I read John Z's post in the destinations section, and thought I would ask another question or two:
You say winds are fairly light in Jan Feb, do they rent lighter wind gear (all I'm familiar with) ?
Is there any place to sail that doesn't have significant waves?
Would you recommend trying to sail/improve there if you are a beginner with maybe 60 hours of total experience?
Do they rent harnesses?
I stopped sailing here because of frustration and a job change to an inflexible job (can't leave work when there's wind, longer hours M-Th). I'm willing to be tempted to try again on vacation in the D.R. this month.
Rich
Cabarete
Moderator: MK
It's been a long time since i was in the D.R. ('93?)(i think it was in feb. or early mar.) but they had pretty much every kind of gear at that time. I rode my first short board there and had a great time windsurfing or not. We spent only one day in cabarete and it was 5.0 wind but that was also one of only 2 or 3 days that were that strong. There is a point that juts out up wind and so the bay is pretty flat. Even in 5.0 it is quite a ways out before things get rolling much at all. We stayed in porta plata close (20 min.) to cabarete and a hotel in our resort village had some gear (Playa Dorada i think) for guests that was so-so. The other big resort area now, Punta Cana, is quite far away (i would bet 4 hours but don't know for sure) and i don't know anything about the area. If the wind is the same there as cabarete, it could be pretty much on-shore without protection from the waves.
Cabarete
Hey Rich,
I thought I'd take a shot at your questions, but it would also be interesting to hear other people's thoughts.
1. Re lighter wind gear: you can check their websites, vela, club nathalie simon, etc. As of two years ago, it seemed like 7 ish was as big as they had.
2. Re the waves - the break really varies from 2-3 ft to 6-8 ft. I think there is a river mouth somewhere in the vicinity that has a more protected area.
3. There are a lot of good instructors there, so it could be a great place to improve if you have the time to wait for the winds. Everything is right on the beach, and they seem pretty flexible so you end up only paying for actual time on the water.
4. They do rent (or usually just let you use) their harnesses if you are renting a board from them.
Here is a link where you can check out the wind/wave daily forecasts - it shows the past history. Read the text carefully - the ranges they predict are wide, but usually the comments indicate what did or didn't happen the day before: http://www.hispaniola.com/noworkteam/report.html.
Good luck!
- z
I thought I'd take a shot at your questions, but it would also be interesting to hear other people's thoughts.
1. Re lighter wind gear: you can check their websites, vela, club nathalie simon, etc. As of two years ago, it seemed like 7 ish was as big as they had.
2. Re the waves - the break really varies from 2-3 ft to 6-8 ft. I think there is a river mouth somewhere in the vicinity that has a more protected area.
3. There are a lot of good instructors there, so it could be a great place to improve if you have the time to wait for the winds. Everything is right on the beach, and they seem pretty flexible so you end up only paying for actual time on the water.
4. They do rent (or usually just let you use) their harnesses if you are renting a board from them.
Here is a link where you can check out the wind/wave daily forecasts - it shows the past history. Read the text carefully - the ranges they predict are wide, but usually the comments indicate what did or didn't happen the day before: http://www.hispaniola.com/noworkteam/report.html.
Good luck!
- z
Thanks John and Dave,
I'll be in Puerto Plata, about 20 miles from Cabarete and I think our resort has some gear. But 2 years ago I stayed at a resort that had free gear, and it was no footstraps & no harness lines and only a couple of monofilm sails (the rest were cloth?).
I'll try to make it over to Cabarete and maybe rent something if the conditions are not too advanced for me.
Rich
I'll be in Puerto Plata, about 20 miles from Cabarete and I think our resort has some gear. But 2 years ago I stayed at a resort that had free gear, and it was no footstraps & no harness lines and only a couple of monofilm sails (the rest were cloth?).
I'll try to make it over to Cabarete and maybe rent something if the conditions are not too advanced for me.
Rich
Rich:
Cabarete is the place to go when on the DR! Best selection of equipment on the island, I highly reccommend VELA windsurfing, lots of brand new boards and sails!
Condititions inside the reef break are great for the intermediate sailor, or even the novice, It is deep, over you head right off the beach, so waterstarts are really nearly a requirement. The wind is off and on, but surfing is another fun option, when the wind is down.
The beach scene at Cabarete is very unique, and a total blast! A lot like the Gorge, as far as activity oriented, and great surf shops, I counted 12 last time I was there, 6 years ago. For non-windsurf activities; lots of mountian biking trips, river cruises, horseback riding, diving, trekking, etc. And the night life is beyond compare, plenty of bars right on the beach!
Go if you can, you wont regret it!
Tim Walker
Cabarete is the place to go when on the DR! Best selection of equipment on the island, I highly reccommend VELA windsurfing, lots of brand new boards and sails!
Condititions inside the reef break are great for the intermediate sailor, or even the novice, It is deep, over you head right off the beach, so waterstarts are really nearly a requirement. The wind is off and on, but surfing is another fun option, when the wind is down.
The beach scene at Cabarete is very unique, and a total blast! A lot like the Gorge, as far as activity oriented, and great surf shops, I counted 12 last time I was there, 6 years ago. For non-windsurf activities; lots of mountian biking trips, river cruises, horseback riding, diving, trekking, etc. And the night life is beyond compare, plenty of bars right on the beach!
Go if you can, you wont regret it!
Tim Walker
Just wanted to add my 2 cents here. I went to Cabarete for a week a couple of years ago. I was pretty much at the beg to intermediate stage (could get in the harness, water start pretty much all of the time, no jibes) and I had a hell of a hard time windsurfing. There was pretty decent size swell in the bay area (short of the break on the reef) and it was a HUGE transition for me sailing compared to learning in Minnesota. I found it pretty difficult, and at times, a little unnerving. Granted, I had fun, but I think I would have had a lot more fun had I been of a little higher skill level. In my opinion, it is definately not a place for beginners (at least in late March). But, hey, what do I know... 
One thing I would recommend is doing the canyoning tour out of Cabarete (it was with a German guy but I can't remember his name). It was a lot of fun and one of the highlights of our trip. Oh, and make sure ALL your doors are locked at night if you are staying in Cabarete. But that's a different story...
One thing I would recommend is doing the canyoning tour out of Cabarete (it was with a German guy but I can't remember his name). It was a lot of fun and one of the highlights of our trip. Oh, and make sure ALL your doors are locked at night if you are staying in Cabarete. But that's a different story... Just wanted to add my 2 cents here. I went to Cabarete for a week a couple of years ago. I was pretty much at the beg to intermediate stage (could get in the harness, water start pretty much all of the time, no jibes) and I had a hell of a hard time windsurfing. There was pretty decent size swell in the bay area (short of the break on the reef) and it was a HUGE transition for me sailing compared to learning in Minnesota. I found it pretty difficult, and at times, a little unnerving. Granted, I had fun, but I think I would have had a lot more fun had I been of a little higher skill level. In my opinion, it is definately not a place for beginners (at least in late March). But, hey, what do I know... One thing I would recommend is doing the canyoning tour out of Cabarete (it was with a German guy but I can't remember his name). It was a lot of fun and one of the highlights of our trip. Oh, and make sure ALL your doors are locked at night if you are staying in Cabarete. But that's a different story...
One thing I would recommend is doing the canyoning tour out of Cabarete (it was with a German guy but I can't remember his name). It was a lot of fun and one of the highlights of our trip. Oh, and make sure ALL your doors are locked at night if you are staying in Cabarete. But that's a different story...