Vaide

North Sea / Baltic Europe: Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Poland, Baltics (Lithuania/Latvia/Estonia), Sweden, Norway · Cape Kolka

also known as Vaid

Part of Cape Kolka →

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

wavesnot for beginnerslow crowds

On this page

The spot
Wind
Forecast
Month by month
Water
Level
The scene
Launch
Tips
Getting there
Photos
FAQ

Riding essentials

Season

May–Oct

Months riders and schools name

How windy

12-35 kn

Character: synoptic

Room to launch

room to launch not rated

access rules on record, below

Water

waves

18.7 °C in summerVaide sits on the Irbe Strait/open Baltic side of Cape Kolka, wave-prone with a sandy launch

Hazards

Reported by riders

Level

Intermediate to advanced

With a caveat: see Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

Crowds

low crowds · busy June July August

Schools

none named here

From the airport

Riga International Airport (RIX)

no transfer time published

When it fills in

No onset time is published for this spot.

Nearbystraight-line distance

Backup spotsWhere riders go when the wind doesn't work here.

Kolkano page yet
Kolkasragsno page yet
Kolka Westno page yet
Ventspils

The spot

Vaide is a tiny Livonian Coast village in Kolka Parish, Talsi Municipality, on the Irbe Strait and open Baltic side of Cape Kolka. It is a documented kitesurf spot, but the public detail on it is much thinner than for Kolka and Kolkasrags: a sandy, shallow, wave-prone beach that works on northerly and westerly directions, with 12-35 kn reported as the usable range.

Organization and rescue

Nothing here is organised. Rescue at the launch is unconfirmed, services are limited, and nearby Kolka West has very poor rescue ability plus strong currents and big waves in strong winds.

Water and season

Water runs about 18.7 C in August and about 2.4 C in winter, so July and August are the least cold months and the season that holds up is May to October. Astronomical tide is not a planning factor, though wind setup and storms still shift Baltic water levels and the way the current feels.

Access rules

Treat the Slitere National Park dune and coast rules as part of the session plan: walk in on the established village access and keep off the dunes.

The wind

Direction

cross-on

Direction to shore

cross-on

Character

synoptic

Typical strength

12-35 kn reported for Vaide kite conditions; unconfirmed against any measured record.

Forecast-dependent Baltic frontal wind. Forecast pages exist for Vaide and for nearby Kolka and Kolkarags, but no historical wind statistics for Vaide itself were found.

The Vaide season runs May to October. Riding outside that window is possible for cold-water experts, but no all-year local source for Vaide was found.

Forecast

Live forecast

Windguru Windfinder Windy

Month by month

Jan88
Feb79
Mar66
Apr58
May, riders' month51
Jun, riders' month50
Jul, riders' month67
Aug, riders' month53
Sep, riders' month47
Oct, riders' month81
Nov56
Dec68

per cent of the month at force 4 or more

Ringed months are the ones riders and schools name: May, Jun, Jul, Aug, Sep, Oct.

16 ktJan1°
16 ktFeb1°
13 ktMar2°
13 ktApr5°
11 ktMay11°
11 ktJun17°
13 ktJul20°
12 ktAug20°
11 ktSep19°
15 ktOct13°
13 ktNov8°
14 ktDec4°

avg knots per month · water °C below · season highlighted

Modelled from weather reanalysis on a 10–25 km grid (2022-2024), not a ground station: reliable for trade and synoptic winds, understates thermal sea breezes and valley winds.

Every figure, month by monthForce 4+ · Knots · Wind from · Air · Water

Month	Force 4+	Knots	Wind from	Air	Water
Jan	88%	16.4 kt	SSW	-0.6 °C	1.1 °C
Feb	79%	15.5 kt	SW	0.9 °C	1.3 °C
Mar	66%	13.2 kt	SW	2 °C	2.3 °C
Apr	58%	12.8 kt	NE	5.3 °C	5.3 °C
May	51%	11.3 kt	WSW	11.3 °C	10.8 °C
Jun	50%	11.1 kt	WSW	16.3 °C	16.8 °C
Jul	67%	12.6 kt	WSW	17.6 °C	19.5 °C
Aug	53%	11.5 kt	WSW	18.6 °C	19.6 °C
Sep	47%	11.2 kt	SW	14.7 °C	18.6 °C
Oct	81%	15.1 kt	W	9.5 °C	13.1 °C
Nov	56%	12.9 kt	S	4.2 °C	7.9 °C
Dec	68%	13.6 kt	SW	0.6 °C	3.8 °C

How this is modelledmodelled · 2022-2024

A weather model's cell over this place, not a station on it. Good for comparing places, weaker for one beach.

The typical daily max and the direction are columns of the table above, month by month. Highlighted months are the riding season from the spot record.

ERA5 reanalysis grid point (modelled) · Open-Meteo historical weather API — ECMWF ERA5/ERA5-Land reanalysis, not a ground station · 2022-2024

The water

Type

waves

Standing depth

Sandy beach and shallow water are reported at Vaide; no depth range is published.

Tides

Baltic and Gulf of Riga astronomical tides are very small: effective tidal amplitudes of about 1.0 cm on the Latvian Baltic coast and 2.5 cm in the Gulf of Riga, with Kolka daily levels sitting around -0.1 to 0.1 m in August 2026.

Temperature

18.7 °C summer · 2.4 °C winter

Modelled monthly average: 1–20 °C

Wetsuit

Cold-water spot. Around Kolka, August averages about 18.7 °C and winter averages about 2.4 °C, so a wetsuit is normal in summer and a thick winter suit with hood/gloves/boots is needed outside the warmest period.

Currents

No current report for Vaide itself. Around Cape Kolka and Kolka West, strong currents are reported in strong winds and over the shallow ground where the Baltic Sea and the Gulf of Riga meet.

Conditions

Vaide sits on the Irbe Strait/open Baltic side of Cape Kolka, wave-prone with a sandy launch; Cape Kolka is the place where Baltic Sea and Gulf of Riga wave systems meet. Expect Baltic wind-wave conditions rather than organized ocean swell.

Your level

BeginnerIntermediateAdvanced

not for beginners here

The rating conflicts: beginner through expert in some places, intermediate to advanced in others because the spot is isolated. The record takes the conservative reading. No nearby school or rescue setup is on record.

The scene

What riders come here for

wavesfreeridequiet sessions

A preserved Livonian fishing-village coast. Quiet and uncrowded almost whenever you go, with very limited services.

Launch and rules

three ways on to the water, and what each one asks of you

With a school or a boat

No school names this spot

Nobody has been recorded teaching or running a boat here.

On your own

Room to launch is not rated

Read the access rules

Somewhere else

3 spots nearby

All 3 spots within 40 km are under Nearby

Rescue

No rescue service at Vaide was found. Nearby Kolka West has very poor rescue ability.

Launch

Sandy open-coast beach launch at Vaide, reached through a small Livonian Coast village inside Slitere National Park. Use established access paths and avoid dune damage.

Hazards riders report 10 reported

Wind

Cape Kolka area has shallow offshore shoals and a history of ship losses; avoid riding toward the cape without local knowledge

Waves and currents

Wave-prone exposed Irbe Strait/open Baltic shoreline
Strong currents and big waves are reported in strong winds near Kolka West/Cape Kolka

Protected areas and rules

part of a protected national park coastline
Protected Slitere National Park and Livonian Coast dune/village environment

Other

exposed open-sea beach
remote, few services
Remote village coast with very limited services
No rescue service on record at the Vaide launch
Cold Baltic water, especially outside July-August

Rules & access

1 min read

2026 check: no kite permit or zoning rule specific to Vaide was found. Slitere National Park Cabinet Regulation No. 751, in force since 2016, requires visitors to obey posted prohibition and warning signs and movement restrictions.

Kolkasrags visitor rules: no mechanized vehicles in the coastal dune zone or on the beach, no camping or fires outside designated places, technical water-sport craft only in indicated places. Whether that last item is read locally as covering kitesurf gear at Vaide is unconfirmed.

Access rules drift faster than anything else we hold — check locally, and propose an edit if this has changed.

Rider tips

Check the forecast for Vaide and for Kolka/Kolkarags before you drive; no Vaide statistics station turned up in anything published.
Ride with a partner and carry full self-rescue gear, because no rescue service at Vaide is on record.
Use the established beach access through the village and keep vehicles off the dune zone and the beach.
On a first visit, compare conditions against Kolka and Kolkasrags: the cape swaps exposure with a small change of direction.
Pack for cold water even in summer, when the Kolka August average water temperature is under 20 C.

Getting there

Airport

Riga International Airport (RIX)

Route

Best reached by car from Riga via the Kurzeme/Talsi-Dundaga-Kolka side roads, then the Livonian Coast road between Kolka and Mazirbe. Vaide is about 9 km from Kolka and 185 km from Riga; Riga Airport is west of central Riga.

Staying

Very little in Vaide itself: Vaide kempings, then guesthouses and cottages in nearby Kolka. Cape Kolka visitor services also list paid parking and overnight car parking in 2026.

No-wind days

Cape Kolka, Slitere National Park nature trails and cycling routes, Livonian Coast villages such as Mazirbe/Saunags/Pitrags, Kolka lighthouse views from shore, bird migration watching, and Vaide's horn museum.

Photos

FAQ

When is the best time to kite at Vaide?

The season runs May to October, with July and August offering the least cold water.

Is Vaide suitable for beginners?

No; local sources describe Vaide as better suited to intermediate and advanced riders because of its isolation and unverified rescue.

What is the wind like at Vaide?

Wind is Baltic frontal/synoptic, working on northerly and westerly directions, with reported speeds around 12-35 knots.

What are the hazards at Vaide?

The beach is remote with no verified rescue service, cold water outside July-August, and it sits within protected Slitere National Park where dune and coast rules apply.

The bigger pictureEverything about Cape Kolka

Last updated: August 2026