Surfer riding a wave in Nazaré, Portugal

© Rui Caria/Getty Image

Where there's a will, there's a wave. International Surfing Day

Today, everybody's hitting the waves for International Surfing Day! This event is about celebrating surfing while also drawing attention to the importance of protecting ocean environments to keep their waters pristine for wildlife and surfers alike. Surfing has a long history; around 5,000 years ago in Peru, people used reed watercraft to surf the waves when they were out fishing. It was in pre-colonial Hawaii, however, that modern surfing was born. Here, people started to stand on their boards and to surf for fun. Historians believe that surfing made its way to the US in 1885, when three teenage Hawaiian princes surfed on redwood boards while on a break from boarding school in California.