Spots
Published on April 24th, 2014 | by RB Team
Photo by Joey Hudock, Flickr | 0Wave O Saurus
The “Wave O Saurus” is a river surf spot on the Connecticut river, located near Holyoke, Massachusetts. It got that name because of a series of dinosaur footprints located right next to the spot. Normally the river is a t 12.000 cfs. One some days you’ll find the river at 75.000 – 90.000 cfs. It only gets like this two to three times a year. Be sure to be there at the right time to take advantage of this pretty unique opportunity. Joshua Copen and Brian Oelberg are two of the pioneering locals at the Waveosaurus wave.
Spot Details
Country: United States, North AmericaNearest town/city: Holyoke, MassachusettsRiver: Connecticut River
Address
- Dinosaur Footprints Park, Holyoke, Massachusetts, United States.
Directions
- Park at Dinosaur Footprints park on Rt. 5 between Holyoke and Northampton.
GPS Coords
- Latitude: 42.2420311
- Longitude: -72.6216888
Spot Location
Wave Details
Characteristics
- A nice right, shouldn’t be too difficult to paddle in.
Conditions
- 35.000cfs+
Wave appears during peak flow times caused by spring melt and/or high rains.
Dangers
- Exit river right: there is a big eddy with some car-sized boils that take some paddling to hit the back eddy or walk back on the tracks.
Also don’t swallow too much of the water, some people say that the river is heavily polluted.
Tips
- Paddle out a hundred feet upstream and line up carefully, wait for the whitewater to push you out onto the face before you try to stand up. It’s a one-shot thing at high water (90,000 cfs) but at lower levels (40-50k) you can wade up behind the wave and jump over into it on your board.