Once, inner tubes were good enough for floating down a river. Rafts tackled the rapids. And surfboards stayed out in the surf. But today, stand up paddle boards are surfing the whitewater on Washington rivers.
Cheryl and Adam McKenney started taking on Leavenworth area rivers on their boards about four years ago. The adventure can be mellow, or madness. It all depends on the river. One thing's certain: stand up paddle board excursions are as popular as kayaking trips at the McKenney's store, Leavenworth Mountain Sports.
"It's taken off," said Cheryl. "The learning curve for stand up paddling is much easier than for kayaking."
"At Leavenworth Mountain Sports we'll put first-timers, who have never been on a stand-up paddleboard down the class 1 section of the Icicle River, and it's absolutely gorgeous. Anybody can do it from 5 years old to 70 years old," said Adam.
River SUP-ing does have a wild side. To see it, we went to Happy Wave on the Wenatchee River.
"Happy Wave is a standing wave, a natural formation, and as the river levels increase or decrease, this wave appears," said Cheryl.
River surfers use safety equipment you won't see on ocean surfers, like life jackets and helmets.
"The helmet's not just for hitting rocks in the river -- when you fall off a wave, as you see, the board can pop up and hit you in the head. " Adam said.
A board leash with a quick release function is also essential.
Adam makes surfing this endless wave look effortless, almost like walking on water. Water that's traveling at a volume of 6,000 cubic feet per second.
But this is not as easy as he makes it look. Balance and lightning reflexes are key to staying on big waves.
Despite a near collision with a couple of rafts crowding too close as he rides the wave, Adam says anti-SUP sentiment has not invaded his home waters like it has some surfing beaches.
"It's just a matter of respect, and we haven't seen any vibes yet here on the Wenatchee river as far as any user group vibes. But definitely seen it in the ocean."
Adam and Cheryl have found a surfer's paradise east of the Cascades. And they'll be riding their boards here as long as snow melts and rivers run.
"I just wanna get wet," Adam smiled.
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