launch sites

[wink]

Hey guys and girls I will be heading up that way for vacation at our other house but i havent kiteboarding up there before. Are there any good areas up there i will be staying in seagrove which is right next to seaside. Thanks for any input.

[WindRyder]

Hi. You have come at a great time of the year!! You will be in Seagrove, so you will be close to several spots...depending upon wind direction. For the Gulf side in the Seagrove area, you need E, SE, S, SW, or W winds for sideshore and side onshore riding. Any N over there, and you will go offshore. If you head West to Fort Walton Beach, hit Leeside Park. Go over the Destin bridge onto the 4-5 mile stretch leading to Okaloosa Island. You will see kites up on your right, in the bay. You can park and launch there. A great community of kiters there, very welcoming and fun place to ride on the N winds!! Be sure to have a kite leash!!!!!! If you travel East toward Panama City, you can be on the Gulf with SE, S, SW, W, WNW winds. A spot we usually go is St. Andrews State Park on the East end of Thomas Drive. Our local kite shop, Emerald Coast Kiteboarding is on the right, next to the dive shop, at the last light before you go into the state park. Great group of kiters here too!!!! For NW, N winds, a more sketchy launch is over the Hathaway bridge coming in to town (P.C.) from the beach. Not advised to ride here unless you have experience (Fort Walton location safer for newer kiters). We also have Shell Island which accessible only by boat/jet ski for any wind direction. Check out PCBkitesurf.com for the launches in our area. Call the shop 850-235-2444 for more info. Look forward to seeing you in the area!!