COEUR d’ALENE — Hundreds screamed as they beelined from the snowy shores of Sanders Beach into the frigid waters of Lake Coeur d’Alene on Sunday.

Naturally, they zipped back to their towels and warmed-up cars with greater haste.

“Oh my God! Oh my God!,” one young boy yelled in the frenzy as he sprinted past a man in a Santa hat.

One of the snowier Polar Bear Plunges in recent history, the annual freeze fest saw bikini-clad and shirtless locals jump into 39-degree water at noon on New Year’s Day as their soaked bodies then felt the sting of 25-degree air temperature.

A smaller crowd than usual, likely due the torrential snowfall, participated for a fun, jolting experience.

For others such as Post Falls resident Gavin Broadwater, it was therapeutic.

“It’s a good way to wash away the bad from the year before,” Broad-water said. “So it really feels like a fresh start.”

Broadwater has participated in 22 Polar Bear Plunges, but Sunday’s was one of the snowier, less-attended ones he could remember.

“Other than in 2009, I don’t remember it having this much snow,” Broadwater said. “And this looks like it was about half the crowd it usually gets, but that’s probably because of the weather.”

Sisters and Rylie and Kaela Gump of Post Falls had a shivering good time.

Kaela, 10, had no problem making the plunge last year, but when her feet met the icy waters on Sunday, she’d had enough.

“When my feet got wet, that was as far as I’d go. It was too cold,” Kaela said. “Last year, it was warmer.”

Little sister Rylie wanted to emulate her big sis in braving the plunge, but got a little more soaked.

When asked why she wanted to jump into freezing water instead of catch cartoons in a warm home, the pint-sized Rylie didn’t hesitate.

“Because it was something different to do,” Rylie said as her teeth chattered.