Why are kiteboarding and kitesurfing so incredible here? It all comes down to the unique Squamish wind and weather!
Finding a place where water, land, and wind merge to provide the perfect environment for kiteboarding and kitesurfing is hard to do – unless you’re in Squamish, BC on Howe Sound! You only need to know the meaning of the word Squamish, ‘mother of wind’, to understand how significant and unique Squamish weather is to this area. The Squamish wind is key to why we enjoy the best conditions for kiteboarding, windsurfing, and sailing anywhere in the world.
The distinctive shape of scenic Howe Sound creates a bottleneck that funnels remarkably consistent and strong winds to Squamish. Every day! No matter the weather – rain or shine. As a result, Squamish BC is one of the best places to kiteboard and kitesurf.
Squamish wind offers THE BEST kiteboarding in North America
As we’ve mentioned we enjoy supremely consistent wind. Our daily thermal winds at a beautiful 20-25, blow from late morning well into the evening. World-famous, the Squamish wind begins to blow around early April lasting right through to late October, with the best months being May to September.
As a freshwater basin fed by the Squamish River, the Howe Sound water temperatures, even in summertime, tend to be on the colder side. Given the colder waters, most riders wear a 4-5mm full suit. On colder days, they opt for booties and/or gloves to stay warm and more comfortably enjoy their time on the water. Throughout the summer, most riders are comfortable in just their wetsuit for hours upon hours.
The Squamish wind, thermally driven, is occasionally frontal which makes the forecasting of the wind rather challenging. But, to help predict a little better, there are great resources. We recommend that you contact your kite school to get an accurate picture of what conditions they expect that day.
Here at Squamish Watersports, we take advantage of our time with you, whether it’s during a lesson or simply chatting, to explain the details of our unique Squamish wind conditions so you can better follow the forecasts yourself.
It’s not too late for winter kiteboarding!
Given our location on Howe Sound, the winters are milder compared to Whistler and locations further North. Yes, we get snow, but it doesn’t stick for long. Mostly, we experience rain throughout the winter. But, if you’re interested in snowkiting, November through mid-March, it’s but a brief hike or a ride up the Sea to Sky Gondola, to the powder. Winter snowkiting at Whistler and in the surrounding mountains around Squamish is possible – reach out for details!
