The Isuledda also called Isola dei Gabbiani (Italian for Island of Seagulls), is an almost-island in northern Sardinia

Sardinia

Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...

, Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, facing the Sardinian channel. Covering an area of approximately 180,000 m², it is almost completely surrounded by the sea, and connected to the mainland by a narrow isthmus

Isthmus

An isthmus is a narrow strip of land connecting two larger land areas usually with waterforms on either side.Canals are often built through isthmuses where they may be particularly advantageous to create a shortcut for marine transportation...

 of sandy terrain, hence, despite the name, it is in fact a peninsula. It is situated close to the località

Località

A località, in Italy, is the name given to inhabited places that are not accorded a more significant distinction in administrative law such as a frazione, comune, municipio, circoscrizione, or quartiere. The word is cognate to English locality...

 of Porto Pollo

Porto Pollo

Porto Pollo is an Italian località, in the comune of Palau, on the norther Sardinian shore. It is named after the natural harbour just east of the baia di levante , east of Isuledda....

 and Barrabisa.

The name "Isola dei Gabbiani" comes from the name of the camping that occupied the whole surface up to 2008. The area is administered by the comune

Comune

In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...

 of Palau. Due to its windy climate, it is a common destination for windsurfers and kitesurfers. The place is particularly favorable to the practice of these sports thanks to the optimal exposition to winds from north-west, which are dominant in the Mediterranean Sea

Mediterranean Sea

The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...

 (especially mistral

Mistral

Mistral commonly refers to the Mistral in southern France and SardiniaMistral may also refer to:* Mistral, various ships of the French Navy, including:** Mistral class amphibious assault ship of the French Navy...

).

Geography

The peninsula divides two wide bays

Bay

A bay is an area of water mostly surrounded by land. Bays generally have calmer waters than the surrounding sea, due to the surrounding land blocking some waves and often reducing winds. Bays also exist as an inlet in a lake or pond. A large bay may be called a gulf, a sea, a sound, or a bight...

: baia di ponente and baia di levante (western and eastern bay respectively). With respect to the mistral, the western bay is upwind of the isthmus, and is characterised by "choppy" water surface. On the other side, the eastern bay is downwind of the isthmus, close to Porto Pollo, and its flat water condition makes it favoured by freestyle windsurfers.

On both sides the water is clear and the depth is sandy.