Wild scenes as hundreds run naked to water
At sunrise on the shortest day of the year, thousands of naked bodies surged into Hobart's icy River Derwent, baring all to farewell one of Australia's most daring festivals.
The annual Nude Solstice Swim marked the end of Dark Mofo 2025, with 3,000 people shedding their clothes for the final 'cleansing' ritual.
When the swim was first proposed in 2013, police threatened to arrest participants, sparking controversy around the provocative event.
Since then, it has become an officially sanctioned and wildly popular highlight of the festival, selling out every year as thousands embrace the daring winter tradition. The infamous ritual has become a beloved part of the festival. Nikki Davis-Jones/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia Thousands ditched their clothes and towels by the water. Nikki Davis-Jones/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia
Wrapped in towels and donning matching red swim caps, swimmers gathered in the dark before sprinting into the water to the sound of drums as the first rays of daylight hit the horizon on Saturday morning.
With the mercury dropping to 10 degrees at 7.42am, many only dipped in briefly, but dozens lingered on the pontoon taking in the sunrise over the hill.
After a cancelled 2024 festival, Dark Mofo Artistic Director Chris Twite said organisers had worked hard to rebuild the provocative event.
'This morning, after two years of hard work, it was tremendous to see 3,000 courageous souls gathered once more on the shore of the Derwent to brave the freezing waters for the Nude Solstice Swim to cleanse us and bring this year's Dark Mofo to a close,' he said.
'The response in 2025 has been incredible. The streets of Hobart have come alive with locals and visitors celebrating winter and Dark Mofo again.' Organisers describe the event as a 'cleansing' and a final embrace of the winter darkness. Nikki Davis-Jones/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia Swimmers take to the water at sunrise on the shortest day of the year. Nikki Davis-Jones/ NewsWire Credit: News Corp Australia
The 2025 program was the first full-scale edition of the festival since the pandemic and drew massive crowds, with more than 480,000 entries and $4.6 million generated at the box office.
Dark Mofo's Executive Director Melissa Edwards praised the overwhelming support behind the festival's return.
'We could not be more thankful for the ways that everyone has come together to return Dark Mofo to Tasmania this year,' she said.
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"So exhilarating," she said post swim. "I was nervous but there was this almost primal moment of everyone being together that carries you along, and a sense of pure happiness." Dark Mofo festival returned to its full pomp in 2025 after running a reduced program in 2024 so it could find a more sustainable financial model. It has made a name for itself by courting controversy and in 2018 drew the ire of some by installing inverted Christian crosses along Hobart's waterfront. Festival artistic director Chris Twite said the swim was a tremendous way to bring things to a close. "The response in 2025 has been incredible," he said. "The streets of Hobart have come alive with locals and visitors celebrating winter and Dark Mofo again." University of Queensland psychologists surveyed swimmers in previous years before and after they took the plunge and found a significant boost in feelings of connection. "People told us about whether they felt pain and pleasure during the swim," Laura Ferris said. "And those who rated their swim as pleasurable also felt more social connection with the other people around them." It is an example of people seeking out aversive experiences, such as eating extremely spicy food or watching horror movies. "This is what psychologists call 'benign masochism'," Dr Ferris said. That could be the optimal term for expeditioners at Australia's four Antarctic and sub-Antarctic research stations, who also celebrated the solstice with a much-colder traditional plunge. At the three Antarctic stations, a hole is cut in the sea ice each year and expeditioners have a quick dip in the sub-zero waters. "The shock is closely followed by a rush, which is quickly followed by a scramble to the ladder to get the hell out of that water," Mawson Station leader Dave Roberts said. "Ironically, the water is warmer than the wind chill, so it's all a bit confusing but totally worth it." Those on the sub-Antarctic base at Macquarie Island have it mildly easier for their beach swims, with temperatures hovering from 2C to 4C. A shared meal and the exchanging of gifts and awards round out expedition festivities for the solstice, which is historically the most important day on the Australian Antarctic calendar. "It's the soul of the Antarctic winter," Casey Station leader Andy Warton said. Swimmers have stripped off and braved brisk waters on the shortest day of the year. Wearing nothing but red swim caps, 3000 souls took the annual nude sunrise plunge into Hobart's River Derwent to mark the winter solstice on Saturday. The water temperature was about 13C as the naked pack took to the river at 7.40am, sparking shrieks and anguished yells. Liz Cannard, who has been travelling around Tasmania for almost four months with her husband, said she was petrified before taking the dip. "I'm not a strong swimmer and I don't take my gear off for anybody ... so I've ticked off a couple of things today," the Geelong resident said. Lizzy Nash from Sydney was also in the mood for a bit of carpe diem. "It's about seizing the moment, seizing life and being inspired," she said. "This is the sort of thing that motivates you to want to do more and challenge yourself. It was awe-inspiring and I absolutely loved it." The free swim is part of the Dark Mofo festival and started with just a few hundred participants in 2013. Melburnian Belinda Chambers has been watching people do it on television for years and decided to work remotely from Tasmania for the festival so she could stay and leave on a high. "So exhilarating," she said post swim. "I was nervous but there was this almost primal moment of everyone being together that carries you along, and a sense of pure happiness." Dark Mofo festival returned to its full pomp in 2025 after running a reduced program in 2024 so it could find a more sustainable financial model. It has made a name for itself by courting controversy and in 2018 drew the ire of some by installing inverted Christian crosses along Hobart's waterfront. Festival artistic director Chris Twite said the swim was a tremendous way to bring things to a close. "The response in 2025 has been incredible," he said. "The streets of Hobart have come alive with locals and visitors celebrating winter and Dark Mofo again." University of Queensland psychologists surveyed swimmers in previous years before and after they took the plunge and found a significant boost in feelings of connection. "People told us about whether they felt pain and pleasure during the swim," Laura Ferris said. "And those who rated their swim as pleasurable also felt more social connection with the other people around them." It is an example of people seeking out aversive experiences, such as eating extremely spicy food or watching horror movies. "This is what psychologists call 'benign masochism'," Dr Ferris said. That could be the optimal term for expeditioners at Australia's four Antarctic and sub-Antarctic research stations, who also celebrated the solstice with a much-colder traditional plunge. At the three Antarctic stations, a hole is cut in the sea ice each year and expeditioners have a quick dip in the sub-zero waters. "The shock is closely followed by a rush, which is quickly followed by a scramble to the ladder to get the hell out of that water," Mawson Station leader Dave Roberts said. "Ironically, the water is warmer than the wind chill, so it's all a bit confusing but totally worth it." Those on the sub-Antarctic base at Macquarie Island have it mildly easier for their beach swims, with temperatures hovering from 2C to 4C. A shared meal and the exchanging of gifts and awards round out expedition festivities for the solstice, which is historically the most important day on the Australian Antarctic calendar. "It's the soul of the Antarctic winter," Casey Station leader Andy Warton said. Swimmers have stripped off and braved brisk waters on the shortest day of the year. Wearing nothing but red swim caps, 3000 souls took the annual nude sunrise plunge into Hobart's River Derwent to mark the winter solstice on Saturday. The water temperature was about 13C as the naked pack took to the river at 7.40am, sparking shrieks and anguished yells. Liz Cannard, who has been travelling around Tasmania for almost four months with her husband, said she was petrified before taking the dip. "I'm not a strong swimmer and I don't take my gear off for anybody ... so I've ticked off a couple of things today," the Geelong resident said. Lizzy Nash from Sydney was also in the mood for a bit of carpe diem. "It's about seizing the moment, seizing life and being inspired," she said. "This is the sort of thing that motivates you to want to do more and challenge yourself. It was awe-inspiring and I absolutely loved it." The free swim is part of the Dark Mofo festival and started with just a few hundred participants in 2013. Melburnian Belinda Chambers has been watching people do it on television for years and decided to work remotely from Tasmania for the festival so she could stay and leave on a high. "So exhilarating," she said post swim. "I was nervous but there was this almost primal moment of everyone being together that carries you along, and a sense of pure happiness." Dark Mofo festival returned to its full pomp in 2025 after running a reduced program in 2024 so it could find a more sustainable financial model. It has made a name for itself by courting controversy and in 2018 drew the ire of some by installing inverted Christian crosses along Hobart's waterfront. Festival artistic director Chris Twite said the swim was a tremendous way to bring things to a close. "The response in 2025 has been incredible," he said. "The streets of Hobart have come alive with locals and visitors celebrating winter and Dark Mofo again." University of Queensland psychologists surveyed swimmers in previous years before and after they took the plunge and found a significant boost in feelings of connection. "People told us about whether they felt pain and pleasure during the swim," Laura Ferris said. "And those who rated their swim as pleasurable also felt more social connection with the other people around them." It is an example of people seeking out aversive experiences, such as eating extremely spicy food or watching horror movies. "This is what psychologists call 'benign masochism'," Dr Ferris said. That could be the optimal term for expeditioners at Australia's four Antarctic and sub-Antarctic research stations, who also celebrated the solstice with a much-colder traditional plunge. At the three Antarctic stations, a hole is cut in the sea ice each year and expeditioners have a quick dip in the sub-zero waters. "The shock is closely followed by a rush, which is quickly followed by a scramble to the ladder to get the hell out of that water," Mawson Station leader Dave Roberts said. "Ironically, the water is warmer than the wind chill, so it's all a bit confusing but totally worth it." Those on the sub-Antarctic base at Macquarie Island have it mildly easier for their beach swims, with temperatures hovering from 2C to 4C. A shared meal and the exchanging of gifts and awards round out expedition festivities for the solstice, which is historically the most important day on the Australian Antarctic calendar. "It's the soul of the Antarctic winter," Casey Station leader Andy Warton said.
