Surfing the waves of the Vltava River
As the summer sun heats up Prague, there's a tranquil oasis waiting to be discovered on an island in the Vltava River: river surfing.
You may be forgiven for associating surfing almost exclusively with the Pacific shores of California and Hawaii, or Spain and Portugal on the Atlantic coast of Europe. But even the capital of a landlocked country such as Prague in Czechia can have spots where you can enjoy the excitement of mastering a huge wave. Štěpán Rejhon showed me around Štvanice Island in the center of the city:
“My name is Štěpán Rejhon and I started surfing here about two years ago and now I am the official instructor here. I am also a member of the kind of inner team of people who make surfing here possible.”
Štěpán spent some time in Australia a few years ago and is quite an experienced surfer. To be able to surf on the Vltava, he and other enthusiasts got together and started a non-profit association. It enables them to purchase the time and right volume of water in one of the locks at the Štvanice Island from the river authority. Yet, I cannot help asking: Prague is not exactly famous for surfing. What is in it for you?
“I would probably say two things. First is the passion that goes with the ocean as well as river surfing. We have a lot of people who travel to surf in Spain or Portugal for two or three weeks a year. But they want to experience the feeling more often, every week, if possible. And they can find it here.”
“The second reason they come is the community. I have been to other places where river surfing is popular like Munich in Germany and some Austrian cities. They started much earlier and are ahead of us when it comes to organization, competitions, etc. But I would say they are quite closed. Here in Prague, we have quite a big and open community of surfers. We have managers here as well as hippies. All of them are super friendly and happy. After our surfing sessions, I can see ‘bananas’ on their faces as they smile.”
Vlna Štvanice is a year round operation and you can easily find the web pages of this non-profit organization with directions and booking information.
