Windsurfing - le Crotoy-France

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Forces-of-Nature » Personal Diaries » Windsurfing - le Crotoy-France

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Owner: squiz
Member

Member#: 6644
Location:
Registered: 27-05-2007
Diary Entries: 3688

12th September 2011
Windsurfing: le Crotoy-France
Wind Direction:
Wind Stength: 20/30
Surf / Sea State: surf and chop
Air Temperature:
Sea Temperature:
Weather: sunny periods
Max Speed: 27.23 (knots - unless stated otherwise)
Distance Covered: 24.83 (Nautical Miles - unless stated otherwise)

Not too bad a night, hip/back not brilliant but woke up and it’s pretty breezy :) breakfast at La Maye as the cockle/mussel tractors return. Mag decides to walk along the beach and I drive into Le Crotoy to check the conditions, wind 25 mph gusting 35 but no water in sight!!! Police tell me I can’t park along the front so move behind the children’s playground to read my book and wait for Mag. We then head to the Port to get some milk and return just as some kiters are setting up and the waters coming :) Still not sure what to do as wind still 25+ and the waters looking wavy too!!! In the end I say sod the dodgy hip and rig 5.8 and start off with the Fanatic Falcon not the best board for the conditions but my small free ride board is in Felixstowe!!! I think I am going to get blown off the water but I am wrong and couldn’t get going at all :( So it’s back to the van to get the Zantos 133 and in untying the board really hit myself hard in the face, right next to my eye with the roof rack strap, still only a little blood and a good cut – lucky not to hit my eye!!! Even with the floaty board struggled in the up and down wind and sailing in rolling surf which I’m not used too, came off with both feet in the straps and really bent my ankles, it was turning into a one star day until I saw some windsurfers at the other end of the bay at the sea end and decided to check it out. I found the most wonderful spot sailing flat out parallel to the shore rarely out of your depth in the flat water between the waves a seal even popped it’s head up once to say hello and the sun even managed to come out :) Trouble is you only have a limited time as the tide drops the water disappears quickly and travelling at 25 kts to two feet of water makes the heart beat faster :) I did catch my fin hard a couple of times and came to a grinding halt during a gybe and hit my noise hard on the mast!!!! Not broken and no blood but the air turned blue for a minute and I saw several stars!!!! With the water now gone from the sea end I explored the Le Crotoy town end and had some good reaches heading over to St Valery. Time to get back to the van, a bit of a walk as not much water left but after a cold shower on the prom and a cuppa soup – we know how to live - it was time to move on!!! We headed for Abbeville, then Rouen where we were diverted into the city – thank goodness for our new gps, a retirement present :) we eventually found our way to Pont de L’Arche for tea – corned beef and Mags special potatoes on the banks of La Seine !!!

Toys Used: