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Daymer Bay

Sheltered turquoise water inside the Camel, best in a north-westerly — and completely closed to kites through July and August.

Camel Estuary · CornwallDirections

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● Spot · shaded: the wind directions that work here. It is not a riding area or a permitted kite zone. Two fingers to move the map.

Location & launch

Know before you go.

Launch
Sheltered sand inside the Camel estuary, below the dunes at Trebetherick.
Wind
S · SSW · SW · WSW · W · WNW · NW · NNW · N winds work here.

The shaded area shows the wind directions recorded as working here. It is not a permitted kite zone or a safe launch boundary. Check local signs.

Local rules, hazards & spot guide

Need to know

The things that catch people out here.

  • There is an outright ban on kitesurfing at Daymer Bay and Hawkers Cove in July and August, between 10am and 6pm. This is not advisory.
  • Avoid easterlies, which blow off the hill towards the estuary mouth, and strong southerlies on the ebb, which carry anyone in trouble out past the Doom Bar.
  • The Doom Bar at the estuary mouth is a serious hazard with strong streams. Stay inside the estuary.
  • Turquoise, sheltered water and a stunning setting — deservedly popular, hence the restrictions.

Conditions

NESW
  • Best
  • Works
  • Offshore
Works in
S, SSW, SW, WSW, W, WNW, NW, NNW, N
Best in
NW, NNW, N
Offshore (careful)
NNE, NE, ENE, E, ESE, SE
Wind quality
moderate
Water
Flat to choppy
Depth
standing
Best tide
Mid tide
Spring range
6.5 m

Best in a north-westerly, and cleanest in a northerly. Easterlies are turbulent off the hill behind.

Beginner
Good
Intermediate
Good
Advanced
Workable

Hazards

Most serious first. The level is in words as well as colour.

  • high

    current The Camel estuary ebb and the Doom Bar at the mouth. Strong, shifting, and responsible for a great many wrecks historically.

  • high

    shallow sandbar The Doom Bar itself — shifting, unmarked in places, and dangerous.

  • high

    crowds Extremely busy in high summer, which is why the seasonal ban exists.

Access & rules

Launch
Sheltered sand inside the Camel estuary, below the dunes at Trebetherick.
Permit
Not required
Insurance
Third-party liability expected
Tuition
Recognised schools only
Facilities
toilets, cafe

Parking

  • Daymer Bay car park

    paid

Seasonal restrictions

  • Jul, Aug

    Outright ban on kitesurfing at Daymer Bay and Hawkers Cove during July and August between 10:00 and 18:00.

Official guidance · Kernow Kitesurf Club / Padstow Harbour Commissioners

Safety

Who is around if it goes wrong. None of it makes the water safe.

Lifeguards
Seasonal RNLI cover.
RNLI
Padstow RNLI
Nearest A&E
Royal Cornwall Hospital, Truro (~45 min)
Water quality
Designated bathing water — excellent

The spot

Daymer Bay sits inside the Camel estuary below Trebetherick, sheltered from Atlantic swell and unusually turquoise. It faces west across the estuary and works from south round to north, with a north-westerly the local favourite and a northerly the cleanest wind. Easterlies come turbulent off the hill behind, and the local club says to avoid them.

The restriction is absolute: there is an outright ban on kitesurfing here and at Hawkers Cove during July and August between 10am and 6pm. Outside those hours and months it is open.

The Doom Bar at the estuary mouth is the hazard to know about — a shifting sandbank with strong streams around it and a long history of wrecks. Stay inside the estuary.

Links & local

Sources

Where this record came from, and how confident we are in it.

Confidence: high · 2 independent sources · status published · updated 2026-09-07

Verify locally. Coordinates 50.5508, -4.9277. Conditions, access arrangements and beach rules change; check them on the day before you rely on anything on this page.