NLand Surf Park is an inland

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...

destination near

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, located ten minutes from Austin-Bergstrom International Airport at 4836 East Highway 71, Del Valle, Texas 78617. The park offers surfing sessions, lessons, clinics, or group surfing for first-time, beginner, intermediate, and advanced surfers. In addition to the 14-acre surf lagoon and surrounding land, the park includes a surf shop and a restaurant (Blue Prairie), and a craft brewery (NLand Brewing Company). NLand's surf lagoon is the largest man-made surf lagoon in North America. Founder Doug Coors partnered with Spanish engineering firm

Wavegarden Wavegarden SL is an engineering enterprise dedicated to the research, design, manufacturing, installation, commissioning and promotion of artificial wave, wave generating systems and lagoons for surfing. The company's headquarters are in the Basq ...

to design and build the

wave pool A wave pool is a swimming pool in which there are artificially generated, large waves, similar to those of the ocean. Wave pools are often a major feature of water parks, both indoors and outdoors, as well as some leisure centres. History Th ...

lagoon, which offers six-foot-high waves as well as gentler waves for surfing and

bodyboarding Bodyboarding is a water sports, water sport in which the surfing, surfer rides a bodyboard on the crest, face, and curl of a wave which is carrying the surfer towards the shore. Bodyboarding is also referred to as ''Boogieboarding'' due to the in ...

. NLand's waves provide rides of up to 35 seconds and surfers have the opportunity to catch a new wave every two minutes. On January 8, 2019, the World Surf League purchased NLand.

History

Construction on NLand began in 2014 and was completed in 2016. The Travis County Commissions court delayed the park from opening in July 2016 due to a lawsuit filed citing regulatory concerns. NLand rebutted by filing a lawsuit in Federal Court stating the county has violated their constitutional right to equal protection of the law. NLand reached an agreement with state and local officials in October 2016 regarding how the park will be regulated. An injunction requiring strict water quality testing settled the opposing lawsuits between NLand and the county. The park opened to the public on October 7, 2016. Shortly after opening, the park closed unexpectedly due to damage under the lagoon. The lagoon was drained to make repairs and water from the park spilled into neighboring properties. Six months later the park reopened to the public on Friday, May 12, 2017. In January 2019, Nland was sold to the

World Surf League The World Surf League (WSL) is the governing body for professional surfing, surfers and is dedicated to showcasing the world's best talent in a variety of progressive formats. The WSL was originally known as International Professional Surfing ( ...

who plans to re-open as a surfing location sometime in the near future.

Lagoon

The lagoon is bisected by a pier. Each half of the lagoon is divided into zones according to wave height. The perimeter of the east side provides small, whitewater waves ideal for beginners. NLand refers to this area as the "Bay Wave." The west side of the lagoon provides a larger four-foot wave for intermediate surfers. NLand refers to this area as the "Inside Wave." The section closest to the pier on both the east and west sides provides the tallest wave, with a five-to-six-foot face, designed for advanced surfers. NLand refers to this area as the "Reef Wave". A

hydrofoil A hydrofoil is a lifting surface, or foil, that operates in water. They are similar in appearance and purpose to aerofoils used by aeroplanes. Boats that use hydrofoil technology are also simply termed hydrofoils. As a hydrofoil craft gains sp ...

beneath the pier in the center of the lagoon at NLand produces the waves by pushing more than 11 million gallons of water through the lagoon. The technology is similar to the motor used on a ski lift. Coors describes it as a chairlift motor with a snow plow on it. The lagoon's customized

bathymetry Bathymetry (; ) is the study of underwater depth of ocean floors ('' seabed topography''), river floors, or lake floors. In other words, bathymetry is the underwater equivalent to hypsometry or topography. The first recorded evidence of wate ...

was designed by engineers from NLand and

to optimize the shape of the waves for surfing.

Environmental Conservation

Water Catchment

NLand's engineering team and founder, Doug Coors, developed a solution to address the need for millions of gallons of water. The team started by digging a series of trenches for drainage pipes and channels for water to move. NLand uses a water catchment system that collects rainwater on the property to ensure the NLand lagoon is sustainable without drawing on precious water resources. Water from the park is channeled to a wet pond and bio-filtered by plants and aquatic life before it moves to a deep reservoir and through a filtration system for treatment.

Food Service

The onsite Blue Prairie restaurant uses compostable utensils, plates, bowls, and cups. In addition, NLand sources ingredients from local farms and ranches near Austin.

History

Lagoon

Environmental Conservation

Water Catchment

Food Service

References

Further reading