Lüderitz Second Lagoon / Speed Spot
Karas · Lüderitz
also known as Lüderitz Speed Canal, Luderitz 2nd Lagoon, Luederitz Second Lagoon, Lagoon 2
Riding essentials
Season
Aug–Mar
Months riders and schools name
How windy
30-45 kt
Character: mixed
Room to launch
huge
access rules on record, below
Water
flat
14 °C in summerThe event canal/strip is a purpose-built or repeatedly excavated speed-sailing facility at/just outside Second Lagoon
Hazards
21
Reported by riders
Level
Advanced only
With a caveat: see Your level
Crowds
low crowds · busy Oct Nov Dec Jan
Schools
1
named at this spot
From the airport
15 min
Lüderitz Airport (LUD)
When it fills in
Afternoon strengthening is the pattern on this coast, but an onset time specific to Second Lagoon is unconfirmed.
Nearbystraight-line distance
Backup spotsWhere riders go when the wind doesn't work here.
- Donkey Bay
- Grosse Buchtno page yet
- Lüderitz Lagoonno page yet
- Diaz Point / Lüderitzno page yet
- Walvis Bay Lagoon
The spot
Water temperature
Kite access
Current status
The wind
locals call it Lüderitz southerly desert/Atlantic thermal acceleration
Direction
Direction to shore
cross-off
Dominant direction
S to SSW, with SW also usable.
Kite sizes
metres · typical quiver highlighted
The quiver, in words
Speed-kite territory only. In-season wind averages 35 kt and up several days a week, commonly reaches 40-45 kt and occasionally 50-65 kt, so a 75-85 kg rider is looking at 4-7 m and nothing bigger has a use here. Bring spare lines and the tools to fix your own gear.Exact local recommendations are unconfirmed.
Character
Average strength
35 kt+ during the event period on average; no long-term statistical dataset was found for the Second Lagoon station.
Typical strength
30-45 kt in-season; during the event period wind averages 35 kt+ at least three times per week, often 40-45 kt and sometimes 50-65 kt.
Forecast
Live forecast
Month by month
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
riding season from the spot record · the wind series here holds no strength figure
No month-by-month share of windy days is held for this spot. The months riders and schools name are Aug, Sep, Oct, Nov, Dec, Jan, Feb, Mar, and whatever the series does hold is in the table below.
Measured at Diaz Point / Lüderitz, ~6 km from the spot (2008-09-01 to 2026-07-31 (observation window; not continuous)).
Every figure, month by monthWind from
| Month | Wind from |
|---|---|
| Jan | SSW |
| Feb | SSW |
| Mar | SSW |
| Apr | SSW |
| May | SSW |
| Jun | S |
| Jul | S |
| Aug | SSW |
| Sep | SSW |
| Oct | SSW |
| Nov | SSW |
| Dec | SSW |
How this was measuredmeasured · 2008-09-01 to 2026-07-31 (observation window; not continuous)
What was recorded here is in the table above, but it holds no wind-strength figure for any month, so no season is drawn from it. The season is the one the spot record names.
The direction is a column of the table above, month by month. Highlighted months are the riding season from the spot record.
Diaz Point / Lüderitz · windfinder.com · 2008-09-01 to 2026-07-31 (observation window; not continuous)
The water
Type
flat
Standing depth
Shallow lagoon water, reportedly. Standing-depth zones for casual kiting outside the engineered strip are unconfirmed.
Tides
Tidal lagoon. Tide and wave movement push sand into the excavated speed channel, which silts up and has to be re-dug before each event; that shallow channel is the only permanent trace left on the ground between events. With temporary chop barriers in place the prepared strip behaves as tide-independent, but the open lagoon around it does not.
Temperature
14 °C summer · 12 °C winter
Wetsuit
Full wetsuit year-round; water is very cold, around 14 °C, with hypothermia risk flagged around 12–13 °C, and sea temperature commonly in the low-to-mid teens C.
Currents
No rideable current has been documented in Second Lagoon. Treat the open lagoon as tide-influenced, and the event canal as engineered mainly to control chop rather than current.
Conditions
Your level
not for beginners herenot for intermediates here
The scene
What riders come here for
Launch and rules
three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you
With a school or a boat
1 school names this spot
On your own
Room to launch: huge
Somewhere else
1 spot nearby
Rescue
Launch
Rigging and launching happen on sand and open lagoon-edge ground at the upper, southern end of Second Lagoon, with as much room as anyone could want.The event base, container toilets and changing rooms, goes up on the western side of the lagoon next to the road and comes down again afterwards.Outside an event window there is no shelter, no water and no facilities of any kind.
Rules & access
1 min read
History
Permits
Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.
Schools that ride here
Rider tips
- There is no event in 2026: the organiser cancelled it, so there is no course, no ambulance and no security on the ground.
- Check the current year's event status before you build a trip around the speed area.
- Write to the Speed Challenge organiser before travelling specifically to kite here; that is the only identified contact for course access.
- Ask a local operator for current access as well, because the course is organiser-managed rather than public ground.
- Do not assume the speed channel is open for casual kiting outside an authorised event or a preparation window.
- Remember what the channel is: dug for windsurfers, too narrow for kite lines, and silted up again between events.
- Pack for cold water. The sea sits in the low-to-mid teens Celsius and a full wetsuit is normal in summer.
- Pack for severe wind chill on top of that, even though you are standing in a desert.
- Bring 4-7 m kites and nothing bigger; in-season wind averages 35 kt and up several days a week.
- Bring spare lines and your own repair kit. There is no shop at the lagoon and no shelter to work in.
- Never ride here alone. The nearest help is in town and nothing is watching the water.
- Rig on the sand at the upper, southern end of the lagoon; outside an event there are no toilets, no water and no changing rooms.
- Go to Walvis Bay for lessons or ordinary freeride. A kitesurf school reportedly operates in Lüderitz for beginners and intermediates, but not on the speed course.
- Check that anyone sending you to a Lüderitz session means one of the other lagoon spots and not the speed canal.
- Use the forecast and local knowledge rather than averages: no long-term wind statistics exist for the Second Lagoon station.
- Watch for the floating wave attenuators and their anchors if a course has been set up; they are laid in a line along the strip.
- Keep Kolmanskop, Diaz Point and the peninsula drive toward Grosse Bucht for a no-wind day; all sit within half an hour of town.
Getting there
Airport
Lüderitz Airport (LUD), close to Kolmanskop and about a 15-minute drive from the city centre, with Airlink connections to Windhoek and beyond.
Route
From Lüderitz town, drive south on the signed peninsula roads along Second Lagoon toward Grosse Bucht; the spot is only a few kilometres from town but exposed and remote once on the lagoon road. Many international riders self-drive from Windhoek or Cape Town with gear.
Transfer
15 min
Cost level
medium-high
Staying
Stay in Lüderitz town: backpacker and self-catering places such as Element Riders Place; hotels and guesthouses including Lüderitz Nest Hotel; waterfront rooms near Second Lagoon. An event week concentrates demand.
No-wind days
Kolmanskop ghost town, Diaz Point/Dias Cross, Shark Island, Lüderitz colonial architecture, peninsula drives toward Grosse Bucht, Halifax Island penguin/seal viewing by tour, and desert/wild-horse excursions near Aus.
Photos
FAQ
Is the Second Lagoon suitable for beginners?
No, it is expert-only: a 2023 environmental application described the existing dug speed channel as too narrow and dangerous for kitesurfers, and event winds regularly reach 35-65 knots.
What is the wind like?
Wind is very strong and steady in season, averaging 35 knots or more several times a week during the Speed Challenge event period, often 40-45 knots and sometimes stronger.
When is the best time to go?
The core windy season runs roughly August through March, though the official 2026 Lüderitz Speed Challenge event was announced not to proceed, leaving casual off-event access uncertain.
Are there rules or access restrictions?
The prepared speed canal is tied to an Environmental Clearance Certificate process and organized event registration; casual public access to the canal outside an authorised event was not verified.
What hazards should riders know?
Cold water around 12-14°C, very strong wind, tidal silting in the channel, and high-speed course traffic during events are all reported hazards.
The bigger pictureEverything about Lüderitz
Last updated: August 2026