IT may have been more of a spraying than a dip, but 28 town residents had a cold start to 2014 as they took part in the Hatherleigh Walruses New Year's Day Dip.

Each year the group take a dip in the freezing water of the River Lew on January 1 to raise money for a range of charities.

With the relentless rainfall over the last few weeks, the river was just too high for swimmers to swim in the river safely on New Year's Day.

A bit of improvisation ensured the Walruses endured a cold start to the year, as Hatherleigh firemen sprayed them with cold water on the banks of the river.

Around 300 people turned out to watch the event, which this year is raising money for Hatherleigh Youth Football, Hatherleigh Players and Hatherleigh Festival.

The theme for the day was World War One, with the Walruses re-enacting the timeline of the war 100 years after it started in 1914.

Richard Tidball, one of the event organisers, said: 'The river was up on the banks. There was just no way that we could do it safely.

'Getting sprayed with water on the bank is almost worse, it gets you colder and wetter.

'You're also up in the wind, so for us this time it was colder than normal.

'We had a lot of great support, with around 300 people there on the day.

'When we did the spray and our sketch, we had about an hour's break in the rain. We still got soaked, though!

'Thank you to everyone who showed their support of the event, it is much appreciated.'

The money raised is still being counted, with organisers taking £600 on the day itself. They are hopeful to have raised around £3,000.

In the last 25 years, the event has raised more than £50,000 for charity.