The Cape is known for the abundant sea-life like Great White sharks, Cape fur seals, penguins and a huge variety of seabirds complementing the 37 species of whales and dolphins found in the waters around the Cape.
Visitors to the False Bay coastline often witness some magical scenes occur in the bay; from playful Dolphins and Cape Fur Seals to the fearsome Orca’s and Great White sharks.
A Humpback Whale breaching in False Bay
Southern Right (Baleen whales), Humpback, Bryde Whale’s and Orca’s (Killer Whales) have all been seen False Bay. In fact a pod of Orca’s was seen hunting dolphins in False Bay as recent as March this year.
The whales migrate from Antarctica along the Southern Cape coastline and up the West Coast as far as Namibia, to mate and calf.
They usually arrive from June to October; however for some reason they arrived a little early this year after a few Southern Right whales were seen frolicking off the coast of Muizenberg to the delight of those lucky enough to be close enough to witness their acrobatics.
The whale route along the Cape coast stretches from Doringbaai on the West Coast to Storms River Mouth in the Tsitsikamma National Park, that’s over for 900 km.
Boat-based whale-watching, is a lucrative business contributing huge revenue into Cape Tourism’s coffers and offering tourist a close-up view of these majestic beasts.A whale-watchers guide on Boyes Drive above Kalk Bay
Vantage points along the Cape’s False Bay coastline stretches from Muizenberg via Kalk Bay, St James, Clovelly, Fish Hoek, Glencairn, Simonstown and all the way through Miller Point to Cape Point. These towns are synonymous with the fishing communities who make their living off the waters of False Bay.
A popular native viewing point on False Bay is from Boyes Drive above Muizenberg, the high vantage point offers whale-watchers a clear view of the whole bay. Other popular local viewing areas are Kalk Bay Harbour, St James and Fish Hoek just past the beach along the walkway.
The high cliffs in Hermanus gives the viewer a clear view of the whales from an elevated vantage point and the rocky coast gets them close enough to the action.
Hermanus on the Southern Cape coastline celebrates the arrival of the whales in style with the Hermanus Whale Festival held in September every year.
This festival coincides with the arrival of the mating season of the whales. And it has attracted visitors from all over the world to this quaint little town.
The high cliffs in the town gives the viewer a clear view of the whales from an elevated vantage point and the rocky coast gets them close enough to the action.
Festival visitors are treated to a wide range of local delicacies from a variety of food stalls, food trucks, a car show, and a display by the local fire brigade and defence force, great entertainment as well a craft market selling a wide range of products related to the Whale Festival.
The Cape’s whaling history stretches back as far as 1810 when a whaling station was established in Simonstown, ten years later the whaling operations moved to Kalk Bay, after the naval residents complained about the stench from the by-products of the whaling operations.
The fisherman’s/whalers cottages are still standing to this day occupied by descendants of the pioneers of the local fishing industry.
The mercury is expected to hit the thirties and the exodus for outdoor adventures ensues across the Western Cape with local beaches the number one destination.
Beach huts on St James beach, Cape Town
The favourite spots are without a doubt, Camps Bay, Clifton Fish Hoek, St James, Seaforth and Muizenberg.
Camps Bay and Clifton are known for their long white sandy beaches filled with bronzed bodies and its cool refreshing waters, another bonus is that the proximity of these two beaches lends itself to a long hot summer’s day with sunset picnics all the rage.
Fish Hoek, St James, Seaforth and Muizenberg are on the other side of the Table Mountain range. Easy access for the locals and the warmer waters of False Bay draws high numbers of “beach bums”. Muizenberg is the hang-out of the surfing fraternity as well as fishermen who gather along the rocks between Muizenberg and St James.
Capetonians are definitely spoilt for choice, the Mother City’s magnificent coastline allows for adventurers to head off the beaten track to some of the many beaches along its coast.
One such beach is Windmill beach, hidden away south of Seaforth and Boulders beaches’ in Simonstown.
Windmill beach is ideal for a number of activities like picnicking, fishing, kayaking and swimming; it is interrupted by boulders that create two lagoons, sheltered from the wind.
Visitors are bound to lose their way trying to find this beach as it is not visible from the road; one has to navigate one’s way through a garden gate at the end of Links Road and follow the path as it meanders towards the beach.
The location of Windmill Beach is one of Cape Town’s closely guarded secrets and its 200m stretch of beach allows for limited numbers.
The beach is ideal for a number of activities like picnicking, fishing, kayaking and swimming; it is interrupted by boulders that create two lagoons, sheltered from the wind.
Families with little ones can relax as the cove is protected on either side by high boulders allowing a safe environment for the children to play in the shallow waters.
This beach is also popular for divers as an ideal site for training dives, snorkelling, underwater photography as well as film shoots and wedding photography
As with most beaches along Cape Town’s coastline, Windmill Beach is a protected site and visitors are asked only to leave their footprints behind.
Windmill Beach info:
Position: – S34°12.06’ E018°27.40’
This site is in a Marine Protected Area (2004); the beach is inside the Boulders Restricted Zone.
Facilities are minimal with limited parking, and there are no lifeguards or shark-spotters on duty.
The scar on the slopes of the southern side of Table Mountain above the CBD serves as a grim reminder of that fateful day when the bulldozers rolled into District Six and by government decree, destroyed a thriving community.
District Six demolitions in progress on 11 February 1966
February 11, 1966 is etched forever in the annuls of South Africa’s history, the day residents of the “Six” were forcibly removed from their homes and scattered across the dusty plains of the Cape Flats.
It was an emotional moment for many families and the community of District Six as a whole, the brute force of having to gather-up all they owned and leave on the back of vans and trucks; in fact any form of transport available as the bulldozers razed their homes.
Elderly District Six resident Isabel Hutton holds her 1978 eviction order from the then Department of Community Development. (pic Cape Argus )
In fact between 1957 and 1985, more than 150 000 Capetonians classified as non-white was forcibly removed under the apartheid government’s Group Areas Act.
Forty-nine years later, members of the once-proud District Six community returned to the area and gathered at the Homecoming Centre in Buitenkant Street where the “Cairn of Remembrance” is located, to commemorate that fateful day.
Some of these folks never recovered from the injustice, some folks grew more resilient making a life for themselves in the far reaches of the sprawling flats of the Cape, while some have returned to new homes in District as a result of a successful land claim.
For others, they were not so lucky; losing their papers in the carnage of the forced removal while some have passed on. Remaining relatives have gathered annually at the cairn vowing never to forget.
New homes in District Six
The area once known as District Six has a few new buildings but a large tract of land remains bare, a stark reminder of the destruction of a South Africa’s first township.
Notes; District Six (Afrikaans Distrik Ses) is the name of a former inner-city residential area in Cape Town, South Africa. Over 60,000 of its inhabitants were forcibly removed during the 1970s by the apartheid regime.
The area of District Six is now partly divided between the suburbs of Walmer Estate, Zonnebloem, and Lower Vrede, while the rest is undeveloped land.
The area was named in 1867 as the Sixth Municipal District of Cape Town. The District Six neighbourhood is bounded by Sir Lowry Road on the north, Tennant Road to the west, De Waal Drive on the south and Cambridge Street to the east. By the turn of the century it was already a lively community made up of former slaves, artisans, merchants and other immigrants, as well as many Malay people brought to South Africa by the Dutch East India Company during its administration of the Cape Colony. It was home to almost a tenth of the city of Cape Town’s population, which numbered over 1,700–1,900 families. (Wikipedia)
The Homecoming Centre in Buitenkant Street – The D6M Homecoming Centre is a place from which information will be disseminated, and also where visitors can experience in micro-form, some of the potential encounters possible as part of the broader District Six city experience. There will be opportunities to engage with films from the archive as well as promotional footage on the Museum, storytelling, cultural performances, to have a meal, purchase gifts and books, or lounge around and read, and in future even book tours and tickets for other partner sites. Soon Wi-Fi facilities will be available to the general public. Further research and partnerships are needed to create this vibrant space in the city. (http://www.districtsix.co.za/Content/Museum/About/HomecomingCentre/index.php )
The District Six Museum – Physical Address, 25A Buitenkant Street Cape Town, 8001, South Africa. http://www.districtsix.co.za/
For information about the Museum:-Tel/Fax: +27 21 466 7200 email: info@districtsix.co.za
Open daily – ADULTS: R30 per person (self-guided visits), R45 per person (with an ex-resident / guide), R5 per scholar (SA & African), R15 per scholar (International)
FREE ENTRANCE: – Ex-residents of District Six & other areas of forced removals; SA pensioners
The Group Areas Act – Government officials gave four primary reasons for the removals. In accordance with apartheid philosophy, it stated that interracial interaction bred conflict, necessitating the separation of the races. They deemed District Six a slum, fit only for clearance, not rehabilitation. They also portrayed the area as crime-ridden and dangerous; they claimed that the district was a vice den, full of immoral activities like gambling, drinking, and prostitution. Though these were the official reasons, most residents believed that the government sought the land because of its proximity to the city centre, Table Mountain and the harbour.
On 11 February 1966, the government declared District Six a whites-only area under the Group Areas Act, with removals starting in 1968. By 1982, more than 60,000 people had been relocated to the sandy, bleak Cape Flats township complex some 25 kilometres away.
The old houses were bulldozed. The only buildings left standing was places of worship. International and local pressure made redevelopment difficult for the government, however. The Cape Technikon (now Cape Peninsula University of Technology) was built on a portion of District Six which the government renamed Zonnebloem. Apart from this and some police housing units, the area was left undeveloped.
Since the fall of apartheid in 1994, the South African government has recognised the older claims of former residents to the area, and pledged to support rebuilding. (Wikipedia)
In Cape Town affected areas include District Six, Claremont, Constantia, Harfield Village, Steurof, Diep River, Kalk Bay, St James, Millers Point, Simonstown, Kirstenbosch, Mowbray, Plumstead, Newlands, Sea Point, Windemere and Wingfield (all Cape Town).
Cape Town is preparing for a huge influx of visitors this summer, who can blame them for coming to the city that has it all… clear skies, great beaches, great outdoor life, a variety of wildlife, vineyards, natural wonders, nightlife and ….the list goes on and on.
Judging by the high number of “foreign” number-plates already in the City, it seems that some holiday makers have already made an early start to their end of the year summer holidays.
Sun-seekers on Clifton beach
Despite the options available in Cape Town, there is no better place to be on a summer’s day than the beach and the Mother City is blessed with a number of stunning beaches.
Sunseekers tend to flock to Camps Bay, Clifton, Fish Hoek, and Long beach in Simonstown, all well-known for its long stretch of beach and cool waters.
Camps Bay and Clifton beaches are post-card perfect, white sand, cold blue waters, yachts moored just off the beach as sunbathers bronze themselves while the “in crowd” sip their drinks at the famous drinking-holes that line the beachfront.
Blouberg beach with Table Mountain as a backdrop
Each beach in Cape Town has its own unique characteristic, Blouberg beach has a unique view of Table Mountain, however it is better known as the perfect place to test your windsurfing skills or for avid kiter’s to fly their sails the wind. Windsurfers congregate here in their numbers making for a spectacular sight as they sail across the bay while “kites” take to the skies.
Windsurfers who prefer the warmer waters of False Bay windsurf at Sunrise beach while surfers gather further up the coast at Muizenberg beach, more famous for its colourful beach huts, surf shops and diners at Surfers Corner.
St James beach
Another beach known for its beach huts is St James, a quaint beach with a tidal pool, a favourite for families with young children. It’s a few minutes away from Muizenberg beach and can be reached via a walkway between the coastline and the railway line.
The Muizenberg coastline takes you to Sunrise beach, Strandfontein beach and Monwabasi beach.
Strandfontein beach is a popular spot with anglers; they arrive at night and can still be seen in the early hours of the morning with their lines in the water.
Further down the coastline towards Cape Point is Kalk Bay, a renowned tourist spot with craft markets, pubs, traditional bakeries and a working harbour.
Just past the naval base lie Seaforth and Boulders beaches, both a tourist attractions well known for the penguins that flock to their nesting sites dotted along this part of the coast-line.
Big waves surfers brave the waves at Dungeons in Hout Bay
Hout Bay is well known for Mariners Wharf, but on the other side of the jetty is Hout Bay beach it makes a wide arc to the opposite end of the bay. Just outside the bay is “Dungeons” a world famous surf spot with big wave surfers. Only a few select wave warriors brave the walls of water that often reaching heights of 15-25 ft.
On the west coast is Noordhoek beach, a long stretch of wind swept beach with wide beach famous amongst the riding folk who take their steeds for uninhibited gallops along the beach.
With the Atlantic and Indian Ocean on each side of the Cape Peninsula, the coastline from Blouberg to the Strand offers numerous options to locals and visitors who are spoilt for choice on a summer’s day.
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