The West Country’s Severn Bore made mainstream news beginning of the week with this aerial footage courtesy of Sky News offering a good idea of just how popular the natural phenomena has become in the UK.

First surfed in 1955 by a WWII veteran Jack Churchill, the 20-mile straight-hander continues to lure hundreds of wave riders from all over the British Isles despite its uninviting freezing-cold, murky brown waters (but at least there’s no crocs to contend with as with Sumatra’s Bono river tidal bore!).

For those who may not be into this particular aspect of wave riding, these very large tidal surges are still a very welcome sign that spring is just around the corner. And with the longer, warmer days (not to mention the clocks going back), everyone’s shred opportunities become that much more attractive!