Continent |
North America |
Country |
Florida (USA) |
Next Big City |
Miami |
Next Town |
Miami, Key Biscayne |
|
Type: |
Ocean |
Rider Ability: |
Beginner, Intermediate, Expert |
Features: |
None |
Water
Type: |
Shallow, Flat, Chop |
Hazards: |
Ships, Jetskis, Stakes |
Quality: |
Clean |
Best Tide: |
Tide independent |
Huge sandbars all over for 3 miles down and 1 miles wide for the biggest flat and clear water. Choppier in the channels with deeper water, but stay out of the way of boats passing by. Stay in the flats. Be careful with the houses in the water and the anchoring boats, mainly on weekends. Beautiful scenic and historic site of the 7 remaining houses built on the water in the 30's during the prohibition.
Beach
Type: |
No information |
Size: |
None |
Hazards: |
None |
Beach Users: |
None |
No beach. You have to launch from the water, but the water is shallow, so no problem. Sandy bottom and sea grass beds, some shells. Easy to launch from everywhere.
Weather
Spring:
|
Shorts |
Summer:
|
Shorts |
Fall:
|
Shorts |
Winter:
|
Shorts, Shorty, Normal |
Nice sunny weather all year round. Summer no wetsuit, just sun protection, winter can have colder days with northerly cold fronts, then a shorty on long wetsuit is recommended. Air: from 60 to 100's°F, water: never below 70's°F.
Wind
Best Months: |
January, February, March, April, May, November, December |
Wind Type: |
Thermal, Frontal |
Best Direction: |
NE, SE |
Main Direction: |
NE, SE |
Best winds from November to May. Cold fronts passing by, bringing colder northerlies with nice winds. After that winds from South. About 3-4 days per week with ridable winds. Summer is lighter. Since you are in the bay before Miami with any shore far away, any direction works.
How to get there
Transport |
Boat |
Access
|
No walk |
Isolated sandbars 2 miles offshore. Only accessible by boat. Located in the Miami bay, south of Key Biscayne. There are some old wooden houses just in the middle of nowhere (Stiltsville). A bit to the south there is the sandbar, where on nice days many boats will be anchoring.
Extra information
Keep an eye on your boat, tide moves about 2-3 feet. Watch out for fast boats passing by in the channels and the wooden houses. Also the boats sitting on the sandbar and people getting drunk. Keep an eye on them and don't come too close. Stiltsville is within a Federal Park. Sandbars under the authorities of Biscayne National park, and the coast guard. Park authorities have tried some unusual attempts to regulate kiteboarding on an individual basis at times in the past, e.g. mandatory pfd use, etc.. Try to keep a low profile and not give the authorities cause to notice us and cook up problems. Entering and tampering with the houses is forbidden: state property. Don't damage the sandbars and wild life with your boat propeller, anchor safely on the very edge of the sandbars. Be a smart boat user. Respect other users. Do not litter, the fine for it in the park is up to 5000 USD.
Nightlife
Great nightlife in Miami Beach.