Had you thought Tarifa? I´m
sorry, you are wrong.
Probably Tarifa counts with a
higher average of kiting days (300days a year aprox). What I´m referring here
is about strong winds. What about if I tell you that I weight 85kgs and my
usual kites I fly there are a 7&4 meter sizes?
Where is that place??? I´m
sure you probably have not heard about it as this place I´m writing about is
quite new.
Now you might think I must be
under the effects of something illegal, but Im not.
I´m talking about an
artificial water lake built in 1999 (from the data I´ve found) and started to
be used as a kite spot 4-5 years ago.
Close to the lake is located
the biggest windmill extension of Spain, in the Ebro valley. See a small sample
of what I´m saying here:
This valley is famous from the
NW strong winds called "el cierzo" that hit this area quite often all
year long.
The name of the spot is “La
Loteta”, and has an ideal location for everyone from Europe that has in mind to
travel to Spain by car or caravan as its close to the French border and it´s on
the way to Tarifa (for instance). So if you are going south and you see online
that it´s blowing I would suggest a mandatory stop, you will never regret!!
How do I know that it will be blowing:
The Cierzo wind is quite easy
to forecast and its predictions are accurate, as experience has told us. It´s a
NW wind and its usually blows more that displayed on the websites. You can
check the wind in the following websites:
http://www.eltiempo.es/gallur.html
(I like this one as has proved accurate for me, for more detailed information
click on “por hora” and will give you in km/h the wind of each hour).
The good thing about the
cierzo is that its a wind that can be blowing 3-4-5-6-7 days in a row, 24hrs.
There is also a webcam
(sometimes it does work and sometimes dont, but give it a try): http://lalotetasports.jimdo.com
South wind is the other
rideable wind here but it´s neither as strong or as common. Same websites as
above can be used to track south wind. But the real experience in La Loteta is
riding it with NW!!!
Name me the 2 spots in la Loteta:
“Spot Sur”: Here is where you
come when cierzo is blowing. Wind direction side shore, sometimes a bit side-on
shore. Choppy, and when real windy you have waves (I´ve seen a guy trying to
surf them without a kite!!!! ). If the water level is low you might have some
flat areas.
“Spot Norte”: You can come
here for 2 things a) south winds which are onshore /side-on depending of water
level. Usually choppy. B)
You can also attempt to ride
offshore with cierzo so you will have flat water, but I havent tried yet.
How to get there:
I took the guide from http://lalotetasports.jimdo.com/inicio/acceso-al-spot-sur/, but here I offer a translation so it´s easier for you
to understand (the spot is quite hidden if you dont knot how to get there).
Spot Norte: (will include a description).
Weather:
Summer is hot, winter really
cold (thermic sensation caused by the cold wind). In La loteta there are not
mid seasons (as spring and autum). Cierzo wind blows all year long, but the
experts say that is more common during autumn, winter and spring months (last year
I kited almost everyday from the end of August till end of October).
As the lake is not so big,
water temperatures are subject to whats going on with the weather, in summer
you can kite in swimsuit or short wetsuit and winter time people wear two
wetsuits at a time + gloves + hoods (crazy for Spain!!!). In both seasons boots
is quite recommended due the type of soil.
What you will find:
La Loteta doesn´t have much
vegetation, everything is soil and small to medium size stones (maximum 1kg).
Water is clean when the level is high, a bit darker with low level, but it´s
not poluted at all (just the mix of water and soil).
The entry and exit of the water is a bit messy due the type of soil, as it get
quite muddy (dont be surprised to “stick” the legs till the knees in the mud. I
usually enter/exit by putting kite at 12 and the bar high so I can have some
pull from the kite to avoid sinking. If you fly your kite at 10 or 2 you will be slidding all over the mud).
Special suggestions:
-As wind blows so hard and the
soil is a bit unfriendly to our kites, locals use to extend plastic canvas onto the ground (similar to
the ones used in camping), fixed with camping nails to the ground. This help prevent the kite going dirty or punctured while landind,
launching and assembling/disassembling the kite.
-If you want to rest or if you
go to the car to get something, you will want to hold your kite while you arent
close to it. The solution, as there is no sand to throw over your kite, is this
one:
It´s a climbing carabiner attached to camping nail by a rope. You
put your kite faced to the floor and attach it to the kite pumper rope. This
way your kite will always in place.
For more understandable explanation:
http://nachotejonpadrekitesurf.blogspot.com.es/2013/05/accessories-for-rough-conditions.html
For more understandable explanation:
http://nachotejonpadrekitesurf.blogspot.com.es/2013/05/accessories-for-rough-conditions.html
Hazzards:
-If you see that the windmills
close to the lake are not moving understand that it´s blowing +50knots. Know
your limits when challenging la Loteta.
-Due the strong winds to not
be on land flying the kite, once you launch, go as soon as posible to the
water, and the same applies to when you are comming out of the water, land it ASAP.
You dont want to be dragged in
a place like this, because there are some stones and the wind is hard.
-Newbies, unless you have a really small kite or the day you attemp
is not so strong, I would NOT reccomend this spot.
-If the water level is low
(mainly at the end of summer), watch out for swallow áreas, as they may be in
certain points. You will notice them because the water does “stange” waves. Take
your time to identify them while warming up in the first strokes. You dont want to land a jump over one of these áreas.
-If it does start raining I
would suggest to leave the lake as soon as possible as it can get really muddy
and you may get your car stuck in the uphill ramps to leave the lake.
Any schools:
There is one kiteschool that I
would like to mention as it´s one of the most profesional schools I know.
Despite teaching in this tough conditions, they are doing an exceptional work.
They have being there since the beggining of the lake and they count with
appropiate equipment for this high wind conditions. It´s name is: La loteta
Sports http://lalotetasports.jimdo.com/escuela-aragonesa-de-kitesurf-eak/ and the guy that
runs the school “Carlitos” is well respected. (he is the highest flying guy in
the aera, try to win him if you dare).
Can I camp:
It´s forbiden to camp in the
lake as it subject to floods. You can get a quite big fine apart of screwing
the spot to the locals.
There is a gas station 2kms away
in which you wont have any problem.
If you need camping
facilities, as far from what I know, there is a camping site in Zaragoza (50kms
away). Please check the link.
Where else to stay:
The lake is a bit away from
any cool town to stay apart from Zaragoza (almost a 1M inhabitants), so my
recommendation would be to look for accomodation over there as it´s not so
expensive and you have all the services and things to do of any big city.
Any recommendations:
-Bring your food, water an
anything else you might need (redbull in my case) with you as there is no place
to buy them in the spot (there is a gas station 2kms away).
-Park your car/van/caravan in
the same location locals do, so no one can crash against a vehicle if
overpowered, and everybody has room for assembling the kites.
-Please do not litter,
everything you bring must come back with you.
-Dont be afraid of the spot by
the description given in this blog, It´s a hardcore place and I just want to
make sure you have all the information in order to avoid any problem while riding
in it.
-Enjoy flying.
If you have any questions
please let me know.
Buenos vientos
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