Please Read - No Tresspassing Waconia

[KitingKen]

I talked to the owner of the grassy lakeshore lot a half mile north west of the boat launch where some of us come out and walk back after getting blown downwind. In all the years of kiting, only one person has apparently ever asked permission and the no trespassing signs are ignored. While I think he wants to be okay with us landing there if needed, he's very surprised how people have taken advantage of it. Kiters apparently sprawling out there kites on his lawn and waiting down there for rides like its a public access. And one time he was trying to mow - his own lawn mind you - and had to wait while the kiter neatly folded up his kite and finally moved out of the way without ever saying a word.

What do you guys want to do? That's the only clear place along the shore and without a hill to get out and have a reasonable walk back to the launch. I think if a couple diplomatic kiters went and talked to him and we could agree to only use it to quickly get out of the water and start walking up the road he'd be okay.

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Ken

[Cory M]

Nice job reaching out. One possible way to minimize use of that landing and further your downwinder or body drag would be to head to the small launch to the north. Should be easy to do on a S, SE wind. If you launch from DNR on a SE and can make it out of the shadow then it would push you right there. Yesterday there were quite a few of us there and I'm sure most all would have offered a ride back.

[Cory M]

[KitingKen]

Thanks for the reply! Do you or does anyone else have a map showing where the other locations are on Waconia?

I could see some kiters far away on the west / south west side of the like. I have no idea where they dropped in and if they had a downwind pickup location.

Much appreciated if anyone could post a map image and point out some alternates.

THANKS!

[KitingKen]

Thanks for the reply! Do you or does anyone else have a map showing where the other locations are on Waconia?

I could see some kiters far away on the west / south west side of the like. I have no idea where they dropped in and if they had a downwind pickup location.

Much appreciated if anyone could post a map image and point out some alternates.

THANKS!

[MK]

Apologies if this sounds direct: If you aren't sufficient at riding up wind you are putting the rest of the kiting community at risk for access. This isn't the only solution since we are ultimately playing games with the unpredictable mother nature. However, the more skilled you become you learn to minimize this from happening by:
1. being able to ride upwind
2. choose to ride the right gear for the conditions - kite size and board size make a difference
3. learn to better forecast the wind
4. learn to upwind bodysurf to get to your board - even pro level kiters board-off daily

If you don't have the above grooving, putting a kite in your hands isn't going to be something you can simply just figure out in an hour or afternoon or even a day because you have a high IQ, you are at the top of the food shelf in your business, have snow/skateboarded for years, sail boats, can ride a uni-cycle (sadly it's a true testament I had said to me; no intention of making fun of this person), or otherwise buy your way into the sport. You need to acquire the skill.

If you aren't riding upwind then consider the options better suited to get dialed-in:
1. lakes with long shallows like Washington and Mille Lacs. Alexandria's Lake Miltona has a great spot on the public access North side of the lake. It's further away but consider it part of the learning curve. Explore our lakes to find more options. The metro sadly doesn't offer much at all until you can ride upwind (Level 3 Kiter) and upwind body surf to get to your board.
2. Take a trip to South Padre Island, TX for several days to get dialed-in. Not meant to be a pitch but our next one is Nov 1-17 with a little room left if you can join for some or all of it. Carving out time to focus daily with a group of like-minded souls on kiting is undeniably the best experience for beginners to pros.
3. Take lessons
4. Make freinds - set up down wind cars/vans/skateboards on the down wind side of the lake then drive to the upwind side

I wish this sport were easier for entry to all. The entertainment value is off the charts and at your fingertips - once your are skilled, actually even the learning is fun. The learning curve varies by person and you can't rely on previous experience in other activities to succeed, they may help but nothing to rely on.

We have all gone through the paces of getting our kite fix. Contiue to enjoy the spirit of the people and activity this sport offers, be patient, apply yourself, and learn with caution.

[Barry P]

Yes, we need to just never come out on that beautiful, enticing, grassy strip.

If you know you're not going to stay upwind, just cut your losses and walk the shoreline back to the DNR launch as early as possible, or wrap your kite up small and climb the cliff up to the road.

Stay off this guy's grass.

We all have our walks of shame, both new & old kiters. About a month ago, the wind backed off and I was hitting bad lulls and not making upwind like I need. I finally gave up and was headed for the shallows next to the steep wooded shoreline when I spied that luscious little spot of grass next to the road down by the tip of the bay. I says to myself, 'Slog back in the shallows, or stop fighting and enjoy a down-winder to the inviting de-rig site by the road?', I choose B. I was pretty focused on avoiding the power lines and trees as I landed the kite on the water. Winding up the lines through the weeds also kept me occupied, but soon I'd be out on grass. Finally I came up and was preparing to deflate, pack, & walk. Soon a guy on a golf cart came zipping up to me. I thought... a ride? Could I be that lucky? Not. He vented about #@#*(@!! kiters and I listened. He asked if I didn't see his No Trespassing sign (honestly I had not noticed it). He told me to get back in the water and walk the shoreline back. I said "sure" and did.

He must have had some bad experiences with kiters. Too bad for us. Don't go there.

I walked up the shore a ways until I was sure I was beyond his land, deflated the kite on the water, packed and wedged my way through the brush and trees up the cliff to the road. Thanks Geo for the ride back.

Don't go there.

[Tighe]

wow, firstly thanks Ken for posting about this issue. I have been riding Waconia for over 20 years and have walked across this guys lawn a half dozen of times and did not see the signs. Thanks for making me aware of his feelings about it. We clearly have outstayed our welcome. It's his land, and we should respect his wishes. When I first read your post I thought there might be something we could do for him to try and change the situation but it sounds like it may be too late for that.

The two suggestions are good ones. Walk the shore, which I've done over a dozen times in the last 20 years, or take out on the north side. The shoreline is not a bad walk. It's a good thigh burn walking through the water but it's not going to kill ya. The launch on the Northside is where the road meets the bike path. There is small opening to get out onto the road. Even a small area to take down your kite. Bit longer walk but another great view of the lake. We all do the walk of shame at one time or another, pro and rookie. Attitude is everything, even in the walk. Take in the day, the sky, the scene and enjoy the walk.

Sorry Mike but I'm gonna disagree with you. Waconia is a great lake for those riding but not riding upwind WHEN YOU HAVE SIDESHORE WINDS. SouthEast, South, And North provide this level of riders with plenty of room to zigzag downwind (and maybe dial a tack or two upwind) without fear of things like SHORE to run into. Hundreds of us have done this over the years. Drop a car or bike downwind, Launch from the DNR and have some great riding, self rescue well before land and float into your car. Waconia works great because there is shallows to launch in (assisted or Drift launch) and head out into the lake. THIS IS NOT A GOOD LAKE FOR THESE RIDERS IN ONSHORE WINDS. SW, W, NW winds blow nearly onshore and even though you can walk out a bit, quickly you'll be too close to shore and/or in the way of boaters. Any Lake with Shallows presents the same challenges for onshore conditions, Miltona, Washington, Reddy even Malmo. The best conditions for the rider who is riding but not staying upwind is to find sideshore conditions where you can ride with nothing downwind of you. Obviously shallows are preferred for launching, but onshore winds even with shallows only provides a tack or two and you're walking back upwind. Also it is extremely dangerous riding along the shore. I have seen people at this level just catch an edge, go down, get spun around and the kite goes into a death spiral and almost instantly they are dangerously close to shore...and they can only hope their kite is in the tree and not over it...which would put them on a crash course for the tree.

Malmo is by far the best spot in the state to work on skills. On sideshore south winds you can zigzag downwind in shallow water. If it is sideon winds you can walk out nearly a 1/4 mile and get quite a few tacks before you are near shore.

Having said all the above, I do not encourage people who don't know how the safety systems, kite control, assisted launch/land, drift launching and how to do a self rescue, to be at any area lake. Teaching yourself without these skills is endangering our access. These are things that I feel all instructors should be teaching and informing their students are the required skills before going off on their own whether it be to body drag or work on riding. With these skills you can work on body drags, and work on riding the board on your own, in sideshore winds. Or take a lesson or two and shorten the learning curve. Having an instructor coaching you all along the way (via walkie talkie helmets) just gets you dialed sooner. Doesn't mean you can't get it on your own, just means you'll be having fun sooner...and maybe even staying upwind sooner...and able to ride anywhere sooner.

Thanks again Ken for opening this up. While the skill level/ access issue wasn't the topic of the thread, it probably was time to bring it up again. Hope to see you in the wind.

ride on

[KitingKen]

Thanks for the long post, Tighe. As a newbie, I'll need to be more selective about wind direction before jumping in. I've done beach to launch downwinders and launch to beach downwinders and that works well and keeps me on public property.

I DO think we have some room to work with the owner. He was a nice guy and readily gave me permission to walk down there and look for my lost bar when I asked. I think with an apology, some proposed ground rules and maybe a thank you card at some point, we could win him back. Perhaps if we can agree to get out on the far right of the grass and quickly walk up the road that would be acceptable. If we have a ride waiting, have them wait up the hill instead of park right in front of the guys dock????

Anyone feel this is important enough to address with the guy or just quit going there?

Thanks,
Ken

(BTW, the owner of the dock closer to the launch with a path up to the road is much angrier!!! He gave my wife a good lecture for looking out over the hill)

[bscheig]

Ken, Tighe, Mike, etc.

Thanks for the posts. Looks like I am the loner. As I told someone earlier this year, it's not a complete season of kiting for me if I don't end up on that "beach" at least once a year. I have asked their permission, twice, to use their land. Once I walked up to the house and the other time, someone was on the dock. Both times it was all very cordial. I'm not sure that I've seen a no trespassing sign, but when you're getting blown on to a lee shore, it's a little late to obey a sign posted on the land.

I've been kiting for about 5 years and I still struggle to stay upwind especially in lighter conditions. Maybe I do need more lessons.

I can also look at this from the homeowner's position. And I don't get the anger. Maybe it's that I've been sailing my entire life and know that breakages occur and conditions change. We have a home on Lake Michigan. Admittedly, it's quite uncommon for someone to wash ashore on our beach but when it's happened, I've offered to help, feed them, warm them up, whatever they need.

I'd be happy to participate in anything to appease this owner. It is a great "rescue" spot. In the meantime, I will work on my upwind skills and/or learn how to pack up my kite in knee deep water.

Bill