A father and son team took on a more extreme version of the traditional New Year’s dips by doing 20 to mark the year 2020.

Steve and his son Nick Watt, both of Peel, had an incredibly invigorating start to the year by stopping off at 20 beaches across the island and submerging into the cold waves.

In addition to this, Steve, who is aged 60, did his dips by getting into a kayak and rolling.

Nick, 28, told the Examiner: ’My dad’s been doing more than one dip since 2012 in which he decided to do 12 and then add another on with each year. The year 2020 is his last year of doing this and I decided to join him.

’I was dipping and dad was rolling in his kayak at each beach. As this was his last year of doing dips, he wanted to do something special.’

The pair started at 9am on Fenella Beach before making their way to Niarbyl, Fleshwick, Port Erin, The Sound, Port St Mary, Gansey Pottery, Castletown Harbour, Hango Hill, Port Grenaugh, Port Soderick, Douglas, Laxey, Port Mooar, Ramsey, Ballaugh Cronk, Kirk Michael, Glen Wyllin, Glen Moaar and lastly at Peel Breakwater, where they finished at 4pm.

’We got into a pretty quick routine,’ said Nick, a physical education and science teacher at Castle Rushen High School.

’We would towel off on the way to the car, dad would put his kayak on the roof and I would put the bungy ropes over it and go to the next beach.’

Nick and Steve, a retired science teacher from St Ninian’s High School, were joined by another teacher - Paul Carine - at certain locations with much support along the way including Nick’s mother driving the car.

After seven hours of dipping, the pair headed home into the warmth.

A passion for adventure is something that runs very strongly in Steve’s blood, having once kayaked from Cornwall to Scotland. He is now thinking of camping on a hill each New Year, like he used to when he was in the scouts.

Nick added: ’My dad has raised my brother and me to be quite wild.

’It was nice to spend New Year’s Day with my parents. I had to do the 20 dips with dad as this was the last time he was doing it and for him it was a tradition.’

He’d recommend doing a number of dips, naming Peel and Port Erin beaches as his favourites due to their sandy shores making it easier to run on. The worst beaches for dipping, he said, were Fleshwick and Port Mooar.