The UK village with the first wave pool in the country – where you can even learn to surf

“PADDLE, paddle, paddle,” Oliver repeats the simple instructions like a mantra.

I am clad from neck to toe in a wetsuit, attempting to stand up on my surfboard.

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However, before I can position my left leg for leverage, I need to practise paddling, aiming the nose of the board to a point beyond the shore.

Oliver is a good surf coach.

Despite our group of ten or so spanning a range of ages and fitness levels, by the end of the 90-minute session, we’ve all progressed in some way.

The Wave is an artificial inland wave pool and surf camp, framed by squares of green fields in the old English village of Easter Compton.

It’s a 20-minute drive from Bristol and 20 miles from the nearest beach.

But the concept is so simple, it’s genius — a concrete lagoon, divided into two triangle-shaped coves, generates up to 1,000 waves per hour.

Waves crest up to two metres for experienced surfers and, for beginners like my daughter Maya and me, they reach only half that height.

Each wave is consistent, regardless of the weather.

And the site is fully sustainable, generating its own solar power.

After the 30-minute on-land lesson, we grab our boards and head towards the foaming waves, ready to ride them smoothly to the shore.

That’s how it went in my head.

The reality is that you need to perfect the basics, and that includes mastering the simple yet vital skill of paddling, one arm at a time, and understanding how to execute a semi-cobra pose to slow your speed.

The waves are forceful.

For a new surfer, mastering the technique, picking up the board and wading back through the clear water takes effort.

By the time I decide to get up on the board, I admit, I feel weak.

The fact that Maya is only 19 and admits to feeling the same, saying, “I feel like an ant with a leaf”, saves my pride.

I try to stand up twice, falling both times, but that’s part of the process.

When our lesson time is up we’re all jelly-legged but in good spirits, Maya joking about plans to become a surf pro once she’s graduated, and both of us are really hungry.

Overlooking the lake, the Clubhouse is exactly what it should be for such a laid-back venue — a huge hangar-style space with beechy light wood and industrial-chic concrete tables-cum-planters with huge trees growing out of the centre.

All-day dining on seasonal and local ingredients means creamy porridge with berries or croque monsieur; fish with the lightest golden batter, skin-on chips, burgers and vegan macaroni cheese for dinner.

Alternatively, you can cook your own food in safari-style tents that are new for this year, complete with kitchenettes, long wooden dining tables with benches and cosy wood burning fires.

There are also hostel-style shared men-only and women-only tents for those on tighter budgets.

The laid-back surfer vibe even extends into the campsite, where everyone is benefitting from the endorphins from all the exercise and the camaraderie.

The Wave is also the first wave pool in the UK created with people with disabilities in mind.

With further venues in the pipeline — including the Lee Valley Regional Park for London — more of us will be able to surf, regardless of distance from the coast.

While waiting for our Uber, I browse the shop, admiring colourful surfboards and wetsuits.

After just one lesson, I already feel like a fully fledged member of the surfing community.

Give it a few more and I might just get there.

Joseph Branston

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