Map:
Description
The primary spot to kite on St. Martin is Orient, a beautiful crescent moon shaped beach leads to an extraordinary body of water on the French side of the island. In the northeast corner of the island it benefits from the regular east wind in the Caribbean. Clear at the water’s edge, light turquoise a for a few hundred feet, transitioning to dark blue as the water deepens. Small hotels near the water give way to single family homes which cover the hill as it rises moderately steeply from the water. There is an amphitheater quality to Orient Bay which permits many homes to have a fantastic view of the water. Like the rest of the Caribbean the weather seems perpetually good but don’t go in the late Summer and most of Fall as hurricane risk combine with low wind to make a trip then less worthwhile.
Note that the beach at Orient Bay has a reputation as a nude beach. Dudes, calm down, not much to see here, the hotties that you’d prefer to see sans clothing are wearing bikinis and most of the nude bathers are not much to look at. The nudists tend to congregate at the south end of Orient Bay.
The food, ah, the food, man can the French cook. There are really nice restaurants with a water view on the beach. But for a great meal walk something like a block inland, find the circular cluster of restaurants. There are something like 8 restaurants. They are all good. Some are great. Our favorite is La Voile Blanch, translated, the White Sail. The price is reasonable given the extraordinary quality.
Orient Bay gets deep sufficiently quickly that most launch while standing on shore. This can be tricky as space on the beach during high season, late December through April, can be at a premium. Manu, who runs Wind Adventures, is a great guy. Make friends here. They will help with launch and land when available, advise on where to set up your kite, and would use one of their boats to rescue a downed kiter in distress. This is a great school at which to take instruction.
Kiting in Orient Bay can be tricky, wonderful, or both. The dominant feature on the bay is Caye Verte or Green Caye, an island about a half mile off shore. Don’t get too close to Green Cay as there is a significant wind shadow west of the island. To the south of Green Cay there is a reef and the flattest water in the bay can be found there. Kite to the south from Green Cay, the water gets shallow and stays flat, show off your skills to the sailors aboard the large charter catamarans that moor in this area. To the north of Green Cay the waves can be big. However, the period of the wave action is regular and long. Easy to time, and routinely 4-5 feet, the waves here make for great jump ramps. Orient Bay is a great place to kite. It is beautiful, offers varied kiting in a single session, and a fantastic apres kite meal. What more could you want.