Wyoming enjo
yed a dance wit
h
surfing in t
he mid-1
970s when
kayakers
Mike F
itzpatr
ick and
Steve
and Moose Hahn br
ought boar
ds to
the Snak
e River
. It is rumour
ed they
ves of Change
lit up t
he Lunch Count
er wav
e at
a
Jackson Hole, s
tarting t
he first sur
f
w craze inland of t
he Pacific.
> Kay’s, Rhode Island
Jimmy Blakeney
the 2003 us national Freestyle Champion, former Wave
sport marketing director, kayak instructor and coach,
Jimmy Blakeney got off his ass and made the difficult
cross-cultural transition from boater to boarder.
“Going from surfing kayaks to boards was an interesting
transition. I’ve kayak surfed in the ocean quite a bit and
have experienced the animosity many surfers have for
surf kayakers. It’s not pleasant, but understand that in
places where kayakers have learned proper etiquette and
control, the animosity is much more subdued. there are
tons of un-crowded spots in new england, but one of
the best has to be Kay’s at Rhode Island. the wave is a
cobblestone reef break that breaks left and right, is slow
and mushy, perfect for kayaks, plus a channel to paddle
back out. In a kayak you’ll get waves and can stay away
from the surfers by waiting for bigger sets and letting a
bunch of waves go so the surfers don’t get pissed.”

s
e
l
B
y
t
o

J
e
d
P
h
o
Sturgeon falls
WinniPeg river,
cox Bay, tofino
It is an ideal steep, fast wave with few
manitoba
consequences below. At its best when One of Canada’s premiere play spots, it’s
vanCouver isLand, the river gauge reads 19 feet, the river-left located just west of the Manitoba-Ontario
british CoLumbia
shoulder can be a bit flushy if you go too far border, under two hours from Winnipeg,
Facing out to the raw, pounding Pacific Ocean,
over, but set up at the cushy foam pile and MB, and about three hours north of Grand
tofino, B.C., on the west coast of Vancouver
you can ride this 15-foot power plant for Forks, north Dakota. sturgeon Falls offers
Island, is a small town of a little more than
hours. high tension? Directly overhead are six surf waves, all about a 1.5-kilometre
1,500 people. It swells several times that
massive electrical wire towers. flatwater paddle from nutimik Campground
with dirtbag surfers and upscale boomers
in Whiteshell Provincial Park. Bigmouth Wave
each summer. Whale watchers, surfboarders
M-Wave
is one of the most impressive, with a lashing
and kayakers flock to Cox Bay where the 7th
tongue that gives up huge air when the river
annual Canada West Paddle surf Fest takes
montrose, reaches 70,000 to 90,000 cfs. the most fun
place september 19 to 21.
CoLorado
you can have surfing the prairies.
An irrigation ditch accessed through private
high tension
property, the local farmer has been kind
the Ledge
enough to let paddlers in to M-Wave so long
gatineau river, as they are respectful and keep the area
bLaCkfoot river,
QuebeC
clean. the u.s. national Whitewater Center in
montana
An electrifying French beauty, high tension
north Carolina created a duplicate of M-Wave Just outside of Missoula, the class II–III
is on the class III–IV, eight-kilometre Maniwaki
on its course, except it has more foam pile Blackfoot River boasts gorgeous scenery and
to Bouchette stretch of the Gatineau River.
and is about half as fast, meaning it’s more friendly whitewater for beginners. As the levels
friendly and not surrounded by grazing cattle. rise to around 5,000 cfs, her character shines
RAPID

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