Our 20-year-old travel guide already describes Elafonisi as the “lost paradise”. Elafonisi only makes it onto our list because there are a few references to the fact that you could probably kitesurf in the turquoise-blue paradise lagoon from time to time. In general, information about kitesurfing on Crete is more than sparse on the internet. But there are spots where you are allowed to kitesurf. You can only find them with the help of locals.
The forecast for Elafonisi is quite good for one day. The journey from Guaves to the south-west corner of Crete takes a good three and a half hours. The often single-lane road first leads over a winding pass to high above a spectacular canyon. Dozens of stalls sell organic honey, olives and raki. The road then descends almost as steeply through an idyllic valley to the sea.
Elafonisi is now cosily empty in the low season. The Greek Orthodox Easter is still ahead of us. Almost everything is closed – and there are no more than 100 visitors at the lagoon. Some diggers working late into the night are creating a car park the size of a football pitch. Our good landlord says that up to 10,000 visitors a day flock to Elafonisi in summer.
That’s absolute madness. The village has barely a hundred inhabitants. In the high season, they pay around €25,000 a day in parking fees. The 30 kilometre long, steep and often single-lane road here is said to be one gigantic traffic jam lasting several hours in summer. Numerous EU-sponsored motorway-like widenings are as idiotic as they are reprehensible. Elafonisi is the El Nido of Crete. Save it at least in summer!
The forecast gave a nice 20 knots for a single day at the Elafonisi lagoon. Shortly before that, depending on the forecast model, it swings up to a peak of 38 knots. Thanks to Ryan Air’s farty 20 kg limit on kitebags, I would probably have been “discreetly” overpowered with my only kite (Edge 13). But I’m lucky.
A nice 18 knots arrive the day before the storm. Perfect for flying in my new Edge 13 V11. Its old problems are a thing of the past. Within three generations, Ozone has improved a lot. Inflated to eight PSI, the outer struts no longer buckle when lying on the beach. At least in light winds, the tips of the front tube also no longer buckle during aggressive take-offs. Thanks to a tip from kite buddy Flo, the trim using new pigtails for use with the core bar is immediately correct.
Off to the water! The Elafonisi kitespot is small. Very small. Kiting is only permitted in the right-hand half of the lagoon towards the open sea. Here you have a small area of perhaps 70 by 120 metres for kiting in crystal clear to turquoise blue shallow water. With just three local kiters plus one student today, the sport is actually already full. Manoeuvring is centimetre work.
In addition to the limited space available, the lagoon is garnished with a few rocks to windward and leeward. To leeward, most of them are just under the water, but thanks to the sun they are quite visible from behind / to the side. To windward and outwards towards the peninsula, the sun is reflected in the water in the afternoon. At first you can only navigate by ear. Two large rocks to windward give you just 50 metres to cross towards the open sea. It is no longer possible to land here – there are bushes on the island and rocks on the land side. You can only land and take off from a 50 metre wide area to the west of the lagoon.
Don’t try kitesurfing in Elafonisi between May and September! Even with “only” 100 visitors it gets crowded. To be honest, I’m surprised that kitesurfing is legal here. Other Greek islands, such as Lipsi, are much more radical. There, the village policeman once chased me to hell because I dared to ask if I could kite legally somewhere. Here, everyone was friendly, gave information and the kiters were considerate. I hope it stays that way.
As soon as we leave All Inclusive, the people with the good stories come back. The Netflix film maker bought a property at the end of the world. A German hiker crossed the entire island from north to south. The local mini-market is a cut-throat place, but the only open restaurant serves good food for little money.
Frank Woelky, born in 1973. Kitesurfer since 1998. Since 2006, I have been combining kitesurfing and web design on trips lasting several months off the beaten track.