Hi Guys,

We went up to Cape Vidal last week end with some friends. The wind was too off-shore in the bay to the North of the point so there was no wind at the beach and quite a way out. There was plenty of wind out to sea.

Anyone ever sailed there in a SW? There were some beautiful waves!

Isaac

Looking at google maps, the SW would be properly offshore there so I don't know if it would be an option.

Then again, I've had great sailing at Ponta Malongane which has a similar aspect but on that day the wind was more S/SE. I think that's the key... if it's S/SE then it can be good and maybe the same at Vidal.

If you keep an eye on the windmaps/guru forecasts and see if it often turns S/SE then you're in business.

What about a NE ?

How far is it from Durbs ? KM and time ..

Al's seen the NE there and he says it's a bit like Vetch's - very onshore and choppy as a result. Maybe a bit like Ponta Da Ouro / Sodwana. However, it is a bit closer than Sodwana. What do you think, Ike?

I've got a weather station running up there about 4 km from the beach. See the daily averages for Cape Vidal in 2009.

To get Knots you multiply m/s by 2. So a daily average of 4 m/s is 8 knots for 24 hrs which generally means it blew 25 knots for 6 hours during the day and 4 knots for 18 hours (something like that). What I'm getting at is that a daily average of over 4 m/s means there was lots of wind that day. If anyone is interested I can send you the hourly data. Just email me on 931413243 @ ukzn . ac . za

In general I've found the sea to be fairly rough up there. Oct to February the wind is great though. It really blows a lot and I reckon there is good sailing to be had. There is a bit of a bay there which may shield the SW but not too badly. The NE is absolutely fine for sailing. About 4 hrs from PMB if you travel within the speed limit.


Al



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 06/07/2010 09:35PM by clulow.