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WINDSURF, SPOT REVIEWS: CANNES (PROVENCE - COTE D'AZUR, FRANCE) - First part Cannes is a very interesting spot, both for logistics at the beach, and for conditions offered when you ride in the water, that are proper for freeriding or waveriding, depending on the intensity and direction of the wind. The landscape is also charming The spot works with winds from the East/North East, or West and West/North West. With strong winds from the East, it can offer conditions good for waveriding. The spot is easily reachable from the town center (ie, from the West), driving all along the famous Boulevard de la Croisette, and heading towards Cap de la Croisette (see map at end of article). Otherwise (best solution for those who arrive from East), you can reach it from Antibes (coming from the A8 motorway, you have to exit at Antibes), driving along the D35, then the D35bis, and D6007. Once you have arrived at the Cape, you can leave your car in the public parking lot right at the Cape. Otherwise, you can park near Boulevard Eugene Gazagnaire (in the side streets, because it is no longer possible on the Boulevard). With wind from the East, parking at the Cape, you can beachstart on port tack from a small beach (sand and rocks) near the parking lot, which is quite handy (only some submerged rocks you have to pay attention to, and some small shorebreak). Otherwise, parking near Boulevard Gazagnaire, and always with the wind from the East, you have the option to beachstart from the beach in front of the road. Here the beach is sandy, and the wind can be a bit more oriented from the North/North East, and then a little more side while beachstarting. You need to get out more upwind that you can, along the beach, about near Avenue Reine Astrid; doing so, even bearing away on some lulls, you are upwind enough to avoid the risk of ending up to the cliff the protects the public parking at Cap de la Croisette. Starting on port tack from this beach, the first portion of sea has a a bit unstable wind, and requires some skill to ride among the waves with low wind. Once you have arrived in front of the park at Cap de la Croisette, the wind becomes stronger and more continuous, and you meet the first great and challenging waves, to jump, or to avoid bearing away (if you have not enough speed). We tried the spot, for the first time, with the East wind, on 12-13 February 2017 (read the report). On that occasion (Sunday 12), by measuring with the anemometer, we could detect a difference between the wind measured at Cap de la Croisette, and that one measured at the north beach. At the Cape, the wind was very well spreaded and steady, about at 25 knots as average, with gusts of 30-32 kts. Moving towards the beach to the north (along Boulevard Gazagnaire), the wind was lower, both as average, and as maximum intensity (as average, just under 20 kts), but above all, it was more gusty. This conditions refer to the shore; at sea, the wind is generally slightly higher. With Mistral/West wind (read report), you go out at Cannes Palm Beach (south of the Cape and of the large public car parking). It may be tricky with this direction (especially if very strong), as the wind (side to the beach) pushes out to offshore sea. In this case, remember that, with the Mistral, it also possible to ride at Juan Les Pins (where you are protected by Cap d'Antibes, in case of drifting). Read a report about a session at Juan Les Pins (in Italian at the moment). To be sure that the Mistral blows even over Cannes (generally with a rotation from the West / South-West, while when the direction is from the North-West, probably it is unstable), do not trust wind maps that predict it up to Antibes, a few kilometers at East of Cannes. This is a distance comparable to the models resolution, and therefore you risk to go there in vain. Check that the mistral blows well up to the Ligurian Sea, or far more to the East, and, therefore, certainly up to Cannes. With easterly wind, sailing to the Ile Sainte-Marguerite, in front of Cap de la Croisette, you meet (with 25-30 knots) rather impressive waves: regular trains, not breaking (with some exceptions), but definitely steep, and even 3 meters high (with 30 kts). Good ramps that give you some job while riding and maneuvering. The channel between the Cape and the island is a fascinating sea area, but treacherous. There is a fairly strong current that takes you in the large bay in front of Cannes (with East wind, about 5 kms before being intercepted again by the mainland). I felt it was better not to lose too much water in that area. Sailing to the island is very picturesque, with a group of ocher stone houses surrounded by the Mediterranean machine just in front of you. Riding on starboard tack towards the Boulevard Gazagnaire beach, the wind, when we tested the spot, tended to rotate from North East (while in the channel, it came from the East). Therefore, it made you go in a direction that pointed toward the southern part of the beach. The stretch of sea to the East of the Cape has shallow waters with pebble on sea bottom, and submerged rocks near shore. That is one of the areas where the best waves rise. To surf them and to drift there, keeping starboard tack, can be risky, as it can make you get close to the parking protection cliff and the submerged rocks that are in front of the cliff. Since the waves there can be very beautiful and inviting (good jumps to go out on port tack), it may be better to start surfing them (on starboard tack), when the parking cliffs are about to end and the sandy beach is going to begin, if you are close to the coast. If you are offshore, you can anticipate a little your waveriding. The peculiarity of this spot, in fact, is that with the wind from the East (with the Mistral we have yet to assess), compared to Hyeres (which I continue to appreciate, anyway), in this spot you can really ride nice waves, and also front-side. You can ride waves at the Cape (immediately upwind of the small beach, before mentioned), and offshore of the main beach (or closer to the coast, but with the safety rules, before mentioned). Some readers could not agree, 'cause they will think that the wind direction is not sufficiently side respect to the waves. It may be true, but you can do something funny anyway. We saw several riders, with East wind, to arrive from the channel (sailing upwind of Cap de la Croisette), and then to begin waveriding front-side just upwind the Cape edge, to drift a little bit downwind the Cape (see beginning of the video published at end of article). The area is safe, because in case you fall on the waves, the waves and, above all, the strong current that enters the channel, quickly push the rider downwind towards the stretch of sea between the Cape and the island (and so not to the cliff in front of the parking). Then, they sailed upwind towards the island, gaining water upwind, again. To stay safe, it is better, if the wind is strong, not to sail too much towards the Island, and tack about 100-200 meters from the Cape, as in case of equipment failure or other problems, you are likely to be driven out to sea in the bay (in the case, try to get to the island - the sea leeward to the island is less rough - or, if you manage, sail abeam, to reach Boulevard de la Croisette, in front of the Cannes). The other area where to ride good waves is the one 100 meters offshore, in front of the sandy beach along Boulevard Gazagnaire. Here, you can surf safely backside or frontside, because, in case of you fall, beyond having a large stretch of sea before reaching the beach, you would be pushed towards the sandy beach (with only a few breakwaters cliffs perpendicular to the foreshore, between long sandy streches). To be continued in the second part.