Catch a wave in the middle of New Hampshire thanks to Akua Beach

By Lulu Chang Updated July 1, 2017

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Lincoln, New Hampshire may not be at the top of your list when compiling surfing destinations, but thanks to the wonders of the modern world, we don’t need an ocean to make for great maritime sports. There’s a new attraction at the Whale’s Tale Waterpark in the White Mountains of the Granite State, and it’s called Akua Beach. The $1 million attraction is described as “the best wave on the East Coast,” and while that may be a dubious title, it is a pretty neat manmade wave.

Designed by Pacific Surf, the Akua Beach is what its design company calls a Pro Flow Double. With almost 650 square feet of ride surface area and a wave height of 4.6 feet, professional and amateur surfers alike can probably get something of a kick out of this simulator. The padded side bumper walls don’t have any hard 90-degree corners, which means that you won’t get hurt if you crash into the side of the ride, and there is also a recovery area in the ride that ensures that riders won’t be running into one another while surfing.

The Akua Beach opened to the public for the first time on Thursday, June 29, whereupon professional Flowboarders were invited to give the attraction its maiden voyage to highlight its unique capabilities. And as Whale’s Tale Waterpark promises, the more you visit this particular ride, the better you’ll get. So the next time your parents tell you practice makes perfect, you can ask to go to a waterpark.

“We’re very excited to offer a cutting edge attraction of this caliber to our park. Start out body boarding and build your confidence to progress to surfing on our industry leading Flowboards,” said Lisa Dutto, director of operations at Whale’s Tale Waterpark.

So if you’re looking for a way to introduce some surfing excitement into your life but are living in or near the woods of New England, don’t think you have to go all the way to the left coast to get your thrills — just take a drive up to Lincoln’s Whale’s Tale Waterpark and try out the new Akua Beach for yourself.

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