Photo courtesy of worldkitemuseum.com
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Gust Rewards
By Laura Daily, January & February 2008
Looking for a leisurely outdoor activity? Go fly a kite—literally—at some of the nation’s breeziest and most beautiful beaches
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Oceanfront beaches are primo spots for flying a kite: good wind, good weather, precious few of those Charlie Brown kite-eating trees. Some of the nation’s top go-fly zones? In North Carolina, try the south end of Wrightsville Beach. “It’s nice and wide—even on a busy day you can find a spot from which to fly safely,” says Hunter Brown, owner of local kite shop Blowing in the Wind (888-509-9989).
If you’re a bit farther north, try Grandview Nature Preserve, seven miles outside downtown Hampton, Virginia. This 578-acre preserve and estuary on the Chesapeake Bay includes a two-and-a-half-mile stretch of isolated bay-front beach. Breezy winds off the Chesapeake supply fliers with the perfect lift, with few up- and downdrafts. “You have to hike in about one-eighth mile from the parking lot, so for the most part you share the beach with only the occasional kayaker or osprey,” says Ryan LaFata, an outdoor enthusiast and a media-relations manager for the Hampton Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Out west, Huntington Beach, California, is eight miles of sand and ocean waves. “Winds blow out of the west at 10 to 14 miles per hour,” says Dave Shenkman, owner of The Kite Connection (800-431-3339). “It’s awesome, not just because of consistent year-round conditions but because it almost never rains. It’s like the bad weather just skips us every time.”
Long Beach, Washington, is also a kite flier’s nirvana. On the southwestern corner of the state, Long Beach benefits from a steady stream of breezes. Kay Buesing, director of the World Kite Museum (360-642-4020), which is located in town, attributes the area’s appeal to its length—the beach is 20 miles long—and lack of trees or buildings. “Very clean wind comes off the ocean, with no backwash. And even at high tide there are still places from which to fly,” says Buesing.
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Other high-flying hot spots include Oneida Shores and Jamesville Beach, outside Syracuse, New York; Nags Head, North Carolina’s Jockey’s Ridge, which at roughly 100 feet is the tallest active sand dune on the East Coast; Treasure Island and Clearwater Beach, in Florida’s St. Petersburg-Clearwater area; and lovely Monterey State Beach, in Seaside, California. Suggested price range for a good, long-lasting kite: $15 to $30, says Brown. And while even a confirmed couch potato can get a kite airborne, nervous novices can find introductory classes through local kite stores or during kite festivals.
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