ZOCO KITEBOARDING ADVENTURES

Kitesurfing HOLIDAYS IN El Medano, tenerife

WHEN WILL I BE GUARANTEED WIND IN Tenerife?

This is probably one of the most frequently asked questions in kitesurfing. Although the wind may be out of our control, we can at least give you a rough idea of how to predict when it should be here.

We've also added a 6 day prediction table and useful links to other handy internet resources.

Quick links: The Windfinder 6 day prediction | Trade winds | Wind acceleration | Wind in Summer | Wind in Winter | The Sirocco | Windguru & other Web resources

Current wind, wave and weather infO

This is a complete 6 day forecast for tenerife and with Wave direction, Wave height, Wave period, Cloud cover, Precipitation, Pressure sealevel (hPa) and Air temperature (°C) forecast.

TRADE WINDS

The NE trade winds blow throughout the year, although they tend to move up & down the Atlantic. In summer, which is our windy period, the trades can start to blow as early as March and as late as May. Contrary to popular belief the trade winds are not strong winds; only about 3 Bft. on the open sea.

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WIND ACCELERATION

However around Tenerife we have acceleration zones where the wind is either funnelled between mountains, or islands and where the wind can sometimes increase to as much as 8 - 9 Bft.
The Kitesurfing center in El Medano in Tenerife is lucky enough to be situated in one of these wind acceleration zones. The trades can blow right the way through to the middle of September when they tend to move further south, hence the reason why the Cape Verdes are best in winter. (Dec/Jan/Feb).

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SUMMER

The summer winds are controlled by having High pressure sitting over the Azores (Azores High) and a Low over the Sahara (Sahara Low). The Low is formed by hot air rising and this pulls in the relatively cold air from the High pressure. The High pressure can be very stable and it is not uncommon for it to extend right across the Atlantic from Portugal to Florida.

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WINTER

In winter the whole picture changes. We now have small Low pressure systems coming out off the North American High (cold stable air), on to the coast off N. Foundland these come down to about 35°N and travel eastwards accross the Atlantic, all the time getting deeper + stronger. They bring the bad weather to Europe and the British Isles, and it is from these Low pressure systems that we have our waves in the winter. Occasionally one ventures further south than usual and clips the islands, giving us insane windsurfing conditions as well as creating havoc in most of the harbours in the Canaries. The wind tends to be 7- 8 sometimes 9 Bft. and blows from a south - southwest direction. It lasts 2 - 4 days and gives us the chance to windsurf locations which normally only a handfull of time during the winter period.

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SIROCCO

One other wind phenomenon which deserves a mention is the Sirocco. This is a hot dry wind straight off the Sahara desert some 65miles away. It can be strong or light and normally lasts anything from 2 - 10 days.

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WAVE, SWELL AND WIND PREDICTION Resources on the web

Below you'll find some of the best wind and wave resources on the net. If you know of any others that should be here please let us know.

WINDGURU

Spain - Canary Islands - Tenerife - El Medano

Comprehensive wind info on windsurfing spots around the world.
The Windguru website provides the following info:
• Wind speed (knots)
• Wind direction
• Wave (m)
• Wave period (s)
• Wave direction
• Temperature (°C)
• Cloud cover (%)
• Rain (mm/3h)
• Windguru spot rating
• + An archive of stats (at the bottom right hand corner of the page there is a “archive” tab click on that to see access specific wind strength data for other months/years)

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