Witsand, one of the most beautiful spots on the Cape of Good Hope, in South Africa, on January 21, 2020 gave a nice windsurfing day! Above all, the upwind part of the spot let the riders surf really great waves.  

Windsurfing, session report: Witsand, South Africa, 21 January 2020 - a quality swell!

For a long time, I have looked at Witsand with great interest. The beach is gorgeous, and located on one of the most fascinating coast stretches in the Cape of Good Hope area. The spot is reasonably safe, with a large sandy shoreline, before the rocky zone. The sea has an incredible emerald color, and the wind (the Cape Doctor) enters a little more spread than in nearby Scarborough, especially if strong, and oriented from the south.

On January 21st, we decided to try the spot properly. The forecasts gave a wind of good intensity, but not overly strong, and a 2 meters swell, with a good period.

 

The day was wonderfully sunny, and gave light and exciting colors. Arriving from Sunset Beach, the neighborhood in the North of Cape Town where we had our apartment, before going on the spot, I could not resist the temptation to go, admire and photograph the spectacular Noordhoek Beach, a wonderful wide and sandy shore that makes me crazy (see photo below).

Satisfied my eyes and soul, I reached the many friends who had already parked at the spot, including Max, my travel companion in these holidays, the whole group of Roman riders, and others, including Livia, a friend of Venice.

To tell the truth, we were unable to fully enjoy Witsand in the morning. In fact, when we arrived on the spot, in the middle of the morning, the wind was a bit unstable.

After a bit of hesitation, I rigged the Goya Guru X Pro 2020 4.7, which I matched with the Tabou Da Curve 80 TE 2016. The spot, in these conditions, proved to be very tolerant and safe, but also tiring. The wind was gusty, and I often found myself offshore waiting for his return to do the waterstart (don't worry there are no sharks in South Africa...). Going out to sea was not always easy. You had to wait for the right burst, hoping that it wouldn't let you alone just before passing the last biggest wave, near the shore, before you could conquer the open sea.

Already in the morning, however, the spot offered waves of good quality, which allowed good surfing.

 

 

 

Over the day, the wind increased, although it always remained a bit unstable. I did not changed sail, as offshore, at times it was momentarily still weak. I simply took advantage of the Goya Guru's possibility to switch to the lower clew to fix the boom end, to make the sail a little less powerful.

Me, Max and my friends from Rome (and then also my friend Paolo, "Roman from Zurich" joined us) stayed all day riding in front of the main beach of the spot. We paid for Witsand's poor knowledge (but the lesson has been learned, and next time I won't be fooled).

In fact, when I had already unrigged, in mid-afternoon, and I was preparing to leave, I realized that the best waves, higher and cleaner, and with excellent period, rised in the windy part of the spot, that is between the Witsand beach, and Misty Cliffs spot, which is less than 1 km further South. The photos published here prove it ...

 

I began to observe this area of ​​the spot, and I realized that the best and most experienced riders were wisely enjoying this part of the sea, and that they were coming out from a small beach, a little further upwind than the main one. In addition to Fabio Calò, I recognized some professional riders, such as the new 2019 freestyle world champion Yentel Caers (B16, Point 7, I-99 Cesare Cantagalli Boards), and Alessio Lucca Stillrich (Simmer athlete). The waves, even more than 2 meters high, were really smooth, spaced by an excellent period, and tended to break from right to left, in an orderly manner. A nature show!

Having no more residual energy, it would have been unthinkable for me to go back into the water, also because the parking lot at Witsand remains high on the beach, and therefore it is necessary to make the effort to bring the equipment down, and then bring it back up. I left with a bit of regret, but also with the intention of returning sooner or later here, to properly enjoy the spot. The waveriding spots must be known in person, in order to be exploited at their best way.

Hang Loose. Fabio

Click here, for the slidegallery taken at Witsand.

 

 

The video shot at Witsand