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Grand Bend area Breaks with JP - Surf & Kite

Grand Bend
Surf: The best spot to hit up is just in front of the South pier along the river mouth boat buoys. There is a strong rip that comes off the north Pier and pushes you south so keep an eye on how far you drift. This spot is good with strong N/W winds. Anything above 30km/h will give you nice waves forming in shallow water. Only on very rare occasions does main beach have some great breaks outside of the 2nd sand bar, but when it happens it goes off.
Kite: There is a lot of room to the North end of the beach to set your kites up. The South Beach on the other side of the river is also not a bad option either, with less people but not as much depth on the beach to lay out your lines. A lot of wind directions work for Grand Bend including S/W, West & N/W. Just avoid avoid anything with East in it because that will blowing offshore. Use a lot of caution when setting up on main beach and going through the swim zone because this beach can get very busy.

Port Franks/Kettle Point
Surf: This is a shallow bay area south of Grand Bend with a shale reef that actually creates ocean like breaks. You just need to be careful you don't wash into the portions of the water closer to the point consisting of very sharp and slippery rocks. Just speak with some locals and they will tell you where to go. The waves get pretty clean here consistent NW or W winds above 25km/h. There is no break wall or pier to help wash you out past the break, so expect to do some paddling, but it's worth it! Booties recommended.
Kite: There is a lot of room here for kiters and given that you have the ability to drive up and down most of the beach, if it's busy in one spot, you can drive to another. Again, due to the massive shale reef about 100 meters offshore, Kettle Point, or 'KP' as most riders call it, provides fantastic wave riding just offshore from the reef with strong NW or W winds.

Bayfield
Surf: To find this spot, you you need to turn off HWY 21 just before the bridge that crosses the river on the south side of town. This road will take you along the harbor (on your right side) and to the beach. This break goes off with a strong West wind, anything consistently over 30km/h. You can try to paddle out past the break if your up for a workout, but it is much easier to use the South pier and jump off the end. There are lots of rocks on the bottom as you get close to shore so be careful when dismounting. Booties recommended.
Kite: Despite the fact that this beach works for a variety of wind conditions, especially anything with West, it's not the busiest kite beach because there isn't a ton of room for kiters to set up among the beach goers. It also gets a little tight with the surfers as you ride in closer to the pier but for an advanced rider, getting right in there with the surfers is not an issue. Having made both of those statements, this is still an excellent spot if you can get there on a weekday or in the off season when the beach provides more room for set up and riding.

Kincardine
Surf: When the wind gets cranking Northwest or West, the waves just kick here. Using the south pier to get out past the break is a must when the big ones come rolling in. A Great Lakes paddle in Kincardine waves is not something we recommend. The bottom is mostly sand but as you drift further south of the pier, you will encounter some rocks so be careful not to get too far down there. This break starts way out so you can get some long rides here!
Kite: With tons of space and tons of waves, you just can't go wrong kiting here on a strong Northwest or West wind. However, we would not recommend this spot for beginners as the waves can get pretty hairy.

Port Stanley
Surf: As our closest break in another Great Lake, we thought we should plug at least one spot in Lake Erie. As you can tell, the Canadian shores of our beloved Lake Huron aren't ideal when the wind is cranking with any East in it and it's rare to see big waves in a South front. Port Stanley, however, rips with most East or South fronts. Just on the other side of the river in downtown Port Stanley on the opposite of the main beach, there is a nice long break wall leading into the harbor that creates ideal conditions for a perfect Great Lakes wave. You can either paddle out from shore or take the rocky road and walk out along the break wall. You can catch a sweet wave at Port Stanley if you get there on the right day.
Kite: There is lots of room for setting up your kite as long as you stay behind the beach crowds. The main beach is quite deep here, but can get very crowded so again, while this is a great kiting spot with East or South winds, it might not be the best place for beginners given the large amount of beach goers.