For the love of Lake Superior:
A look into Duluth’s thriving surf community

PHOTO BY CHRIStian dalbec
Duluthians are well-known for their toughness: they embrace harsh conditions and long, dark nights to get
outdoors all winter, enduring dreary springs that can last until June. But surfing Lake Superior during a raging
storm when even the heartiest retreat indoors? That is next-level toughness, even for Duluth. But those who surf
here love it—and keep coming back for more.
The best surfing conditions take place during storms. Duluth surfer Ben Fierek, who learned to surf while
growing up in Hawaii and is now a regular on local surf breaks, says “there’s no fair-weather surfing here so if
you are a surfer, then you’ve got to get after it, you have to take whatever you can get.” That means dropping
everything to don wetsuits, booties, mitts, and hoods in colder months.
The biggest challenge isn’t always the cold. Ultra-thick wetsuits protect surfers and help with buoyancy in the
freshwater, but they also restrain movement, so paddling—no matter how fit a surfer is—is decidedly tougher
than paddling in board shorts in Costa Rica. Fierek compares it to having resistance bands on your shoulders.
And with hoods covering surfers’ ears, hearing is limited and equilibrium is disrupted.
Another challenge is the short swell period—the time between waves—because lake surf is wind-driven and
travels just 300 miles versus building across thousands of miles of ocean. This explains why the worst weather
makes for the best surfing.
All of this just to stay in the water for maybe 90 minutes before jumping into the car to thaw out, heat blasting.
Michael Scharenbroich, who surfed while living in South Africa and near the Oregon coast before moving to
Duluth in 2015, says surfing here “shocks your system, you never truly get adjusted to it…anytime you’re
diving in you’re dipping your head into an ice bucket.”
But there is also something bigger than surfing going on here in Duluth—it’s about sharing a deep love for Lake
Superior with the community.
The heart of this community is Back Alley Surf and Coffee, tucked between Lincoln Park’s Oasis Del Norte
and Ursa Minor. In winter, it’s like stepping into the tropics despite the cold, grey day outside. Faux green grass
peeks through the snow with a brightly painted storefront and signs drawing in visitors. Boards and other
surfing gear line the walls, while custom t-shirts, clothing, and local goods are displayed throughout the store.
People gather here; with frequent live music and special events like the annual surf shindig, Back Alley feels
like the hub of Duluth’s surf culture.
Duluth is a surprising place for a growing surfing community, but really, it’s just an extension of the outdoor
ethos that Duluth has become known for. Bob Pokorny, a Park Point native who returned home after living in
California, says. “I’ve been surfing here since maybe ‘98, ‘99, a long time, and back then it was really kind of a
curiosity you know. I never dreamed we would have a surf shop.”
Both Pokorny and Scharenbroich are on the executive committee of the Surfrider Foundation’s North Shore
MN Chapter. Initiatives like beach clean-ups, education, and outreach are a big part of what they do locally.
Pokorny says it’s not necessary to surf to get involved—they have plenty of volunteers who don’t surf but share
their deep love for Lake Superior and the desire to protect it.
For anyone who has stopped by the mouth of Duluth’s Lester River on a blustery, bone-chilling day to look out
at the surfers and wonder why—Pokorny has an answer: “There are these moments of complete beauty, just
breathtaking natural beauty that keep us going back.”
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