ZOCO KITESURFING ADVENTURES

KITESURFING HOLIDAYS IN THE RePUBLIC OF CAPE VERDE

KITESURFING SPOTS IN SAL - CAPE VERDE (CABO VERDE)

Due to their position within the winter trade-wind belt, the Cape Verde Islands boast perfect kitesurfing conditions from October to June.

We have listed a couple of the more well-known kitesurfing spots below. This is by no means a definative list, if you'd like to include your favorite spot contact us and we'll add it to the guide.

Quick Links: Santa Maria | Ponta Sino | Albatros (Ponta Leme) | Ponta Preta | Salinas (Kitebeach)

Santa maria

The Kitesurf Center is located directly in front of the Beachfront Hotel in the south of Santa Maria about 50 meters from the water. The Bay of Santa Maria is a 5 km long white sandy beach with no rocks or sharp objects. Sideshore wind from the left, waist deep flat water, sandy bottom, and an average water temprature of 80 degrees Fahrenheit make Sal the ideal place to learn and practice kitesurfing. The water temprature is an average 27 degrees Celcius (80 Fahrenheit) and the sandy bottom makes this a safe spot for all levels of Kitesurfers from beginners to experts.

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PONTA SINO

If you walk for about 1 km south from the beach at Santa Maria towards the shipwreck, you will find another spot called Ponta Sino. The winds are more onshore due to the curve of the bay and the waves can be tricky. Don't go out here as a beginner.

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Albatros (Ponta Leme)

Located close to Santa Maria, this is also an easy spot. Most of the time, water is flat and wind is consistant. The wind here is side-off, sometimes sideshore from the left so the water is really flat. On a southerly swell it delivers a long, peeling wave that is fairly easy to ride. Because the landscape here is so flat, the winds are quite consistant. When there's swell running it's really a great place to learn waveriding without any danger. If anything happens, the wind- and kitesurfcenters are well organized and are equipped with a rescue Zodiac. The beach wide enough to launch your kite. The main Kite area is located near the hotels and is a short walking distance from the center of Santa Maria.

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Ponta Preta

For the worlds greatest (famous or not) this is one of the worlds very best wave riding spots. On a westerly swell Ponta preta receives the biggest waves on the island. Which is really saying something, the point can hold waves of 5 meters!

Any hint of a westerly swell and you'll see the boardriders of st. Maria wake up and nervously start arranging gear on their cars, locals walking the streets with surfboards under their arms.... the town comes alive! The god of surfing himself designed the on the ocean floor at Ponta Preta. The swell rolls in from deep water and then unleashes its awsome power on this pointbreak with a spectacular (world famous) result.

Watching a set hit this point kinda takes your breath away, you hear people sucking in air and pointing at the horizon where lumps of swell are marching across the bay. The wave starts to break a few hundred meters out and rolls clean and hollow over a length of 300 meter until it hits the white sandy beach in the form of a killer shorebreak.

This is the spot where the Kite Wavemasters is held, it's the backyard of Josh Angulo, PWA world champion. On a good day Josh will be out alongside Bjorn Dunckerbeck and many other internationalwind- kite- and surf champions. The place has a great atmosphere.

The wind is mostly cross offshore, dead off and sometimes sideshore from the right. The gusty winds and huge waves breaking over razorsharp rocks, keep most sane kitesurfers on the shore. It's a great spot to kick back and just enjoy the spectacle. Be warned: Ponta Preta is not a place to learn kiting nor a place to learn waveriding! The smallest mistake can cost you your kite, board or worse. Don't go out here if you're not confident in double overhead waves with gusty winds... and a lot of other boardriders including windsurfers, bodyboarders, kiters and surfers... respect the line up. Loose your board and the rocks will eat it, loose your kite and somebody in Brazil will find it ;-).

When the swell is less than 2 meters Ponta Preta is as flat as a pancake!Checkout the Windguru weather report for a reliable forecast for the waves and wind.

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Salinas (KiteBeach)

Kitebeach is the best kitesurfing spot in Sal. A 5 minute drive from the center of Santa Maria, this spot is excellent for beginners: the beach is vey long, very few crowds and this spot has no dangerous currents. The reef produces a fun wave for safe waveriding. The wind is side on to cross on (from the left) and most of the time not really gusty. There is a coral reef about one hundred meter from the coast which creates a nice wave for jumping or waveriding. The wave is not dangerous and there are no crazy currents so it's a great place to learn, get better or just have a good session. It's never too crowded cause the beach is so long.

For most of the kitesurfers KiteBeach is the best place to go kitesurfing on the island. Somebody (probably the guy who wanted this spot all to himself) named this beach Shark Beach, however locals have never even seen a shark here let alone witnessed any attack. So don't let this name keep you from hitting these waves. The only animal you're likely to encounter here is a sea turtle ;-).

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