Quick update, nice place, but NO WIND.
Drove down Friday, 8 hour drive turned into 9 hours due to I75 accident. So far almost no wind. Lisa and I have driven around scoping the place out, biked from the condo to Sunset Beach Park, Kayaked from the condo around Sunset Beach park, biked on the Pinellas Bike Path to the Sponge docks, rode through Fred Howard Park which was very crowded Saturday and Easter Sunday, had a nice Easter Lunch with some old friends of Lisa's who live down here and had a fun dinner with Patrick and Margie Kirkland of Atlanta/Tarpon Springs. But NO WIND.
We got lucky on the Condo. It's gulf front and looks out on Sunset Beach Park where the kiters kite. It is exactly one mile to the park and takes 4 minutes to get there even if you get caught by the one traffic light. The water all around Sunset Beach Park is about waist deep, ideal for kiting (and windsurfing.) Fred Howard Park, the main place to windsurf is about 10 minutes away, two traffic lights.
The first picture below is Sunset Beach Park from the sceened porch. The second picture shows Sunset Beach Park, and Fred Howard Park behind it, and Anclote Key Preserve with the Anclote Key lighthouse, left side, look close.
Forecast doesn't look good for the rest of the week, but .... I hate to complain.
Gene
Gene Mathis
Looks shallow. Sending some wind Friday ! ..... hopefully
Alan
Thanks for the report. Looks like a great location if the wind picks up!
Barrett
Finally, Wind!
Yesterday, I was getting desperate and tried to work on my kiting light air drift launches at Sunset Beach in about 8 knots of wind (per the guy with wind meter,) Not even close.
Then today, Wednesday, 4/7, WIND! I had a real good afternoon session on the kite, launching from the condo. The opening thru the Mangroves is too narrow for an inflated kite but there is a small beach which is just large enough to blow up and rig a kite. Once inflated, I anchored it about 10 feet out in the knee deep water. It really is knee to waist deep everywhere except for one hole which I found several times. The wind was from the SW, building to 15 to 20 during the afternoon. It was warm, no neoprene except for my booties and the water was really flat due to the shallow water and the sandbars and islands on the outside. Also the wind direction was blowing into the corner where the causeway to Sunset Beach Park meets the mainland, so if you got in trouble, it would be an easy walk back. It was ideal. Great Fun.
I'm really starting to LIKE this Place.
Gene
Gene Mathis
Hey Gene it's mimi. I learned how to kitesurf today at panama beach. I practiced on my trainer yesterday, got to the water with super instruction with Wayne from Emerald Coast Kitesurfing. Was it sweet. All day long from 10 till 5: 30. We took a 20 minute speedboat ride to a secluded paradise spot, knee to ankle deep and no one there. I cannot copy and paste into this post or I'd send you a pic or vid. How to post that?????????? I got to ride my Flexifoil 10.5. Handles great but harder to relaunch if it flips over. Now I need to buy a used little board. Got any suggestions? Got a Flexifoil 14.5 but it will probably be too big for me. If anything, I need to trade it or buy down for a quiver. Have a great time in ts. we will be here till Sunday:)
Mimi
Lots of wind today! (Thursday.) It was S-SW, cranking up to 20-30. It was really blowin, but still almost flat. I kited from the condo, starting with my 12 meter which was way too big. Then I rigged down to my 9 meter which was still kind of big, I thought. Other kiters were running 10 to 12 meters, and doing cool jumps and tricks. Very impressive. Anyway, it was fun, but I'm whipped and beat up, but I sure dont want to complain.
MiMi - We'll have to do some Kiting/Windsurfing road trips when I get back.
I'm really starting to Really Like This Place.
Gene
Gene Mathis
Mimi & All,
If you don't have web space to post it, you can use a service like yourfilelink.com, then paste the link in the forum message. i.e. http://www.yourfilelink.com/get.php?fid=540080
Enjoy!
May your water be smooth and your winds be swift.
Update, Fri - Mon
Friday, we did have some wind, 10-20, but I didn't feel well (cold or sinus) and didn't sail.
Saturday, Lisa and I met Patrick and Margie at Fred Howard in the late morning and spent the day. Patrick and I rigged our 7.5s but there wasn't much to start, then it came up for about an hour of planing. It was a fun day just hanging at the park.
Saturday night, Lisa and I and her friend Clair had dinner at the sponge docks where there was a Greek Festival going on. Sunday, there wasn't much wind so we rode bikes with Patrick and Margie all through the neighborhoods around the parks here looking at real estate, which they're almost giving away. Patrick and Margie had brought over a bunch of fresh seafood and we had a big seafood boil at the condo for dinner.
Monday, the forecast for E/NE wind late in the afternoon was right on. I had a nice 7.5 session at Fred Howard from 5 until 7, starting off 10-20, then 15-20, then 20+ for the last half hour. It was a little scary at the end when the 7.5 was almost too big, and you're hanging on, and you're sailing in knee deep totally FLAT water, and you see the bottom zooming by. Very nice session.
Speaking of nice, Patrick and Margie, what a nice couple. I wish Patrick was not having to work out of town Mon-Fri. The two sailing parks are nice, Tarpon Springs is nice. The condo is nice although it's private beach doesn't work on an east wind. And the forecast for the next couple of days is nice.
Also, if anyone is considering coming down, I will have an extra bedroom available (have to share the upstairs bath) starting Tues or Wed next week through the end of April. Shoot me an email or give me a call for details. Also, I'm driving Lisa back to Atlanta over this coming weekend so if you need anything from WindSense, give me a call for my schedule. The Consignment web page is current, I think. Note that the Carve, North Shore Maui, Tim's 6.5 Ezzy Wave and a few other items are Gone.
Anyway, Having a great time, wish you were here!
Gene
Gene Mathis
Update - Tues & Wed
New Personal Best GPS speed! I know it doesn't really count because of the 25+mph winds and totally flat water, and I know it's not as fast as Chris V's Lake Lanier's worst conditions speed, but...
Tuesday, good afternoon session from 4:30-7:00 (got there around 2:00) at Fred Howard Park, East wind around 20mph, 6.0 sail on 115 liter.
Wednesday, VERY Good afternoon session from 4:30-7:00, East wind around 25mph, 6.0 sail was loaded up but water was still totally flat.
Sailors/Kiters overview -
A good group of Non-Working Windsurfers hang out at Fred Howard pretty much everyday if there's any chance of wind. Because of the good conditions, shallow flat water, time on the water, etc, most are good jibers and are fast. Like most windsurfers everywhere, they are very friendly.
Most of the kiters launch from Sunset Beach Park. One Kiter comes pretty much every day at 4:00, I guess after work. The East wind messes up the kiters as it's blowing straight out to the Gulf of Mexico, and it's more gusty. Wednesday morning, we watched a kiter rescue as he was headed way out toward the islands/sandbars. On an east wind, most of the kiters go elsewhere. A few kiters kite at Fred Howard, two were there yesterday, Wed, doing 20 foot high jumps.
The Water depth is shallow and you do have to watch the tides, especially on an strong east wind. On Tues and Wed, toward the end of the day at low tide, you had to keep moving farther out to have deep enough water. The shallow water, knee to waist, really is great for working on your jibes or kiting.
I'm REALLY starting to REALLY LIKE this place!
Gene
Gene Mathis
Hey Gene, Glad to hear you're enjoying it and wish I could've joined you, but end of ski season and start of Hatteras trip were too close together this year. We'll miss you in Hatteras this spring.
Big Alllll!!!!
I miss you too.
Gene
Gene Mathis
Final Report for the 1st Half of trip -
Thursday, 4/15, nice afternoon session on the 7.5 & 115 liter. Everyone was hoping it would build late in the day like wednesday but it didnt, 7.5 was the right call.
Friday, not much wind at all, Lisa and I kayaked the kayak trails at Fred Howard. Pretty cool.
Today, Saturday, I'm driving Lisa back to Atlanta, but I'll be back next week through the end of the month.
So far the trip has been alot of fun. The first week didnt have much wind which gave us time to do the tourist thing, then the wind cranked up. I windsurfed 5 days, 3 days on 7.5s, 2 days on 6.0s, with one real hard day, and kited 2 other days, with one hard day on the 9 meter kite. Becaused there was a high pressure parked north of us, we seemed to have wind down here while there wasnt much wind in Atlanta or even Hatteras. I had assumed all the wind would be front related and that some of the fronts would not make it this far south.
Tarpon Springs 7 day history - http://www.iwindsurf.com/windandwhere.iws?regionID=114&siteID=1308&Isection=Last+7+Days
Hatteras (Waves) 7 day history - http://www.iwindsurf.com/windandwhere.iws?regionID=110&geographicalAreaID=16&siteID=140&Isection=Last+7+Days
Anyway, great trip so far, nice wind, nice locals (especially Patrick and Margie), nice place. I do have a room available for the rest of the month.
Gene
Gene Mathis