Eisbachwelle: The River Surfers of the English Garden
Why is it significant?
Finish your walking tour right on the stone bridge over the rushing Eisbach brook at the entrance to the English Garden.
Key Facts
| Place | Eisbachwelle: The River Surfers of the English Garden |
|---|---|
| Address | Prinzregentenstraße, 80538 München |
| Geo Coordinates | 48.14330, 11.58760 |
| Part of Walk | Munich: Bavarian Kings, Beer Hall Revolution, and Secret Courtyards |
| Generated | Generated |
Finish your walking tour right on the stone bridge over the rushing Eisbach brook at the entrance to the English Garden. Lean over the railing and watch with amazement: wetsuit-clad river surfers drop one by one onto a roaring, two-meter-wide stationary standing wave, carving razor-sharp turns and snapping thirty-six-inch turns right in the middle of a landlocked European city!
The Eisbach, meaning Ice Brook, is a fast-flowing man-made tributary of the Isar River flowing through the English Garden. In nineteen seventy-two, local water sports enthusiasts noticed that concrete blocks submerged on the riverbed to reduce water speed accidentally generated a permanent, unbroken standing wave. Surfers secretly attached wooden planks and underwater chains to tune the wave's shape, surfing illegally under cover of night for decades.
In twenty ten, the City of Munich officially legalized river surfing here after legendary Hawaiian big-wave surfer Gerry Lopez visited and praised the spot. Today, elite surfers line up patiently along both concrete banks through snowstorms and summer heatwaves alike.
Surrounded by centuries of royal splendor and beer gardens, this wild river wave perfectly embodies Munich's unique spirit: a city deeply rooted in heritage, yet overflowing with boundless youthful energy.