked to turn thermostats down after a fire at a gas compressor station. At least 22 deaths across North America were attributed directly to the cold.
For Great Lakes surfers, though, cold often means waves. Strong winter winds blowing across a long stretch of open lake build surf that rarely appears in calm summer weather. As Hains put it to reporters, the best waves often come when it is really cold, and it can mean waiting months for them.
Who is Surfer Dan?
Schetter is a long-time Marquette surfer who has been riding Lake Superior through winter storms for decades. He described himself as an "underground non-pro heavy storm surfer" with 25 years of experience. He said he never felt in danger because of that experience, but he was clear that others should not copy him, and he urged people to be careful near water and ice.
Hains met Schetter at a pipeline protest. At the time he was hoping for a career in wildlife research and photography, and he joined the surfers on 27 and 30 January. The tridents, which made the pictures look like portraits of a frozen sea god, were gifts from Schetter's friends.
The photos, one by one
Schetter emerges from the surf with a wall of icicles behind him and a trident in hand. Every bit of hair has frozen into stiff white strands within minutes of leaving the water.
A wave breaks around him as he kneels at the water's edge. The spray freezes on the neoprene almost instantly, which is why the wetsuit looks frosted.
One of the surfers leaps off an ice shelf into open water with his trident raised. The shoreline ice that builds up on Lake Superior in winter can pile up thickly and may be undercut by waves, which makes it unpredictable to stand on.
Standing in the shallows with a trident, the surfer is framed by frozen spray piled on the rocks. The brown, churned water shows how much sediment winter storms stir up near shore.
Here Schetter crouches among trees coated in ice. On the lakeshore, wind-driven spray freezes onto branches and builds the long hanging icicles seen throughout this series.
A playful upside-down shot taken between two ice-covered trunks. Moments like this are part of why the series felt like fun rather than a survival story.
A surfer stands on a snow-covered beach with steam drifting off the lake behind him. When the air is far colder than the water, the warmer lake gives off "sea smoke", which Hains described seeing that day.
Walking out of the water past an ice-crusted wall, the surfer carries his trident like a fishing spear. His beard has already started to freeze.
The surfing itself: a rider on a clean wave in grey winter light. Lake waves are usually shorter and choppier than ocean swell, so rides tend to be quick.
Schetter sits cross-legged at the foot of an iced tree, his wetsuit glazed white. The frozen beard became the signature image of the whole set.
A surfer is swallowed by a breaking wave, with only the trident visible above the foam. Getting through the break in near-freezing water takes real strength and practice.
A close-up shows icicles hanging from the beard and frost building on the hood. This is what Hains meant by ice buildup: water freezes on contact with anything that stays still.
Perched on a snow-covered tree among frozen branches, the surfer looks out over the lake. The pose is relaxed, but by this point most of his body is covered by thick neoprene.
Resting behind a wooden fence with his board in the snow. Boards themselves gathered so much ice that week that Hains singled it out in interviews.
Paddling back out past a breaking wave on a longboard. The open water here stays liquid because waves and wind keep it moving even when the shore is locked in ice.
Schetter and Finau sit side by side on an ice ledge, tridents at their feet. Surfing in pairs is one of the basic safety rules in cold water.
Another close portrait of Schetter's frozen hair and beard, with ice coating his eyebrows and lashes. It is the image most people remember from the series.
A selfie of the crew with two frozen beards and a third person bundled up in a face mask against the wind chill. It is a reminder that every photo here came from people standing on the shore in the same cold.
How cold-water surfers stay safe
Cold water is far more dangerous than cold air, because the body loses heat much faster in water. According to the medical overview of hypothermia, many cold-water deaths happen in the first minutes, from cold shock: gasping, inhaling water and a spike in blood pressure. Within 15 to 30 minutes, cold muscles stop working well enough to swim or grip. Near-freezing water can kill an unprotected adult in as little as 15 minutes.
Experienced winter surfers manage that risk rather than ignore it. Typical measures include:
- Thick hooded wetsuits, boots and gloves that cover nearly all skin.
- Never going out alone, and having someone on shore who knows where you are.
- Short sessions, with a warm car or shelter close by.
- Staying off shelf ice, which can break or be undercut by waves.
- Knowing the spot well, including where to get in and out safely.
None of this makes it safe for beginners. Schetter himself said he did not want anyone to get hurt copying him. If the photos make you want to try cold-water surfing, learn first in milder conditions with experienced people and proper gear, and talk to a doctor if you have any heart or circulation problems.
Why the photos still travel
The series works because it mixes the absurd and the beautiful. A bearded man with a trident looks like a myth come to life, and the ice tells you exactly how cold it was without a single number. Credit for the images goes to Devon Hains Photography, and to two surfers who know their lake better than almost anyone.
Sources: WBIR: Men holding tridents surf Lake Superior during polar vortex; Wikipedia: January–February 2019 North American cold wave; Wikipedia: Hypothermia; photos by Devon Hains.
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