Surfing the Eisbach

When the ocean isn’t enough, head for a river. The Eisbach is a manmade river in Munich, Germany that boasts a “standing wave,”  near a bridge just past the Haust der Kunst museum. Practically an art installation in and of itself, surfers have come from around the world to take it on since its creation in 1972. Locals urge surfing newbies to stay away, as the shallow cold water makes for a challenge best suited for experienced surfers.

The rumor goes that the wave was first discovered by American soldiers stationed at the barracks nearby in the early 70s, and additional cement blocks and planks were added to stabilize the wave as they attempted to surf it while killing time. Authorities have attempted to remove the wave several times over the course of its history, due to the danger of injury, but the community has managed to preserve it. There are a few other standing waves in the city, also created around the same time, but the Eisbach is the best known and most famed.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 4th, 2013 at 8:00 am. It is filed under Surfing, Travel. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.