# Caños de Meca - Playa de los Caños — Barbate, Spain

Playa de los Caños, in Caños de Meca (Barbate, Cádiz): wave kitesurf for advanced level. The spot runs from the tip of Cabo de Trafalgar, next to the lighthouse, to the town beach in front of the apartments, where the launch area is located. With Levante you ride in front of the apartments, with strong and gusty wind. With Poniente and west swell, long and clean waves appear from the lighthouse to the town, with side-shore wind. There are rocks at the cape and rocky islets off the town, and in summer there are buoyed swimming zones that must be respected. On weekends and in summer the beach gets very crowded.

Photos: "2 Playa de el Pirata Canos de Meca" by Jaisaca (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons; "3 Playa de el Pirata Canos de Meca" by Jaisaca (CC BY-SA 4.0), via Wikimedia Commons; "Cabo de Trafalgar, Caños de Meca, Cádiz. - panoramio" by Gus Kisal (CC BY 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons.

- **Sports:** Kitesurf
- **Difficulty:** Advanced
- **Location:** Barbate, Spain (36.18488, -6.00912)
- **Favourable wind directions (where the wind blows from):** E (95°), W (265°)
- **Wind range (knots):** 15–40
- **Best months:** April, May, June, July, August, September, October

## Wind by month (% of days per strength)

| Month | <7 kn | 7–13 kn | 13–20 kn | 20–35 kn | >35 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 14 | 59 | 23 | 3 | 1 |
| February | 25 | 56 | 11 | 7 | 1 |
| March | 12 | 45 | 37 | 5 | 1 |
| April | 12 | 57 | 26 | 5 | 0 |
| May | 5 | 73 | 19 | 3 | 0 |
| June | 10 | 80 | 8 | 2 | 0 |
| July | 9 | 75 | 14 | 2 | 0 |
| August | 15 | 76 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| September | 12 | 68 | 17 | 3 | 0 |
| October | 12 | 69 | 18 | 1 | 0 |
| November | 24 | 54 | 20 | 2 | 0 |
| December | 26 | 59 | 13 | 2 | 0 |

## Local winds

- **Levante** — E (95°), 18–40 kn. Easterly wind, ridden in front of the town apartments. Strong and gusty, it needs established wind: it doesn't reach with light wind. At the lighthouse end, towards the cape, it comes in side-on and on-shore.. Strong and gusty Levante: small gear and do not go far from the shore. There are rocks and cliffs in some areas of the beach and strong currents and waves when the wind picks up. Near the cape, the wind blows against the shore and the lajas del cabo are to the south and southeast of the tip.
- **Poniente** — W (265°), 12–30 kn. Westerly wind, with west swell it gives long and clean waves from the lighthouse to the apartments. It comes in side-shore: in the lighthouse section it blows slightly out to sea, and in the town it arrives almost parallel to the beach.. In the lighthouse section the wind has an offshore component: account for drift and do not go out without a margin to return to the shore. The lajas del cabo are to the south of the tip. The town section gets crowded on weekends and in summer.

## Zones

- **Launch area** — Launch zone
- **Caños de Meca** — Navigation zone
- **Parking** — Parking
- **Lajas del cabo** — Restricted zone
- **Islet (roque)** — Restricted zone
- **Islet (roque)** — Restricted zone
- **Islet (roque)** — Restricted zone

## Points of interest

- **Cabo de Trafalgar and lighthouse**: Tip of Cabo de Trafalgar (OSM position); the lighthouse is on the tombolo, next to the tip.
- **Lajas del cabo**: Rock platform to the south and southeast of the tip, with breakers. Approximate position of the centre of the area marked in OSM.
- **Roques in front of the town**: Rocky islets offshore, in front of the town, with breakers (OSM). Approximate position.
- **Playa del Pirata**: Beach bar on the town beach (OSM position); reference for the launch section.
- **Chiringuito La Morena**: Western limit of the launch section (OSM position).
- **El Caña**: Eastern limit of the launch section (OSM position).
- **Tourist apartments of Caños de Meca**: Reference for the town apartments mentioned in the guides (OSM position). They are inland, about 250 m from the shore.
- **Kitesurf point (OSM)**: OpenStreetMap 'Caños de Meca Kitesurf Spot' node, in the section between the lighthouse and the town. Approximate position of the node.

## Hazards

- Strong currents in the lighthouse section (Barceló guide and local sources)
- Rocks and cliffs in some areas of the beach (kitefuntarifa)
- Lajas at Cabo de Trafalgar (OSM)
- Roques (islets) offshore in front of the town (OSM)
- Strong Levante gusts (kitefuntarifa)

## Facilities

- Restaurant
- Showers
- Toilets
- Parking

## Restrictions

- En verano hay zonas de baño balizadas que hay que respetar (kitefuntarifa). Su posición no está confirmada.

[See it on Ventus Surf (3D map, zones and live forecast)](https://ventus.surf/spots/canos-de-meca-playa-de-los-canos-pmfZuUQctd4UTtLIqyDL?lang=en)