I'm heading over to Tarawa Island in the Kiribati island group start of December...
Was wondering if anyone had been kiting in that area and could give me tips on what to expect/ what gear to bring etc??
Looks like low but consistent winds average around 13 knots ish maybe.
Haven't been able to find much on the net about kite boarding in that area.
So kiribati is in the pacific north of Fiji, on the equator.
Considering at this stage just bringing my 12 and 16m cabrinhas.
It is an island,
It is surrended by water,
Yes, you can kite there
don't forget a kite, a board and a harness 
explore
Back in 2003 I lived and kited there for a year. The best year of my life, but not for kiting.
I was the first person ever to kite in Kiribati, and the first time I put up my kite I caused a traffic jam on the only road. Everyone stopping to stare at this crazy imatang (white person). The kids were all running up and down called "te baruun" (the ballon - cause they had seen me pump it up).
Not long after that a local got hold of a kite
Winds are terrible. I reckon I kited about 8 times all year, and never very powered up. Probably could have gotten out more often, but I didn't know how to self launch back then, together with the tide restrictions (discussed below).
Ocean side has to be mid to high tide, coz the coral flats are so sharp you just can't get out.
Lgoon side is pretty polluted, coz everyone uses it as their toilet. Did swim and kite in it, but ended up with the worst ear infection I've ever had. Lagoon side is best for mid to low tide, but choose your beach carefully, so you are not launching from one of the poo beaches.
South Tarawa the wind is usually cross shore.
Beaches have a lot of rubbish on them - used nappies, hospital waste etc (and people squatting to take a dump).
Your pump/gear sitting on the beach might disappear. Be careful.
North tarawa is on shore to cross-on, cleaner water cleaner beaches and cleaner wind. There is a lovely walk up to broken bridge (maybe 2 hours). You can only do it at low tide. You'll be stinking hot by the time you get there, but a beautiful picnic spot. I never kited there, but it would have been a good option.
Bring light weather gear. I doubt you'd be able to borrow or hire anything - it's really not a tourist spot, and I can't believe there's a market for the locals.
Repairs/spares in-country are also unlikely to be found.
Kiribati is steadily sinking under water. Many of my favourite places have probably disappeared (I know my friend's old house has virtually disappeared).
I never kited any of the outer islands, but travelled a bit on some of them. Fantastically beautiful (but not in a picture postcard sort of a way). And largely unkown to westerners. Stayed in a village on Marakei - we were the first westerners to stay in the village for over twenty years, and I was the first doctor to visit for over thirty years. They built a special house for us to live in while we were there. Kiting the outer islands would be a real buzz, but such ostentatious displays of wealth relative to the locals might make you feel a bit uncomfortable
You're probably not going there for a holiday. Work? Business? If you want any more information, PM me and we'll have a chat.
do you think it's still worth bringing the gear for a 2 week trip? I do have a light wind 16m crossbow.
Hi Odin
If you are staying with someone from AusAID, my guess is you'll be staying in Bairiki. And also having access to a boat and a car, making life a whole lot easier.
We lived near bikenibeu, right at the other end of the island. Survived with bikes and buses.
I recommend you go for a ride on the buses - I don't think my ears have recovered, but great fun
If you are only going for a fortnight, then a lot of the advice about things to bring with you and ship over to follow are probably not necessary. So I shan't call you.
I personally get an amazing buzz out of kiting in new places. A single kite and board plus harness and pump isn't too much stuff. If shared with your girlfriend, you should be able to avoid paying excess luggage (but check allowances carefully). There is a reasonable chance you won't get to use it, but the rewards if you do get out will be fantastic. A session you will never forget - I can remember every session I have ever had when travelling, but most of my sessions at my local all blur together.
Be aware that if something goes wrong and you drift out to sea, there ain't no-one ever going to find you. Every year a group of i-kiribati fisherman have their engine break down. A large number of them drift ashore in the solomons or marshall islands a couple of months later - the are amazing natural sea men, and can survive drifting at sea where we would be dead in a couple of days. I imagine the high commiussion would scramble a plane to search for you, but air kiribati had a habit of breaking down, so there might not be any one who can search. Not a reason to not do it, but be prepared to ditch your kite and swim ashore if things are going pear shaped
I recommend you buy a few bottles of kamwaimwai to bring home with you. Have on pancakes or icecream Quarantine may confiscate it, but it is liquid bliss. Apparently they confiscate anything not professionally packaged. Perhaps print your own label to put on the bottle.
Enjoy, and share your photos if you do get out.
Cheers Brady!
We will actually be staying in Bikenibeu too! Is the lagoon clean enough up there to kite? We may not have access to a car, but we will have a postie bike we can use 
So looking forward to lots of exploration! oh yeah and the techno buses hey! will certainly have to try that out, haha.
The sis also said that she should be able to organise some outer island trips... including a stay at Abaiang! On google earth, that island looks amazing! And as a bonus i'm assuming it will be a hell of a lot cleaner than Tarawa.
About stuff to bring... i checked with the airline and it should be ok to have a TT board sized bag. I have a travel kite bag which will easily fit everything in and weight should be ok too. I've weighed it with 2 kites and every thing but the harness in it, and it came in at 19kg. So i'm thinking i will take my 12 and 16m kites.
Like you said if i do actually get the opportunity to kite there it will be well worth dragging everything along and an amazing experience.
Safety wise, i don't think i would ever kite on the ocean side unless it was at least cross on-shore, i don't like to venture too far out into the ocean either. with prevailing easterlies though that side should always be on shore. But in the lagoon i suppose the wind is pretty much off shore. Only place that might have a bit of a sand bar between you and the ocean might be the very northern tip of the island? Maybe also the Bairiki bay, but i reckon that would be too polluted? I was guessing that at high to mid tide, allot of the lagoon would be really shallow, so that would be quite safe wouldn't it? I was also thinking that if i did happen to get a good day of kiting i might be able to pay someone with a boat to follow me around
Thanks for the tip on the kamwaimwai too! i'm guessing it's that syrup they get from palm flowers or something, sounds delicious!
And yes i will definitely take lots of photos and throw a few up here. I'm bringing my cannon SLR, so should get some beauties
Never went to Abaiang, but it will be a whole lot cleaner. Marakei, Nonouti and Kuria were all we went to. Would have liked to go to Abemama - the island of dreams. Robert Louis Stevenson lived there for a while, and wrote part of treasure island while he was there (and introduced tuberculosis to the local population - from which they are still suffering terribly, with the highest rates in the asia-pacific region)
Bikenibeu will have wide sand flats in the lagoon at low tide (unless the sea level rise has been worse than I thought). Water is polluted, but as I say, I still kited there. Wind will be blowing in over north Tarawa, and so a bit more gusty, but shouldn't be a problem. Don't worry about a support boat.
I very much preferred the ocean side for kiting. The water was cleaner, and the waves formed nice little kickers when they came over the coral fringe. Cross shore was fine. You have 20km of island to aim towards.
The causeway between bairiki and betio had a little beach next to it that was a picnic spot, and too far from any houses to be a toilet. Bit hard to get to on a postie bike with a kite etc, but it looked promising. This is all ten years ago though, so it might have changed.
I'm getting all excited again just thinking about it. I'm very jealous.
Yeah talking with you about this place is certainly getting me even more amped up about going! if that's possible!
That's an interesting fact about RLS writing there! think i'm going to have to read the "in the South seas" journal before i go then! not so good about the TB though! Any more interesting stories about the place? ha.
So yeah good to hear that the lagoon there is still kite-able! but you're making the ocean side sound more attractive now too! I didn't realise there was a coral fringe on that eastern side too. So that's cool!
Thanks again brady, i will be sure to give a report and some piccies when i get back 
