A simple farm life, wind, warm weather, friendly locals and home produced food. This is a place to be happy and a place to come back to…
Sardinia feels like a second home after two seasons of running kite camps for Lapoint, in cooperation with Marco Orrú and his family. We are staying at the family farm, 5 minutes from the kite spot.
The annoying rooster who kept me up every night is now a good friend, and he waits with his “cock-a-doodle-doo” until the day has started. The noisy goat was served for dinner a few weeks ago. We live together in harmony: Two dogs, a cat, huge pigs and their piglets, goats, hens, goose and pheasants.
Kiting in Sardinia
Sardinia (“Isola del Vento”) is an Italian Island in the Mediterranean between Italy, Spain, Tunisia and South of Corsica. The place offers the most beautiful kite spots you can imagine, sun, constant wind, long beaches, crystal clear water and good, homemade Italian food made of local products from the area.
Porto Botte, the kite scene
You drive out on a small strip of land to Marco's school: There are flamingos to the right, and kiters to the left. The spot is huge, and regulated only for kiters. No swimmers or windsurfers! The upwind part of the beach is for the kite school, while the people who know how to ride run the show in front of the café area. If you ride a bit further out, you have the space to yourself and the water is still flat. The wind normally picks up at noon and stays until the sun sets around 8 pm.
The wind
The Sardinians kite all year around. The wind is less consistent from November to April, it is cold and you can expect a lot of rainy days. These winter months are known for good waves and surf. The main wind season starts in April, and the best months are from June until September. There are two dominant winds. The mistral comes from the North and brings constant good wind. With a mistral forecast the wind is much stronger than predicted on Windguru and other wind stations. The southern “Scirrocco” winds come from Sahara. On these rare days it feels like kiting in the air from a hairdryer. HOT.
Local food and wine
Where the mainland trades in picturesque villages and crumbling farmhouses, Sardinia is all dramatic landscapes and wide-open wilderness. Most families produce their own fruits, vegetables, cheese, meat, olive oil or wine. The Orrú family grows all sorts of vegetables, herbs and fruits that they use for cooking: Zucchini, eggplant, artichoke, tomatoes, peppers, water melon and more. Patrizia, Marco's mum, starts in the morning and she makes sure a delicious Sardinian meal is served every evening. Mimmo (the father) makes ricotta and formaggio (cheese) from the goat milk, and he takes care of the meat.
Sardinia is a pearl in the Mediterranean ocean that is not discovered by many people. Yet. Climbers, kiters, divers, downhill bikers – Porto Botte is a paradise that offers great conditions for all of you!
Stay updated and join us in 2016: lapointcamps.com/destination/kite-camp-sardinia
Marit
www.instagram.com/maritnore
Photos: Morgan Jones, Sofie Lier Tverberg, Marit Nore
