Summer season is coming, and we can’t wait to see the six kilometers of Cabarete Beach packed with the colorful kites of visitors from all around the world. Both beginners and pros gather to enjoy the trade winds with thermals that make for strong and consistent winds from morning till sunset. The wind blows easterly, which gives Cabarete perfect side-onshore kiting conditions most of the time, with speeds averaging 15-25 mph or 13-22 knots. The energy and community that is created on Kite Beach during the summer season is what keeps kiters coming back year after year.
Those who study the winds and the waves all over the world know that a beach can seem like a living organism that changes and evolves over time. Kite beach, like many beaches with constant wind and waves, experiences an interesting shift each year between the winter and summer seasons. During the winter the beach is expansive with hardly any slope down to the ocean as the longshore currents will tend to replenish beach sediments and repair storm damage from the previous hurricane season. Then, during the high winds and powerful tides of the summer months, the beach is literally blown and washed away and the sand migrates down to Encuentro, the surf beach about 2 km up the coast. This ebb and flow of sand is more or less consistent over the years, but has been more apparent with this being an El Nino year and as a changing climate influences weather patterns.
At GoKite we watch the weather, we know the waters, and we study the changes that happen to our beach over time. Richard, the owner, is particularly interested in global weather patterns, the environmental changes that are occurring, and how they will influence our beach. His knowledge of these subjects and his eagerness to educate his instructors and students is one of the many reasons our clients feel like they are in expert hands at our school.
We’ve heard many people say that is is difficult and even dangerous to enjoy the powerful summer winds of Cabarete, because the beach becomes so narrow. There are a ton of kiters, with very few spaces to launch and land, a treeline in reach of the shore break, and very little beach to go around for beginners. Down at GoKite, we are lucky that we are not as influenced by this beach migration, for a number of reasons.
Primarily, we have a sheltered kite field, where GoKite students and eXtreme Hotel guests can feel comfortable pumping up their kites and leaving them under the shady palms rather than on the hot sand if they want to chill out on the kite bench and take a break. The kite bench also doubles as a set of stairs, so kiters can safely and confidently carry their kites down to the beach to set up their lines.
We are also down at the north-west end of the beach, where the sand migrates last. This means that we get to enjoy a wide strip of beach to launch and to teach until August. If it is a particularly aggressive year, like last summer, even still we are able to walk our students 25 meters past the school to enjoy the safety of the more sheltered bend in the beach that stays wide year round. This means beginners can feel comfortable in having the space to learn kite control from the safety of the beach.
Overall, the vibe in Kite Beach in the summer cannot be beat. Beginners rave about their experience here- not only because they have hours each day to learn in strong, consistent wind conditions, but because they feel taken care of by the knowledgeable schools and kiter community that exist here. Water sport enthusiasts are aware that the shift in the beach just goes to demonstrate the power of the natural world that propels their sport- and the beauty of the white sand and warm, turquoise water is an added bonus. If you are looking for an adventure and experience that you’ll remember for the rest of your life, consider booking a package with us this summer.