THE LURE Three hours away from Prea and Jericoacoara lies Cumbuco with golden beaches and the best of every type of riding suitable for everyone. Enough said, read on...
THE SET UP
Cumbuco beach is good for all levels. The wind is cross- or cross-onshore from the right. There is a small shore dump and then flat water with a slight sea swell. The best place to launch and land in the main bay of Cumbuco is a few meters downwind from Barracha Vellas. From here onwards you have ten kilometres of open, empty beach and ocean to play in. At high-tide on a big swell the shore dump can reach one metre, but only a few times a year, mainly around January. At low-tide there are sand bars off the point that produce nice waves three hundred metres from the shore.
ICARAI BEACH Icarai beach is ten kilometres from Cumbuco. Here you can regularly find waves of up to two metres that break one hundred metres from the shore-line. The wave is very heavy but you will find sections and banks that have one hundred or even two hundred metre sections of clean, barrelling waves. There are always surfers out when its working, sometimes up to one hundred. The place to kite from is downwind of the Barrachas (beach bars) where there is more room to launch and land. Don’t kite on a Sunday, the beach is packed with locals and the sea is full of surfers and swimmers.
ICARAI/TABUBA LAGOON Nine kilometres from Cumbuco is this great lagoon with butter flat water. It can only handle between four and five kites safely, but there is usually no one else there. The lagoon is separated from the sea by a 30 metre strip of sand that can break in during very high tides with big swells. The wind is steady and comes at an angle across the width of the lagoon. Don’t bother trying on a Sunday, its packed with locals swimming and fishing.
CAUIPE LAGOON Just five kilometres downwind from Cumbuco is a large freshwater lagoon fed by a small tributary river. Separated from the sea by 300 metres of beach, the wind blows onto the lagoon very consistently, allowing you to sail easily across its width. It can handle around 20 kites safely, but has been getting very busy, so hitting it in the early mornings (8am) is the key.
PECEM The port of Pecem can be seen from Cumbuco in the distance 35 kilometres away. The conditions can be very special indeed, with clean, peeling waves up to 1.5 metres in size when good swells are running and with cross-shore winds from the right. You kite 500 metres downwind from the roadway that juts two kilometres out to sea where there is a container ship dock. It sounds dodgy, but it's not. It's best at low-tide on the push (incoming tide).
PARACURU 70 kilometres downwind of Cumbucu, Paracuru is one of the best spots for waves in the northeast of Brazil. Five kilometres from Paracuru town, it is a little tricky to find, but if you ask people they will direct you. There is a Barraca right on the spot and you can base yourself here for the day. Three hundred metres offshore is a reef that at low tide creates very flat water with lovely waves of up to two metres. It's best at low-tide, or mid-tide, as the inside can be very choppy at high-tide when the reef does not protect the bay. Just watch out for the fishermens' fences four hundred metres downwind of the Barraca that go all the way out to the reef. Beyond the waves you're out in to the ocean where the swell can be very big.
GUAJIRU This small fishing village is 130 kilometres from Fortaleza with a huge beach and shallow water for over four hundred metres. You can launch directly in front of the fabulous Rede Beach Resort where there are no rocks around, so this really is a great spot for beginners and intermediates with predominantly easterly, cross-shore winds. You can drive the length of the beach and literally pick your spot, choosing from flat water or small waves.
WIND & WEATHER: There's no need to go on about it again. As for Prea, it's windy here from June through January for 99% of the days, averaging 20 knots cross-onshore.
WATER: The water temperature sits around 26°C.
OFF THE WATER: Beach hotels offer luxury accommodation to suit independent travellers, couples or families. Sunset Beach hotel is a favourite among kiters while the Hi-Life Sunset Cabanas, right on the beach are a great budget option. Cheaper apartments and even rooms in houses are available for long stayers. Outside of Cumbuco, look out for the luxurious Rede Beach resort in Guajiru, with spa treatments and private terraces. Families love it in Brazil and kids are always welcome. There are loads of beach and non-beach activities to keep them happy. Cumbuco village has a great range of restaurants, serving fresh fish, an array of meats and more traditional dishes. Two foreign-run restaurants provide cuisine choices from around the world in sophisticated venues. Fortaleza is just 30 minutes away and has everything you could want, from Chinese to Italian to sushi, all delicious and at Brazilian prices! Fortaleza has excellent scope for partying while the scene in Cumbuco is more laid back but fun, and you can catch up with other kiters and sink a few too many Caiparinas. Food and alcohol is cheap in Brazil – eat for as little as £4.50 for two people and drink beers and Caiparinas for as little as the equivalent of 75p!. Other activities include; surfing, wakeboarding, horse-riding, boat trips, buggy dune tours, sandboarding in the dunes, watertheme-parks and trekking in the mountains.
DONT MISS: Fine food at Brazilian prices A night in Fortaleza The waterfalls in the mountains
AIRPORT: Fortaleza (FOR): The transfer to Cumbuco is just 35 minutes
GETTING ABOUT: With so many spots to ride you can hire a buggy or sign up with a school who can transfer you.
