These Crazy Photos Show Surfers Covered In Ice After Riding Waves On Lake Superior

During the recent polar vortex, photographer Devon Hains captured two brave (or totally crazy, depending on how you look at it) surfers frolicking on Lake Superior.

Daniel Schetter, aka “Surfer Dan,” and Allen Finau both worked up truly epic ice beards, brows and hair, thanks to the freezing water and wind.

The photos were taken on Jan. 27 and Jan. 30 at Presque Isle Park in Marquette, Michigan. The Jan. 27 pictures were taken on a day when temperatures reached -30 degrees Fahrenheit with the windchill.

Here is one of the shots shared by Hains on Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtZHw0HFZYu/

“They go out and surf in them often,” Hains told Michigan Live, referring to the chilly waters. “Some of the best waves in Lake Superior come with the winter snow and ice. So, after trying to get some waves on Sunday, but struggling with ice buildup on the surfboards, they decided to get out their tridents and we shot that with the waves for a while.”

Both Schetter and Finau wielded their homemade tridents to add a touch of Poseidon or King Triton to the photoshoot. Those tridents also provided extra balance while walking (or doing a headstand) on ice.

Here’s another unbelievable icy photo Hains captured:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtZIzkDFErV/

Hains added a disclaimer to his images to “always be careful around the great lakes, especially in the winter, these wetsuits are made for frigid conditions.”

Hains, a Northern Michigan University biology student and nature photographer, has shot Schetter surfing before, just never in weather that was quite this cold.

Schetter is clearly unfazed by the chill and has wielded his trident before in an epic music video.

Surfing in the dead of winter seems perfectly normal to him, as demonstrated in this video posted to YouTube by Jerry Mills:

Finau, whose head of hair and beard are even bigger than Surfer Dan’s, shared a few more photos from the shoot on his Instagram account.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BtrmmEsg3RZ/

We’re wondering how long it took these guys to thaw out afterward.

What do you think: Crazy or cool? Or both?

These surfers aren’t the only ones capturing unique moments in icy conditions. Remember the couple who took engagement photos by a frozen waterfall? And then there is this photographer who captured mesmerizing images of frozen gas bubbles in lake water.

Although painfully cold, the polar vortex sure does lend itself to some natural wonders.