Recently returned from a relaxing two weeks in Maroochy & the Gold coast, not the time of year you'd think, as we struck a bit of rain, (you Jaffas would be used to that) but plenty of wind, non stop for the first week or so. From 28 degrees to 8 in Ch-Ch.
Updated 'logbook' @ kitesports.co.nz
Oh snow!
Tim 8)

So I'm assumin that it's way better than CHCH then.

And that's the east coast of OZ... the west coast is a zillion times better.

Kiwis head to WA and never come back. Shunter, Lance are now permanent resies of the westside and tangled didn't wanna come back after his trip.

It's interesting to hear the ozzies grizzle about winter... from hearin em whine and flame on their forum you'd think they never have a day with wind once the daylight saving ceases... look at seabreeze.com.au and find out otherwise. Perth, Sydney, Brissy are windy EVERY DAY during the winter. And Melbourne is nothing short of epic... if you don't believe me then take a look at that website i mentioned above. the only reason why they don't like winter is because it isn't a super steady 25 knots and 30 degrees. There are heaps and heaps of 30-40 knot days in Victoria and Tassie during the cold season.

That's excellent Tim that you had a good trip. So you ain't gonna live in CHCH anymore then. i don't blame ya. :twisted:

So what's the east cost of Oz like right now? After the sh**te weather we've been having lately, I'm thinking of a long weekend over there. Where do you recommend? And is it just luck if its windy, or is there more to it than that?

Sarah would have us move in a second, especially since her Gypsy parents sold up & headed that way a few months back. We're just in the process of moving closer to the beach here in Ch-Ch, I think we'll be here for a while yet. Maroochydore is a great place for a holiday though, WA also, the perfect spot for our awesome sport.
Today, the Southern Alps look pristine, heaps of POW POW for miles.....
Cheers, Tim 8)

A really nice load of snow ah!
Snow from top to bottom of the mountains and all over and even some on the foot hills. Dont no how long it will last tho, might get some more 2night just got really windy and even cooler at my place.
Hope its a good winter!

Martin

At this time of year I ain't goin nowhere. Too much wind here in the AK to even think about travellin. No need to head to the snow up here in Auckland. Instead of goin to OZ or Fiji you southerners could allways save a few bucks and head up to AK, Rags or Northland. Marvellous weather as of late to dust off the poleboard and hit the 30+ winds.

The windy season in Auckland has started and continues till December. With uncrowded beaches and good ol SWers and hopefully no talk of beaches getting banned I'm not too keen on goin on a wild goose chase in some scungy tropicial skankhole only to find that the rumoured "tradewinds" are only 10 knots.

Oh by the way i was only bullshitting about OZ but it isn't as bad as what the thinskinned ozzies make it out to be.

c ya on the water

Sounds good, I'm always looking for an excuss for a holiday. You guys could put something together to inspire us to head north, especially if it's warm & windy as we're in between seasons here. You've got your Moose Meet, your Buggy Bash at Raglan. What about it? The history behind those annual events is buggying, what about kiteboarding? Even though, kiteboarding seems to be a big part of those now too. I'm think'in that sounds like a good idea, I'll get the calander out & see if there's any room left.
Tim 8)

Marvellous weather??

I have 3 heaters going full tit at the moment and my nuts are still blue.
If it rains any more than this, I will be kite surfing all the way to my nannas house.

So, what kind of kiting could you expect if you grabbed a last minute flight deal and hiked to Oz within the next 6 weeks. Would it be worth it, or is it luck-of-the-draw for wind?

Ha Ha!
Luck of the draw I'd say.
I'm sure Decay & Su will get something going up there once they've settled in, I'm overdue for a trip to Northland, a few crew to catch up with.
Tim 8)

whats this has decay moved his operation up north??

David

Hey Fido Dido, you might want to try Port Douglas....far north..... bloody good wind at this time of the year. Have a look at Buoyweather.com

Hey madness this weather is beautiful mate, don't be a wuss, lest your nana whoop your ass with a wooden spoon. So it's a tad on the chilly side, the winds crankin. Ha Ha I'm the last person to waste my hard earned cash on a trip to places with fickle trade winds.

Hey Tim that wind has a bit of bite to it but you tough southern guys will find it hot. As for the wind. A typicially crankin Auckland winter Southwesterly to get into Muriwai and the other killer west coast spots. The spots here on the eastside have been maxxing out making em really gusty.

see ya guys up here. Northland is cranking too. Cape Reinga hittin 50kts...

Hi all,

Big ol' Dunedin Craig here filling in my last afternoon in Cairns. Got me a wee Britz van here 2 weeks ago and went to Mackay for 2 weeks. Got 11 days kiting in row!

Mackay was quite nice, not real windy but enough for me on a 16 Venom most days. Not cranking 20 knots but nice and warm, blue water, nice wee sandbar, deserted beaches.....

Yesterday had a whizz about at Yorkeys Knob and get on the plane at 6:30 in the morning tomorrow! Yuck. I'll write a bit more when Get my photos sorted.

Ta,
Craig

Hi Craig,

I can't wait to see the lowdown on your trip, as I'm off to Cairns/Port Douglas at the end of next week.

Like you we've booked a Britz campervan for 10 days of roaming, then a few days at Kite Cottage, Holloways Beach, just south of Yorkey's. I packed my gear this morning, and now I'm getting nervous over what to expect (damn those fickle trade winds).

Should I take my 8m as well as my 13m and 17m? How much will the airlines sting me for my 'coffin' containing ~30KG of gear?? What about a wetsuit??? Why Mackay and not Port Douglas?????????????

Whatever, at least it'll be a decent blast of warmth before the snow season really kicks in. Bring it on.

John from South Brighton

nah i wouldnt bother with an 8.



I dunno, I flew with Virgin, they don't charge for excess baggage if its sporting equipment! But they won't take anything over 32 kg in one piece. Cairns airport has dumb $3 trolley charges so don't make it too heavy.



I wore a shortie in Mackay but unzipped sometimes. Cairns was quite a bit warmer and muggier so I skipped the wettie.

I would wear booties as those tropical shells can be sharp and I wasn't so sure about the stingray situation.



Coz I was travelling about with Pete and Fiona and they drove up from Newcastle and were heading for Mackay.

The water / waves etc were nicer at Mackay but the wind was a bit more at Cairns but a bit gustier.

The other place u could head for is Alva Beach near Ayr, lagoon and beachie / outlet break, flat water and decent breeze. The breeze tends to be lighter if you go much further south than Mackay but Yeppoon has some quite nice beaches.


Get a tin of RID and some flyspray as the mozzies are fairly nasty is some spots, especially the dodgier camping grounds. And some tapes for the van radio as some of the Aussie radio is BOOOOORRRING!

Photos to come...

Have fun eh!
Craig

There are some nice spots from Cairns to Airlie Beach which are well worth the trip. It may even be worth doing a tour for the coastline which is about 650km's or so if you have the time. The spots like Alva Beach were mentioned but there are plenty more around Townsville which are awesome. Lucinda is one, Cungolla is another, and Bushland beach is also good. All offer lagoons split by sandbanks so you get glass in 20 knots.

Oyster shell septicemia (my spelling is shocking) is the main worry you have with tropical shells. If you cut your feet, wash them. The warm water cultivates a bacteria which could be life threatening. Only around 10 people a year die of it but there is no point in taking chances. Heard nothing about sting rays either. The main worries we had were crocs (be weary where you kite - ask locals about crocs) and stingers (between november and april) otherwise you're in the clear. Wind is super clean and water is warm enough that you can get away with a shorty at worst.

Feel free to mail me on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you want more details or photos. I spent 6 months there last year.

Here's a picture of Alva Beach

yay for Alva beach and Mackay, and yay for the Britz camper - the mobile napping machine.

Craig answered everything but the stingrays...or stingers. The message from the locals is not to worry about them, unless there are days and days of really still/light northerlies, then the real nasty buggers - the irikandjis - can be blown down from way up north. But this is not a problem for your average touristo cos it is very uncommon, but also cos they keep an eye on such things in Queensland, and if it did happen, you'd know.

And that's it really.

OK, I'm back, and ready to report on my experience of kiting from Cairns to Port Douglas in the last two weeks of June. The good points were warm water and weather, meeting the crew from Wanaka, and Virgin not charging for odd sized and heavy sporting equipment. The not so good were light winds and choppy water, plus I only got to kite 5 or 6 days out of 14, mainly at Port Douglas, but also at Holloways Beach just south of Yorkey's. It seems the winds were 'unusual', first from the north and then mainly the south. The latter was cross offshore further down the coast, so 'Port' was the place to be having cross onshore in these conditions. There's lot's to see, but so little time... I might just have to go back.

FYI: The locals check the wind speed at the nearby Low Isles: www.bom.gov.au/products/IDQ65119/IDQ65119.94285.shtml

some of my Oz photos here: [url="http://gallery.kiteforum.com/gallery/view_album.php?set_albumName=albuo98
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