Northwest Wind

6/14/07

Monday we had enough wind out of the South for a few of us to get out on the water over at Pilar Condominiums. Then on Wednesday the wind switched to the northwest and we had a great day out at the kite shack. Jorge, Ken, Chip and Jeff all had great sessions, except that Jeff had to be carried of the beach after crashing while attempting an overpowered kite loop. OOps. The forecast calls for a few more days, off and on, of northwest wind so we are all looking forward to getting in some rare summertime kiting.

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Just Not Enough

6/23/07

Last Thursday we had an almost perfect day. Wind was out of the northwest, the water was warm and flat. Haven't had much since. A few days the south wind has looked promising but just hasn't been enough. Another problem with the southerly wind is that it brings up Portuguese Man of Wars from the tropics. There were lots on the beach the other day, but only a few still in the water.

Most days are still nice out at the beach. This shot below was over at the Condos Pilar.

Cape Cod

7/17/07

Gave up on San Carlos and flew to Cape Cod last Tuesday. Weather has been great and the wind has been good enough to get out most days. Christian, from Phoenix, came out with me.


He has a house in San Carlos and decided to take up kiteboarding after coming out to the kite hangout. He went to Hawaii for a week of lessons and was anxious to continue progressing in the sport.

I have a cottage in East Dennis, Massachusetts so it seemed like a logical choice to go there.
We only have a couple more days left and didn't have any wind today. Tomorrows prediction looks good, 12 to 18 knots. The launch site is a bit limited right now and we have to park about half a mile away due to some rare birds, piping plovers, nesting in the area.

Wake Me Up When the Summer is Over

8/1/07

The trip to Cape Cod was a nice break and I'll be going back in just a couple of weeks.

Thank God!

San Carlos is pretty boring this time of year. It is hard to find something that you want to do outside because the heat is oppressive. It isn't bad if you are just sitting at home in front of an air conditioner or even outside in the shade if there is a breeze blowing on you. You can still get out hiking or biking or kayaking but how long do you really want to be out in this sun? To me, even sailing or going fishing is just too much sitting around and baking.

I still get to the gym on a regular basis and Saturday I went spearfishing and got a nice cabrilla. I also managed to get out kiteboarding for a couple of hours on Sunday; so I do get out of the house. Maybe it is just because I am comparing the weather here to that of Cape Cod that is making me complain so much.

In Cape Cod it was a joy to do anything outside, and there are lots of places to go and things to see and do. So, I ask, what am I doing here in San Carlos? Good question. I don't plan on making the same mistake next year. This is the 14th year that I have spent at least a part of the summer here and that is enough. To all of my friends that keep inviting me to go visit them in some other location - BE WARNED - I am coming.

All right, enough ranting. Here are some more photos from Cape Cod.

Calm Sea

8/12/07

We have had a few days of weather and waves coming from the south this season but it has been a lot calmer than usual. Most mornings the view from my porch is like in the photo below.

Very pretty, but very flat. Often during the summer there will be big swells crashing against the sea wall in front of my house. So far, there has been very little tropical storm activity south of us to generate the waves. It is still early, though, as the hurricane season tends to be busier in September and October.

The Grey Dawn is back in the water. I owned this boat for a dozen years. The new owner, Maria, had it out of the water and just put it back in about a month ago. It is nice to see it ready to cruise.

Saturday I'll be back in Cape Cod to spend a month. Should be able to kite at least half the days that I'll be there. It will be a nice change anyway, even if the weather doesn't cooperate.

New England Weather

8/22/07

I am in Cape Cod, Massachusetts until the middle of September. New England is known for its fickle weather and this week has been even stranger than normal. We had near record cool weather for five days and now we are to have record heat this weekend and then return to record cold early next week. Going from highs in the sixties to high nineties and then back again. Wind has been in the 10 to 14 knot range until today when it picked up to over 20. My big kite is now a 14M '07 North Rhino and it has more low end power than any of the bigger kites that I used to fly. Most of the week I was the only one at the beach but today, Friday, there were seven or eight guys out on the water. Tomorrow should be even busier with predictions of hot weather and wind in the 20's.

Labor Day

9/4/07

The weather was great for Labor Day weekend as it has been all week and the forecast is for continued nice weather. Wind has been spotty with Saturday nice on the bay side and Monday was blowing southwest which is good on the south side. Here are a few shots of Labor Day at West Dennis Beach.

Rain Today

9/11/07

Less than half of the days have been kiteable. Rain today. The weekend was decent and there were quite a few people out on the water.

Waiting

9/19/07

This is the time of the year when all we can do is wait for the wind to come to San Carlos. I am spending this week of waiting in Tucson but I'll be back in Mexico by this weekend. Weather forecasts call for wind out of the south for a while longer - northwest winds are our preferred direction. October will bring them, but it may not be until the middle of the month. Then it should be good until sometime in April. Plenty of 20+ knot winds. Perfect for 12 meter kites. More photos from Cape Cod below.

They Are Coming!

9/28/07

The north-westerly winds are coming. Tuesday I had a nice day out on the water on my 14 meter kite and big board. The forecast had a possibility of a repeat on Wednesday but I don’t know what it was like. I had to drive back up to Tucson to take care of a car problem. When I drove down on Saturday I got to Hermosillo at the same time as a huge thunderstorm. Streets were flooded, cars were stalled, and some traffic lights were out. It was a mess. I drove through one intersection where the water was up to my bumper. Apparently this allowed a piece of dirt to enter the axle seal on the gear box and causing an oil leak. Three days later I filled the manual transmission and found that it was a quart low. It only holds 2 quarts so it was down a lot. I didn’t dare wait for fear that the leak may worsen and I’d be stuck in Mexico unable to make the drive back. I also didn’t want to void my warranty by having it repaired in Mexico so I made a quick dash back to Tucson. Problem is being fixed and I’ll be on my way back to San Carlos in the morning. Forecast calls for okay wind on Monday. I’ll be ready.




Yesterday I had some time to kill so I went for a hike in Reddington Pass. It was a really nice day, although still a bit hot. There was a small amount of water flowing but the pools were brown with lots of algae. I only saw one other person in the canyon. The only thing that spoiled the afternoon was the amount of trash. Beer cans, sometimes piles of them, were everywhere. I have never seen anything like it.

The Season Has Started

10/4/07

We have had two days of northwesterly winds in a row and the prediction is for a five day blow starting Saturday. So get your kite gear in shape - tighten the bolts on your bindings and fins, check your bladders and your lines, and repair the damage you didn't fix last year because it is show time. Only two of us made it out on Tuesday but a few more showed up yesterday - Jeff, Luque, Adan, Scott, and myself. The beach is great, the water warm, enough wind for 12 meter kites and flat water. What more could you want?
Too busy kiting to take pictures but I'll have plenty of this coming weekend.

A Great Begining

10/12/07

The season has started off with 8 good kite days out of the last 9. Not expecting any wind today, but maybe tomorrow. The wind on most days was gusting over 20 knots. Measured a gust of 28 yesterday. I don't have a wind meter set up, just a handheld that I use to check the wind a couple of times during the day, so it could have gusted higher. Even with that much wind I was still able to use my 14M Rhino that I had set up earlier in the day when the wind was lighter. First time that I've tried to test out the high end of that kite's range. The low end is around 10 knots. I have never seen a kite with a wider wind range than the North Rhinos.



Christian and Arizona Lou drove down from Phoenix to take advantage of the early wind. Both were looking real good out there and were liking the smooth conditions to improve their skills. Chris has less than 20 sessions on the water, but here he is getting some air.

10/14/07

The wind has let up considerably but it still blows for part of the day almost every afternoon.
Last weekend it got a bit crowded out on the water. The sweet spot that we call the "kiddie pool" only has room for seven or eight kiters before space gets tight. I was thinking that we could have problems with over ten people showing up the first weekend of the season, but this weekend was back to normal - three yesterday and four today. Here is a photo of John, enjoying the best part of the bay.

Another Nice Day

10/19/07

We have only had a couple of days that haven't been windy lately, and even those days would have an hour or more of wind late in the day. Most days the wind starts early, before noon, and blows all day before mellowing out towards sunset. Today was blowing 15 - 20 with some stronger gusts. Above are Shawn (from Ventura, CA) Carlos and Scott.

La Manga

10/23/07

Today ended up being a real nice day. It started out with light winds so we went up to the next beach where some days it starts earlier and stronger. We still had to wait until 1:30 or so but finally the wind came. Nothing real strong, but steady. It was fun to get out kiting in a different spot. La Manga is a shallow bay, more open to the sea than we are used to and with a lot more waves and chop. Lots of room for long tacks. At the end of the day Ricardo, Christian, and Lou kited down to the end of the bay and portaged over to the kiddie pool at Algodones while I drove over to the other beach so they would have a ride back to their car.

(No) Wind Report

10/26/07

A couple of people have called or stopped by to ask if we are going to have wind today. Below is a photo of the water in front of my house at 3:30 pm. Nothing. Tomorrow and Sunday we are supposed to have wind.

eBay and More

10/28/07

It is the time of year when there are some good deals on kite equipment.
EBay has several kites up for auction that would be great for using here or most anywhere. First there is this Cabrinha Switchblade II that is one of the best kites out there. It was the most popular kite on the beach in Cape Cod.
There is also a 9M and a 12M '06 Caution Answer kite available. I flew one in Cabarete and it was the best that I tried out on that trip.
And here is a brand new Waroo 11M for $500. Great for beginners.
I am not a fan of Slingshot but here is a new 9M Link for $450.
Another good source for used stuff is the classifieds at iKitesurf.

The wind finally came up sometime after 3:30 yesterday and I was the only one kiting. While I was killing time waiting, I did some bikini watching.

Into the Sunset

11/2/07

The wind has been okay the last couple of days and I am optimistic for the near future. Not expecting a lot of wind but yesterday it was gusting over 20 knots. Only Luque and myself have been getting out to take advantage of the weather. The water is still nice, around 73 degrees. The water has been fairly flat and nobody else out there. At the end of the day Jeff and Scott showed up for a nice sunset session.

Not Much Wind

11/9/07

Haven't had much wind this week and doesn't look good until Monday. Luque and I have gotten out a few days but the wind has been light and often lasts only a couple of hours. The good news is that the water is still warm, still in the low 70's.

With no wind, thoughts turn to alternative activities and toys. New on my list of things that I've got to get is a Grinch Winch. Just like the name says, it is a winch. But no ordinary winch. Check this video out: http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=14284391

And the winch is available at: http://www.buywake.com/catalog/detail/hFEdF

Pretty cool, huh?

PARTY

11/10/07

Every year a group of kids from the University of Arizona come down for a weekend party. They stay at the Plaza San Carlos and spend a couple of afternoons enjoying themselves at the Soggy Peso Bar.

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