Continent |
Europe |
Country |
Switzerland |
Next Big City |
Zürich |
Next Town |
St. Moritz |
|
Type: |
Lake |
Rider Ability: |
Beginner, Intermediate, Expert |
Features: |
Rooms, Camping, School, Shop, Repair, Rental, Rescue, Shower, Toilet, Food, Parking |
Water
Type: |
Flat, Chop |
Hazards: |
Bridge, Rocks, Stones |
Quality: |
Clean |
Best Tide: |
Tide independent |
Perfectly flat water, the more wind the choppier it gets. Be careful with the rocks all along the shore when entering and exit the water.
Beach
Type: |
Grass |
Size: |
Medium |
Hazards: |
Rocks, Bystanders |
Beach Users: |
July, August |
There is no sandy beach, but from the launch/land side there is a big area of grass the whole way down the lake (600m) and again 500m up on the other side where you normally arrive, if your kite drops and you are not able to relaunch again. So it's safe. There is one official entry but you can get out (back on shore) everywhere if you manage 30 cm of stones which are around at waterside. On the weekends it's normally a little bit crowded to get in. Sometimes you have to wait one minute before launching you kite. Upward from the official kite launching zone there is no way to start your kite. There are also a lot of windsurfers, so respect the zones in the water.
Weather
Spring:
|
Thick |
Summer:
|
Shorty, Normal |
Fall:
|
Thick |
Winter:
|
Thick |
Air: summer 20-30°C, winter 20-10°C. Water: summer 10-16°C, winter ice. When the summer season opens its door in May/June the water is around 12°C. It's getting warmer every month till August/September. Normally it's around 15-16°C. Because this spot is up in the mountains it's never to hot during summertime. It's very comfortable to be there if its getting to hot in the cities. Please pay attention to the sun. It's strong because this spot is on 1800m over ground.
Wind
Best Months: |
May, June, July, August, September |
Wind Type: |
Thermal |
Best Direction: |
SSW, SW |
Main Direction: |
SSW, SW, WSW |
The Maloya wind is a very constant wind all year around, it blows with 3-5 Bft. The wind is thermal. This spot has only enough wind if it comes from South/Southeast, then it normally has about 4-6 Bft. Lower density of air leads to higher surface need.
How to get there
Transport |
Car, Bus |
Access
|
Short walk |
Zurich-Chur-Julier-Silvaplana. Innsbruck-Landeck-Scuol-St. Moritz-Silvaplana. Comersee-Chiavenna-Maloja-Silvaplana. It's quite difficult to say how to get there because it's up in the mountains and about 4 hours by car from the next airport. It's a well known place. The easiest way to get there is by car. From Zurich, take the Highway A3 towards Sargans-Chur. St. Moritz is the next town. It's just 2 km away from there. First you have to drive or whatever to Chur. This is the nearest big city. From there just head on on the freeway till you see the sign direction St. Moritz. Leave the freeway and follow just the signs to St. Moritz. You have to drive over the Julier pass. If you managed this you are in Silvaplana. By train is the same. Go to Chur with the express train. If you are there you have to change the train in direction St. Moritz. The train conductor will tell you exactly which one.
Extra information
To kite on Lake Silvaplana you have to pay a daily/weekly/season fee at the kitecenter. The lake is split into 2 areas. The underpart of the lake is just for kitesurfers. Upwards there are just windsurfers. They need a belt of 250m. If you manage quickly to go through the windsurfers more upwards, you can kite for yourself. There's also a 50m safety zone from the shore where you are not to ride except to exit the water. It will prevent you from crashing your kite on the shore (= people watching) or bumping into the rocks which are the two main dangers of the spot. People from the center are watching that every thing is going on fine on the beach and ready to help and answer questions. So be cool with them, they're there to help and also are just doing their job. Great spot for snowkiting in winter.
Nightlife
Julier Palace (nice restaurant and bar), Beach Club (pizzeria, bar - every Saturday beach party), Bar Puf (bar, disco).