Windsurfing near Dewey Beach, DE
- Dewey (0 km)
- RBSA SALING (1 km)
- 100 PORT (5 km)
- Holts Landing (10 km)
- Lewes (13 km)
- Bethany Beach (19 km)
Dewey Beach (Bayside) is a great, long-standing, well-established, flatwater sailing location.
Directions: From the town of Dewey Beach, take Rt 1 south a few miles. Turn right at the "Sailing" sign. If you cross the Indian River Inlet bridge, you've gone too far.
What's there: The windsurf area is part of the Delaware State Park system. Several rows of parking, porta-potties, a few picnic tables, a small grassy rigging area.
Parking: Park admission is a few bucks (cheaper with in-state plates). If you go often, buy a seasonal all-park pass from the Indian River Inlet park office (a mile or so south of the windsurf beach.)
Conditions: The beach faces due west onto Rehoboth Bay, a salt-water inland bay several miles across. Water quality is very good. The bay offers protected, flat-water sailing. Best angles are out of the west (onshore) with northwest being the prevailing angle year-round when it blows; in summer, thermals blow gently from the East (offshore).
Depending on the tide, water is 1--2 ft deep out 20--100 ft, and then 4--6 feet out hundreds of yards. Watch for fin-grabbing sandbars! Most of Rehoboth Bay is only 4--6 ft deep, though there are deep spots. Due to its shallowness, Rehoboth Bay is much warmer than the ocean. Wetsuits aren't needed after May, and the water can be bathwater-hot in late summer. In July--August, watch for jellyfish. A great place to see horseshoe crabs scuttling across the bottom.
This site is great for beginner to advanced sailors. Beginners have a safe, shallow place to learn; intermediates can master beach & waterstarts; and intermediate/advanced sailors blast back and forth on long reaches.
Also in the area: many kiteboarders; in fact, Dewey may be the center of kiteboarding in this area. There's a big kiteboarding shop in town (H2Air) that is very thorough. There's also East of Maui, a surfing/windsurfing/kiteboarding shop that doesn't do any of these real well--mostly they seem to rent kayaks to tourists. There's also wave-sailing and kitesurfing across the highway and farther south at the ocean-side turnout.