 |
Jamie Hancock reports.....
Cape Town has always been a special place to me from the first trip I made out there five years ago. I loved the fact that there were a number of beaches all very close to one another along with the consistency of the wind and waves. Not to mention the ease of fitting into the lifestyle once there.
Don't get me wrong, I'd love to see the rest of the world and sail all the different breaks, but when it comes to winter training that offers both jumping and wave riding, it's hard not to book that Cape Town flight.
|
 |
Sunset Beach
Sunset is a great beach to sail early in the day before it gets too windy. I love getting here either first thing (10ish) or just before sunset as the wind tends to be a bit more off shore and cleans the waves up. It's also less crowded at these times. It's a great place for aerials as the waves have a bit of punch to them. I've had some of the best sessions here but also some of the worst when it gets too crowded. |
 |
Melkbos
The most popular beach providing bigger swell to most of the other local beaches. This place is always good; either for jumping or wave riding. The longer fetch means even on 'flat days' you can get enough swell for a wicked jumping session. When there is proper swell it can be awesome.
When I arrived to Cape Town in December, I had some of the best waves of my life with 5 - 8 turns on clean, walling waves. Then we had a big swell late December and it was never the same again! I think the sand bar got shifted around in the huge seas and the waves became more 'dumpy'. Still good fun though. |
 |
Witsands
This place can be sick in a north-west wind. It doesn't happen often but when it does it blows cross off from the right with nice down-the-line action. The prevailing conditions are usually the opposite direction being cross on from the left which can give fun, port tack jumping but then beaches closer to home are just as good if not better so most folk only make the trip over there (about an hour's drive from Blouberg/Tableview base) when the wind swings north-westerly. |
 |
Cape Point
This place can be epic though quite hard to predict, as it is an hour and a half from Tableview so always a gamble to drive down. The day of the photographs was probably the best of the trip at this beach fun waves breaking at low tide. In the past I have had problems here when the swell gets big; there is a strong rip, the tide does some strange things leaving the whole water state pretty unpredictable with punishing consequences! |
 |
Big Bay
Not my favourite beach. But many others do like it I think mainly because of the car park, grassy rigging areas and free showers! Upwind is almost totally flat and then the waves build as you sail downwind. It can really pick up the swell and the wave is quite punchy. This still doesn't stop the kamikaze sailors and posers burning out there and exploded over the first big wave right into you. Boy can this beach get crowded on a typical south-easter day. |
Jamie is sponsored by Gun Sails, Quatro Boards and Big Salty Weather.
|
