Recent storms left southern Utah soggy and swollen, but for Tanner Staheli, high water on the Virgin River meant one thing: it was time to surf. On Monday morning, Staheli and two friends, Isaac Foster and Caden Bringhurst, paddled out at the overpass crossing Long Valley Road in Washington, Washington County, taking advantage of elevated river levels to catch a wave that doesn't exist on an ordinary day, according to KSL.
The trio belongs to a group called Landlocked Surfcrew, which, according to KSL, seeks out ways to surf bodies of water that aren't oceans. Staheli, Foster and Bringhurst are all members, and Monday's session on the Virgin River was a first for all three of them. Staheli owns a boat rental company in southern Utah and regularly teaches people how to wakesurf, so he's no stranger to chasing a wave wherever he can find one.
What made this particular stretch of river rideable comes down to what's sitting beneath the surface. Staheli explained, as reported by KSL, that sand at the location creates underwater ripples or bumps, and that's what lets a wave form in moving water that would otherwise just be a fast, muddy current.
Riding a Wave That Comes and Goes
Catching the wave wasn't as simple as paddling out and standing up. The three surfers used a rope tied to a tree to help them get onto the wave, then released it once they were riding, as noted by KSL. Staheli described a rhythm to it: the wave builds, calms for a few minutes, then returns, meaning timing mattered as much as balance. The group stayed out for several hours making the most of the conditions.
For Staheli, the appeal is tied directly to the weather that creates it. He summed up the mindset with a phrase that doubles as the whole philosophy behind Landlocked Surfcrew: storms are bad news, but they bring good waves. He said he plans to keep watching the river, and if another opportunity like Monday's comes along, he will definitely go back out.
Flooding Backdrop Across the Region
The session came amid a stretch of wet weather that caused real damage elsewhere in the region. As reported by FOX 13, constant downpours caused widespread flooding damage across southern Utah over the preceding week, and that same outlet separately reported surfers entering the Virgin River in St. George while it was running high. Earlier in October, communities across the region had already seen a preview of the trouble: per KUTV, minor flooding hit as storms moved through on October 12, with Washington County officials bracing for potentially heavier rain that evening. KUTV's reporting that month noted that Washington County Emergency Management had flagged areas around Zion National Park and the Forsyth Fire burn scar as carrying the highest flood risk.
Rising water in the area hasn't always made for a fun story. ABC4 reported that two people were rescued after rising water trapped their vehicle in a river below Gunlock Falls, with responders establishing a tensioned high-line system anchored to trees on both riverbanks to bring the occupants to safe ground. Washington County Search and Rescue has warned that elevated water can turn familiar river crossings dangerous, cautioning that drivers should never attempt to cross swift-moving water.
Not the First Utah River to Draw a Crowd
Surfing a Utah waterway isn't entirely new. Back in 2009, the station's earlier reporting described expert kayakers riding an artificial standing wave on the Weber River in Riverdale, a feature created when the local sewer district rebuilt a structure protecting an underwater sewer line. That wave was only rideable for about five or six weeks each spring when water levels ran high, a seasonal window not unlike the storm-dependent conditions that briefly turned the Virgin River into a playground this week.
KSL, which first reported on Staheli's group, was careful to note that it does not encourage or condone the activity, adding that the stunt is performed by people with training and experience. For Staheli, that experience is exactly the draw, and he's already watching the forecast for the next chance to paddle out.
