VANCOUVER ISLAND WINDTALK

hi, im just new to the sport, have taken lessons and now have my first big kite, but no one to kite with! i live in victoria and own a van so would love to come along to any Nitinat, Gordon or elsewhere missions. I only really need a buddy to help launch and land, but am down for beers too

take your van to Nitinat and go camping and put in 3 or 4 days sailing! You'll meet lots of other local kiters and your skills will really improve up there quickly with time-on-the-water.

hey Joel... might be a long shot, but im heading out to nitinat tomorrow for my first trip on the water. i've got trainer kite experience and done a large amount of research on the sport but no formal training. im pretty serious about this though. im in the same boat as well.... could help with the launch and land for a few tips on a body drag... im going tomorrow afternoon to camp the night and give it a shot on sunday. if your interested my number is 857-5856 and my name is Mat.

Joel drop me a line. I head up to Nihtnat regularly. BTW - Nihtnat is a really friendly spot so if you head up on your own you won't have any issues. If you go mid-week there is less traffic on the water which may be nice.

thanks everyone for the response. i will make contact with those who left numbers and try to get out really soon!

quick question - whats the drive to nitinat like? ie, i have a people mover van, so do i need to take it down roads it might not like? can i get lost on the way if i just follow google maps? when i get to the lake, will it be obvious where i need to go to launch etc?

joelhampshire wrote:thanks everyone for the response. i will make contact with those who left numbers and try to get out really soon!

quick question - whats the drive to nitinat like? ie, i have a people mover van, so do i need to take it down roads it might not like? can i get lost on the way if i just follow google maps? when i get to the lake, will it be obvious where i need to go to launch etc?

The road is 50kms of bumpiness. Not terrible at the moment, but not smooth. Lots of people in normal street cars make it so I think any vehicle can navigate the road as long as you drive at an appropriate speed for your tires, weight and suspension. There are signs at all the turns so it would be hard to go far wrong.

Once you are at the gas station buy a camping permit and head straight to the campground. The beach is easy to find. The windsurfers launch at the lower part and the kiters launch up higher. Just ask anyone if you are not 100%.

Windfest is next weekend so probably not a good time for a new kiter to get out on the water, but a good time to meet lots of people and check things out.

Here are some photos of Nihtnat:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vikapprove ... 103088345/

The season will end at Nihtnat in September so enjoy it while you can!

Have fun!