Im about to take off to the UK for the summer and winter coming, and am thinking of kiting trips I can do while Im there, can anyone give any stories, advice, places to hit or places not to???
Wales if you can make it some of the best kiting in the UK
north and south
one place i regret not making it to over there was Tiree in scotland is awesome for wind and such a small island you just pick the beach to suit the current wind direction but really for the hardcore kiter not much else on the island in the way of entertainment (family etc) or so i am told
where are you going to be based ?
also get yourself onto Kitecrowd.com they are a mainly uk based forum and they can give you good advice
Tyree island , gower peninsula, cumbria, rhosy,west coast of ireland, plenty of spots, get a.decent steamer
Sorry forgot to mention, check the bksa website as they've done a lot of lobbying to re establish Kiting in some areas where local councils banned it, its only 25 pounds to join for the year, our Kiting body could learn from the bksa great establishment
If you are staying around the south coast, you have Poole Harbour which is a good flat water spot, Boscombe beach has a bit of wave action, as does Brighton, West Witterings is pretty awesome for flat water as it has sandbars which create pretty much a lake at low tide. However at West Witterings you need to be a member to use the beach, they have a little hut there with details, it's also a really nice spot with easy access, big beach, showers toilets etc. Poole harbour has very little beach to launch from. Watergate bay in Cornwall (lovely part of England not to be missed with good surf) is also a good spot if you are down that way and has some waves. West Coast of Ireland is pretty big waves from what I know, so be careful if you are heading that way.
Select to expand quotecauncy said...
Sorry forgot to mention, check the bksa website as they've done a lot of lobbying to re establish Kiting in some areas where local councils banned it, its only 25 pounds to join for the year, our Kiting body could learn from the bksa great establishment
Kited for 6 years in the uk, bksa website is really useful tool
Are they a great body yes - but u have I bear in mind try look after a much smaller land mass with a greater number of MEMBERS
Select to expand quotecauncy said..
Sorry forgot to mention, check the bksa website as they've done a lot of lobbying to re establish Kiting in some areas where local councils banned it, its only 25 pounds to join for the year, our Kiting body could learn from the bksa great establishment
BKSA was 35 pounds for membership last time i was there
. . . i asked about getting coverage for someone who was visiting me and was instructed that it was not possible to cover anyone that didn't currently reside in the uk (not holiday)
if you do reside there for a while SPKA insurance is the one to get BPKA is by far the cheapest but it is badly run and can take months to receive coverage
. . . . as opposed to BPKS and SPKA who cover you from the instant you pay and print out the policy
the insuravne companies are just ripping us of in australia
if the BPKA is still around (it was run so badly im not sure if they are )
they prvide global public liability insurance for its members in all aspects of kiting for 14 pounds a year incluing their profit margin on top - how can they justify such high prices in australia . . . is it just a scam ?
also if your planning on kiting at the gower peninsula's amazing beaches be aware of massive UK summer restrictions to a lot of the beaches and misrable kite hating land owners trying to block vehicular access to others (sadly with great success)
In respect of insurance cost, all I will say is yesterday I paid nearly $6 dollars for a capsicum and $11 for a pint of ****ty beer! My point? Everything is expensive in Oz!
Joshbuts - Are you planning to do trips outside the UK? Are you looking for waves or flat water?
Select to expand quoteBurls said..
Joshbuts - Are you planning to do trips outside the UK? Are you looking for waves or flat water?
waves is always better..
Select to expand quotejoshbuts said..
Im about to take off to the UK for the summer and winter coming, and am thinking of kiting trips I can do while Im there, can anyone give any stories, advice, places to hit or places not to???
My girlfriend is also coming over a few weeks later to visit so we are thinking of taking 2 weeks to do a trip somewhere.. any suggestions on a good cheep place to go??? my girl is only just starting (up on the water but not up wind yet..) so a flat water spot is better for her.. suggestions???
Yes, but do you mean still in the UK or other Euro destination?
kiteboarder.co.uk/kitesurfing/
forum.kitecrowd.com/kitesurfing/
www.skyhooked.co.uk/2011/05/the-ultimate-kitesurfing-guide-to-cornwall/
kitesurfinguk.org.uk/uk-kite-beaches/
Tiree (Scotland), island is getting talked about more and more too, although there's not much else to do there other than kite and/ or chill....
Some of the beaches in Pembrokshire (S Wales), and Cornwall would even rival (dare I say it), some of the Aus beaches.
Places within a few hours flight of UK suitable for learning could include:
Gokova (Turkey)
Fuerteventura
Egypt & Greece as mentioned
Josh,
Take a look at kiteworldmag.com travel section has a lot of good info. There should be heaps of places that are cheap to get to from UK (flight/accom deals). In terms of a flat water spot for the missus: greece could be fun, egypt is cheap and as flat as it gets, italy the list goes on...
If you want snow, come to Norway in winter and ill show you some good spots. save your pennies though coz it aint cheap!
Select to expand quotejoshbuts said..
My girlfriend is also coming over a few weeks later to visit so we are thinking of taking 2 weeks to do a trip somewhere.. any suggestions on a good cheep place to go??? my girl is only just starting (up on the water but not up wind yet..) so a flat water spot is better for her.. suggestions???
If you're girlfriend is coming over in summer and you want to kite in flat (or Fairly flat) water, here's a few spots you may want to check out:
Corfu, Greece - SW Coast (Just South of Chalikounas) - Beautiful beach (quiet by Euro standards), great spot for learning, there's a kite school there. A little summertime shack bar on top of the dune pumps out the euro trash we had some really fun post-kiting sessions there. The beach is a long way from anywhere, so you would either have to stay nearby and have a very quiet stay (besides the kiting), or stay at one of the bigger towns on Corfu where you can party, but then you'll have to drive to the beach which took us around 45 minutes plus, each way. There's lots of accommodation options on Corfu.
Porto Pollo, Sardinia (Kiting is from the beach West of Isola Dei Gabbiani) - Gorgeous beach, popular kite spot, but the beach was so long you could find your own space, flat water. Sardinia is generally not a cheap place, but there could be some cheaper places to stay if you're out of the key tourist areas.
Paros, Greece (Pounta): Kiting mecca, very popular kite spot indeed, but I never found any problem finding some space, although I haven't been there in the middle of peak holiday season. Flat water, several kite schools. IMO Paros is a cool island to chill out.
PM me if you want more info.
Burls
Burls , thanks heaps for all the good info! But we have a friend that is Israeli and has convinced us to goto Israel.. you don't know anything about Israel, Jordan, or Egypt do you??
Select to expand quotejoshbuts said..joshbuts said..
Im about to take off to the UK for the summer and winter coming, and am thinking of kiting trips I can do while Im there, can anyone give any stories, advice, places to hit or places not to???
My girlfriend is also coming over a few weeks later to visit so we are thinking of taking 2 weeks to do a trip somewhere.. any suggestions on a good cheep place to go??? my girl is only just starting (up on the water but not up wind yet..) so a flat water spot is better for her.. suggestions???
Canary Islands. Cheap as from the UK. It is like their version of Bali. I stayed in Fuerteventura for a week for two people including flights for a few hundred pounds. I just rented a dirt bike. Convince your girlfriend to hold your board and just ride down the coast till you find a spot. Lanzarote is a good day trip too.
Good luck.
Select to expand quotejoshbuts said..
Burls , thanks heaps for all the good info! But we have a friend that is Israeli and has convinced us to goto Israel.. you don't know anything about Israel, Jordan, or Egypt do you??
No mate, sorry.
FYI the 'Meltemi' has kicked off in Greece, and it's been blowing its balls off. 25-35 knots, perfect sunshine, and Mythos beer 3.50 Euro a six pack, not bad.
Burls.
