hi,
in this year i am planing to cross ice field in patagonia.
my idea is to take a kite and use wind power to pull me forward.
i am going to use travers skis and have a sledge with me.
could you inform me which kite would be good for this kind of activity?

cheers, Antek

Antek.

Fixed bridal foils are nice because they pack down so small, but with no depower they have less range. In my past experiences it's best to plan a trip under no kite power and if you're blessed with good wind and conditions then you can get there early or have a lay over day to rest. I use Peter Lynn Twisters for fixed bridal but if you went with a depower kite something like the Ozone Access or HQ Apex would be decent. there are rumors of a Peter Lynn depowerable foil, but nothing available yet.
If the wind is against you then it's best just to ski pulling your pulk. I've tried tacking back and forth upwind, but you get there faster and with less energy spent by just walking. Also, take into consideration that using a kite for pulling you in a remote location adds more element of risk. If you're traveling fast and wipe out it's easy to break something while your in a remote area versus walking. Make sure to do lots of practice trips before heading to Patagonia!

A.

thanks for your advise.
i spent in patagonia almost 2 years also in ice field.
this year i want to practice with kite for fun and to see how does it work as a engine
there was one team who use quadrifoil no4. they could run with max speed up to 50km/h.
thay did 10km in 15 min (with 80kg in sledge).
i want to buy something in US. not to expensive but something what can let me speed up and give some fun.
wind in patagonian ice field are ususlay from west-north. i am going toward to south.

Ant

what about HQ Scout 5 (http://www.dakitez.com/servlet/the-76/Scout-5m/Detail)
or HQ Apex II 5 (http://www.dakitez.com/servlet/the-229/Apex-II-5m/Detail)

Scout is cheaper but what is a real different beetwen them? can i use one of them for my expedition?

cheers, Antek

The Scout is a fixed bridal and the Apex is a Depower, very different kites. Depower is going to have a wider wind range but because of it's size it's going to need higher winds for decent power, the fixed bridal is simpler and potentially more powerful for it's size. Wind range is going to be smaller with the Scout, but in the right winds it's gonna pull like a truck.

it seems like it would be a good question to ask what direction the wind is most likely going to be blowing compared to what direction you want to go.

are you going to be traveling downwind (with the wind) or 90 degrees to the direction the wind is blowing.

or are you actually wanting to go up wind with a kite?



does anybody think a nasa para wing would be a good fit for him??? I'm thinking he doesn't want any lift but just pull. I've never flown a NPW before but it seems like they would pack super small and provide huge pull for there size.

can someone else with more experience with the NPW maybe give him some feedback?

thanks bigben for explanation.

hmm... there are strong winds in patagonian ice field. can be chili but moslty is quite windy. quite menas that wind can blow you down on the ground.
one team use quadrifoil no 4 and they could slide (with 80kg sledge) up to 50km/h.

i am going to carry 50kg of equipment in my pulk and my weight is about 80kg so i need to calculate enought big kite but not too big becouse of strong winds.

Apex should have enough wind to pull me but scout as you said is simpler and 250 USD cheaper.
dificult decision...

Antek