SANCTI-PETRI: Freestyle and Slalom.
Best conditions: Tide dropping, wind direction doesn’t matter.
Level: All levels.
The little village and the island of Sancti-Petri with the Castle are magic spots! This place has lived through some different cultures. During XII B.C. the Hercules temple was built on the island. Some historians say that Hercules himself was buried under the temple, where many sailors have offered their sacrifices over the years. It is said that Julio Cesar visited the temple to be blessed before a mission. Nowadays you can still feel that history and energy around. And like every special place, there are also some legends… like those who say Atlantis is submerged there! Today, the village is very peculiar and interesting, with ruins from an old fishermen’s village, some “chiringuitos” (tapas like bars) to eat fresh fish right in front of the river, a windsurfing club (my club!), a little port and beautiful paintings of whales and tunas on the walls of the ruins.
Sancti-Petri has lately become a secret freestyle paradise in the south of Spain. Many of the top PWA freestyle riders have spent winters training here. With the tide going down, no matter what wind direction, you will find the flattest waters ever! There are many channels and sand islands around that emerge in low tide so that you will always be able to sail parallel to the coast with offshore winds… it is just so perfect! The water is unbelievably flat, with stunning colours and different options to choose from if you want to have chop or train one tack or the other.
Cruising the channels past the small fishing boats and the sand islands emerging in low tides is amazing. Early in the morning it is quiet and peaceful. Sarah and I sailed in crystal flat water, under the red sunset light, watching the seagulls standing on the sand islands emerged in front of the Castle. The water gets so flat when the tide is going down that your board feels like it is flying! It is a very cool experience and a funny noise! You can sail really fast in very light winds and Sarah was so stoked to see how flat it can be!! We had a blast on our freeride gear sailing really close to each other at high speed in this strange and special landscape.
For slalom, it is also really nice, as there are many buoys, so you will always have something to jibe around! And if it is too flat and easy, you can sail out of the channel to the open ocean. We went along the coast way to the north and then to the south. Heading north you can go to Cadiz town, just point to the huge new bridge marking the north, it is not that far, and the coast is wild and sandy, with scenic sand dunes around and sometimes you can even get nice waves to wave ride on the way. And… for waves, it is not a secret, but not very well known! When there is no swell but mega strong Levanter, there are nice waves in front of the island with the castle! Good jumping, surf and maybe only 5 people out!