If you love the outdoors and having fun in the sun then today’s little exploration of this hidden treasure of a hideaway tourist resort will really appeal to you. I’m standing at the mouth of the Keurbooms River, as it flows out to the Indian Ocean on the south coast of Africa. Situated at about the very center of the foot of Africa, if you look at a map, you will see a small town called Plettenberg Bay. Here we have an idyllic meeting of two rivers that both flow into a large shallow lagoon which then flows out to sea. It’s a water paradise that will purify your heart and uplift your soul.
River mouth with the tourist town of Plettneberg Bay in the background.
Surfers love the waves just offshore but I personally prefer to go canoeing in the lagoon just over the dunes because from there one can paddle with ease all the way up the Keurbooms River, one of the rivers that feeds into this lagoon. The other River is called the Bitou, named after an indigenous bush with bright yellow flowers here in this region. In fact the entire region is called the Bitou Municipality.
Both of these rivers flow languidly into the lagoon which runs parallel to the ocean, and the daily sea tides actually push upstream so if you time it correctly, you can easily get assistance from the tide to paddle upstream on the incoming tide and then back downstream to the lagoon on the outgoing tide. It’s really easy as long as there’s no wind, of course.
This is the actual lagoon mouth. Behind me is the sea and ahead is the lagoon.
It makes for an ideal way to explore inland from the coastline for about five or six kilometers, paddling in the tight narrow gorge of the river itself. It’s so remote there that you could be practically anywhere in the world. There are no roads or paths to this upstream gorge, so the river transport is the only way to get there. I love the hidden sanctuary that it provides. I will write more details about it when I take some photos on my coming canoe trip.
At the lagoon, which basically hugs the coastline with only some dunes separating it from the sea, we have a breeding ground for numerous local indigenous birds. The place has been a protected area for them and they nest here in large flocks. There are always lots of big seagulls around, yet you will also find some more reserved and shy species that make this their home too.
The most elusive and endangered of the bird species to nest here is called the African Black Oystercatcher. I see them on my occasional hikes along the beach here, though only in pairs. They apparently mate for life and return to the same breeding ground annually. They are however easily disturbed and only produce offspring if they are left alone. As a result their numbers are dwindling as civilization grows around them. For decades this little beach was a remote and hidden location for only a fortunate few who knew of it but word is growing and more people flock here with time, no pun intended.
Local South Africans who are finding the cities becoming subject to urban decay, are slowly migrating to this last vestige of a sanctuary for peace, safety and fine weather at this southernmost shoreline of the country. Add to that the European foreign visitors who love it so much that many of them retire here, leaving their homeland of Germany, UK or Netherlands behind to settle in this awesome seaside resort, where everything is still so clean and pure, thanks to the sunshine, surf and soft white sand.
The scene has a totally sun bleached look about it, as the white dunes reach up to the dazzling blue sky with its white clouds and the white-tipped waves crash ashore without cessation. It makes for a good sanctuary for bird life and human life combined. Fortunately the municipality are very ecologically conscious, as you can imagine in Africa where there are still masses of wildlife and a history of nature in all its glory. Signboards are positioned all along the coastline to remind people to respect the natural habitat of the sea birds indigenous to the region.
Locals are known to love their birdwatching and have text books full of photos of birds so that they can identify them when sighted via binoculars. One fascinating bird which is not on the general list but which also come to breed here is the Pink Flamingo. They are a real rare opulent sight to behold, standing tall on their stick legs only in the little sandy islands in the middle of the lagoon, far from disturbance. On rare occasions only at certain times of year I have seen them there – no more than a dozen or so at a time.
The lagoon bank, slightly inland from the beach.
So if you’re a nature lover or avid bird watcher, then this is the place for you. I am constantly reminded of how fortunate I am to be able to travel along these shores, despite all the strange social dynamics going on in the world and just up the road in this very country. Still there are sanctuary places for people and bird life combined, like this little stretch of lagoon where the twin rivers meet before flowing out to sea into the Plettenberg Bay. It’s easy to find on the map so be sure to put it on your travel itinerary – any time of the year. I will be here to show you around.
Beautiful clean and open expanse of pure nature that stretches for miles.
(photos my own)