Snowkiting at Rattray Head Beach - Scotland

Hi everyone,

With heavy snowfall over the North East of Scotland last weekend we had planned to head onto the Cairngorm Plateau for some snowkiting. We awoke on Sunday morning to the news that the mountain roads were closed and to find many of our local roads impassable due to the heavy snowfall overnight.

Determined to get out with the kites we packed the kit into the car including snow chains, and headed to one of our local beaches. The single track to the beach provided some entertaining driving conditions as we passed the Loch of Strathbeg which was partly frozen. As the light house came into view we could see plenty of fresh snow covering the dunes and knew we were going to have a fun session with the kites.

We headed straight to an area we knew had a number of Blowout’s which would provide some large bowls and interesting terrain for snowkiting. I rigged up the 5m Flow on handles as the wind was only about 15mph while Maggie got the camera out to take advantage of the unique backdrop. The Flow did not disappoint, providing more than enough power to travel over the dune system and delivering plenty of lift for jumping off some of the ridge formations.

After a quick swap over for camera duty we decided to head onto the beach where there was still plenty of snow down to the high tide line. Still using the 5m Flow whilst Maggie opted for her 12m Manta II, we took the opportunity to make a bit of a journey along the beach which stretches for 14 miles. Fortunately the wind direction was in our favor allowing us to travel across the wind along the length of the beach between the dunes and the high tide line.

It was certainly a unique experience to spend a day riding on snow along a beach where, for most of the year we spend our time kitesurfing. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

Mark & Maggie www.synergykitesports.com