West wind

There are two types of west wind, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. Both come from the western zone, however, they have different characteristics.

The westerly wind from the Mediterranean has a greater frequency during the summer season and causes the aforementioned changes of moderate heat and increased humidity. It is a wind that thanks to the Foehn Effect, that is, the loss of temperature of a wind as it travels through higher altitudes, while when it descends towards levels closer to sea level it gains higher temperatures, producing very pleasant temperatures. when it reaches the area of eastern Spain and the coast of Murcia in winter.

On the contrary, in summer it increases temperatures and, due to its dry nature, makes it a powerful ally for fires. That is why these areas are often the hottest in Spain, Murcia registering the highest historical temperature in the country with 47.2ºC in June 1994.

In the Atlantic area, the west wind is much more moderate and temperatures are more pleasant in summer, without exceeding 30ºC in the middle of the day. It is usually accompanied by an increase in humidity and on winter days it causes the cold to acquire a humid character that makes it difficult to bear the low temperatures.

The winds from the east and west have different characteristics that affect in one way or another the practice of surfing, kitesurfing and windsurfing.

If on the one hand, the easterly wind offers us strong gusts of dry wind that come from the West, on the other, the west wind presents constant winds, between 2 and 5 on the scale of Beaufort, side on and with more pleasant temperatures, in addition, the waves it causes are smaller, so for an initiation level or training without the need to get great tricks, it is perfect.

For the easterly wind we will use medium or small kites or sails, since their intensity could cause a larger one to break or make us unable to control it.

For westerly wind, we will always look for kites or sails of medium or large size to make the most of the light wind that allows us to perform the best tricks.

Although these are the general and normal conditions for the west wind, we must take into account that its characteristics will depend on the beach where we are and the area of Spain where we are going to practice kitesurfing. Thus, if we go to a beach where the western area is practically “covered” by buildings from a nearby town, it is likely that the west wind will hardly be noticeable and will not have any influence on our navigation.

In Tarifa, you can learn to kitesurf or wing foil with Kite and Roll and we make sure you do it in the best weather conditions 😉