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It is said that Coffee Bay got its name when a ship carrying coffee beans ran aground in the vicinity. Apparently this was in 1893. It is also rumoured that some of the stranded coffee beans took root and grew into small coffee shrubs but failed to mature owing to the salt content in the soil. All of this is a great pity because there’s nothing I like more than a great cup of coffee to start my morning. And today, I needed that coffee. Sometime during the previous night the weather Gods had turned the tables on us and blew up a stormy, grumpy and wave-filled sea. White horses stretched to the horizon and interestingly shaped waves crashed onto the launch beach.

With more than a little anticipation in our hearts and lumps in our throats we launched into the waves and headed out to sea. Leaving the shelter of the bay we headed south for a few kilometres to get some photographs of the famous and iconic Hole-in-the-Wall. The afternoon sun had settled behind the structure the previous day, which made for dull and uninteresting photography. So, our mission this morning was to photograph the Hole from the seaward side.

This was the last time the cameras saw any light as the swells and rough sea had us all holding on to pontoons, foot straps and tank-racks as our intrepid Kamikaze Kaiser skipper navigated his way to Port St Johns.We weren’t the only ones having a hard time though. Gannets, Skua’s and Petrels flapped aimlessly against the wind and eventually settled to float in the swelling and moving sea. We forced the Kaiser to stop for lunch and dined on cheese and tomato sandwiches while bobbing in between swells. Although the ride to Port St Johns was rough it was exciting and a good reminder of how lucky we had been with the weather the previous days. The other good thing about this ride was that it meant the last day of dining on cheese and tomato sandwiches; a regular lunchtime fare.

Port St Johns was a welcome sight and it took very little motivation for our crew to load the boat onto its trailer and ensconce ourselves in our hotel for the night. Well, if only for an hour or two … just before sunset we raced to the Port St Johns airport (airfield) to catch the sunset and quaff a few celebratory beers before heading out to dinner at the famous Delicious Monster restaurant.

We’d travelled some 600 or more kilometres by sea from Port Elizabeth to Port St Johns. Along the way we were privileged to share the sea with:

• Bottlenose Dolphin;
• Common Dolphin;
• Brydes Whales;
• Southern Right Whales;
• Humpback Whales;
• Cape Gannet;
• Skua;
• African Penguin; and
• one cargo ship.

We’d planned this trip on a whim and in order to explore the marine diversity of the Eastern Cape and Transkei coast and we were not disappointed. The marine diversity is staggering and the off-shore encounters legendary. The people we met along the way were friendly and welcoming and there is no doubt in our minds that we South Africans must do everything in our power to protect, preserve and treasure the oceans that run along our coastlines and sustain us.

Download the October issue of African Diver for the full report and more images.

After the welcome break on shore for a day, we were more than ready to get back on the water. It was another glorious day with little wind and mild swells. We knew we were in for a great day as we’d seen several Humpback Whales breaching in the distance. Today’s route was to take us from Mazeppa Bay to Coffee Bay, a distance of some 76 kilometres by sea.

But first we had to navigate the launch from Mazeppa Bay. Our Skipper, the Kamikazi Kaiser, safely launched us through the Mazeppa surf but not without having to punch a growler that threatened to upend us and all our expensive photographic equipment.

Somewhat relieved and pumped full of adrenaline we set out to look for Humpback Whales. As usual we first came across a pod of Bottlenose Dolphin working the inshore waves and as usual, their curiosity got the better of them and they rushed out to investigate our boat.

Further along, we came across a herd of cows cruising the beach … as seems to happen on this magnificent coastline. The coastline was enthralling. Rolling hills that plunged down to pristine beaches interchanged with craggy rock formations that stood valiantly against a sea that slowly eroded all in its path.

Our team was completely taken by the topography and landscape and we almost missed a mother Humpback Whale escorting her calf. The little calf must have been newly born as it was still very grey and very small in comparison to its mother. Full of the joy’s of spring it lob- tailled often and kept its mother busy keeping it on the journey north.

Mindful of her duty to her calf we left them in peace and headed out to sea to where a cargo ship was slowly cruising northwards.

We followed the cargo ship for a while until distracted by a leaping, breaching Humpback. This Humpback breached at least 12 times when we were close enough to it and it didn’t seem to mind our presence. After several breaches it was joined by two other Humpbacks and all three dived for what seemed like ages. Finally our breacher surfaced and the other two went on their way as did our breaching whale. Was it some kind of whale caucus meeting? Who knows, but we were ecstatic to be witness to it all.

After three days on the water, our planned break at Mazeppa Bay was heartily welcomed by all. The activity we’d been witness to on the first three days of our trip had left us in a dazed haze and our bodies, unused to being on the boat for 6 hours, were in bad need of a break.

Despite our tiredness, we still managed to rise early and take in the beauty of the morning sunrise. A soft orange sun that painted Mazeppa’s beach and rocky island in pastel colours greeted us, while the sea gently washed perfectly formed waves on the beach and rocks.

Mazeppa Bay is one of those little-known quiet spots of beauty and serenity. Frequented mostly by anglers, it has a wide beach flanked by a rocky island that reaches out into the sea. Between the beach and the island is an exquisite suspension bridge that simply invites a crossing. From the island, sets of magnificent waves roll off the backline into the bay - a surfing paradise? The hotel’s bar is a display centre for the many anglers who have fished this bay for years. Photographs of anglers with magnificent catches of various game fish hang dustily on the walls and, of course, there are photographs of anglers with the sharks they have caught – mainly Raggies, Duskys, Coppers and Zambezis. This was probably the hardest part of the trip for our team to accept but accept it we did, reminding ourselves that this trip was a fact finding mission and not a crusade.

Our day was spent exploring inland. Michael, our guide for the day, took us to meet with local entrepreneurs and a Sangoma and her family. We met with Rodney, who has returned to his family home after an absence of 10 years and who is in the process of rebuilding the fruit business that once thrived there. This was a common theme of the people we met – rebuild, escape from the city and get back to nature.We were privileged to meet with a Sangoma and her family. Her Grandmother, at 93 years old, was a treat and an inspiration and kept us amused with her antics.

We ended the day by climbing the dunes north of the bay. It is rumoured that a treasure ship was wrecked on this beach and the treasure buried beneath what is now a very large dune.

We didn’t attempt to dig for gold but had huge fun climbing the dune and running down.

Mazeppa is a wonderful peaceful place to rest your soul and take in the beauty of the Transkei. Go take a look.

Cormac is currently on a 7 day expedition from Port Elizabeth to Port St Johns. The trip is an exploratory sea-going venture to gain a better understanding of the marine life on the South African East Coast. The trip has been organized jointly by African Diver and Rainer Schimpf of Expert Tours (www.expert-tours.com).

Rainer operates from his base at Port Elizabeth and this trip has long been an ambition of his. He also runs and NGO called Ocean Messengers (www.ocean-messengers.com) which focuses on ocean conservation.

Entries in the blog catalogue Cormac’s trip and the October issue of African Diver magazine will carry a full feature on it.

Further blog entries from other parties on the expedition can be found at www.mype.co.za

Day 3

East London to Mazeppa Bay

Departing East London harbour was a particularly uneventful affair and we slipped out into the ocean for the 3^rd day of our epic expedition. We spent some time photographing, from the sea, the hotels on the East London promenade. The light was tricky as there was a pervasive haze that had enveloped the ocean all around us.

It wasn’t long before we caught up with a pod of Bottlenose Dolphin hunting for breakfast. They too played in our bow wave for a while before heading back to the task of finding food to eat. A playful baby’s curiosity kept getting the better of it and it kept returning to race alongside our boat and dance in the bow wave. Mum, though, eventually took it away to more mundane things.

The hazy light made it difficult for us to see any activity on the ocean and we noticed there were a lot fewer birds in the air. Only the occasional Skua broke the monotony. Skua have a habit of following a moving boat as they have learned that there are always tasty morsels being thrown overboard. They race alongside us and peer into the boat looking for food. Each time any one of us raised an arm the Skua would dip down to investigate … obviously a learned behaviour.

The day was devoted to Humpback Whales with a short break to photograph the town of Kei Mouth from the sea. We followed a pair of adult humpbacks for while and were treated to several breaches by them. Each breach was an exciting noisy affair that hoisted massive waves of water into the air, like crashing waves on a rocky beach.

Our pair of whales eventually slowed down and we left them to rest but were almost immediately distracted by more breaching activity deeper out to sea.

Quietly we headed out to investigate and found our family from yesterday’s interaction having what seemed to be a huge communication session. Both adult whales were tail-slapping the water and smashing their massive flippers with great crashes of water while the calf swam round in between the adults. Every now and then one of the adults would disappear and then shoot out of the water with a rousing splash that was incredibly spectacular.

Sadly, by now the wind had come up and we reluctantly abandoned the noisy family and headed for our over night at Mazeppa bay.

Cormac is currently on a 7 day expedition from Port Elizabeth to Port St Johns. The trip is an exploratory sea-going venture to gain a better understanding of the marine life on the South African East Coast. The trip has been organized jointly by African Diver and Rainer Schimpf of Expert Tours (www.expert-tours.com).

Rainer operates from his base at Port Elizabeth and this trip has long been an ambition of his. He also runs and NGO called Ocean Messengers (www.ocean-messengers.com) which focuses on ocean conservation.

Entries in the blog catalogue Cormac’s trip and the October issue of African Diver magazine will carry a full feature on it.

Further blog entries from other parties on the expedition can be found at www.mype.co.za

Day 2

Port Alfred to East London

After a lazy breakfast our little party left Port Alfred destined for East London. Once again the weather Gods had been kind to us and we delighted in another lazy sea day. That said, waves were crashing on the rocky coastline and leaving the harbour at Port Alfred was an exciting mad dash out of the harbour entrance once we caught a lull in the waves. Although we had a lazy sea, the sky was overcast and grey, but it looked like the clouds would burn off in a midday sun and we would be treated to blue skies again.

It didn’t take us long to find some excitement and we spent about an hour tailing a small Humpback family; two adults and a calf. This was consistent with our experience of the previous day when we had come across several small families of 2 adults and a calf.

Having left the Humpback family to their meanderings we headed into deeper water hoping to find some form of marine action. Great shafts of sunlight broke through the cloud cover in patches illuminating huge spot-lit areas of the ocean. Now and then blue sky broke over our heads, encouraging us to move ever deeper.

As the cloud cover broke up, in the distance, we caught sight of Gannets wheeling and diving and so we raced towards them. As we got closer it became apparent that the Gannets were following a mega-pod of Common Dolphin. The pod was spread out and was obviously hunting. Every now and then the dolphin would isolate a school of fish and the Gannets would wheel in and dive into the water to feed. The dolphin and Gannet were hunting Garfish and not Sardines as we had hoped.

The dolphin, were in a playful mood and each time we sped up they swiftly slipped into our bow wave to surf in front of our boat. Because the pod was so spread out we were able to “work” a very large patch of the ocean and “play” with them.

At some stage during all of this activity the pod came upon a two families of Humpback Whale and we were treated to the magnificent experience of having two species of cetacean sharing the ocean with us.

By now the sun had won its battle with the clouds and the sky was a magnificent azure and so was the ocean. It was too inviting to miss and so we kitted up and joined the dolphin in the water. Visibility was a magnificent 20 meters and clear of phytoplankton. Sunrays danced in front of us as it pierced and illuminated the waters beneath us.

We could hear the clicks and squeaks of the dolphin but also the deeper rumble of the Humpbacks. With so much activity the ocean sounded like a high street in Johannesburg in peak traffic.

We realised we were in the path of the oncoming whales and readied our cameras in the hope of a once-in-a-lifetime shot …

Little did I know just how once-in-a-lifetime that experience would be. For the full story and images, catch the October issue of African Diver, out on 1 October.

Cormac is currently on a 7 day expedition from Port Elizabeth to Port St Johns. The trip is an exploratory sea-going venture to gain a better understanding of the marine life on the South African East Coast. The trip has been organized jointly by African Diver and Rainer Schimpf of Expert Tours (www.expert-tours.com).

Rainer operates from his base at Port Elizabeth and this trip has long been an ambition of his. He also runs and NGO called Ocean Messengers (www.ocean-messengers.com) which focuses on ocean conservation.

Entries in the blog catalogue Cormac’s trip and the October issue of African Diver magazine will carry a full feature on it.

Further blog entries from other parties on the expedition can be found at www.mype.co.za

Day 1

For once, the weather forecast was on the money. A lazy, calm and inviting sea greeted us on our arrival at Port Elizabeth harbour. Although it was cold and the sun had yet to break the horizon, anticipation dulled the numbness brought on by the cold.

As dawn broke, we motored out of the harbour and were treated to a beautiful soft orange sunrise which painted the gentle swells on the ocean in pastel colours.

Soon after sunrise, we found a pod of bottlenose dolphin that playfully danced in our bow-wave while out on their morning hunt for food.

We spent about 40 minutes with them and then were drawn to the sound of a whale surfacing to breathe. It was a southern right whale … in fact there were three of them and we had our choice cut out for us – which one to follow? Fortunately, the whales stayed close together and we were able to follow all three of them for at least an hour.

The southern rights drew us further out to sea where a circling flock of gannets distracted us, inviting us to investigate. As we got closer to the gannets, we found they were following a hunting bryde’s whale – more distraction! Bryde’s whales move very quickly, unlike the southern right whale and so following it was more difficult but no less rewarding and exciting.

We left the whales and dolphin and headed for the St Croix islands, right next to Coega harbour. The bird colonies on these islands have diminished since the construction of the harbour yet we saw African Penquin, Oystercatchers, Gannets, Skua and Cormorants all resting or breeding on the island.

Our plan for the day included a stop-over on Bird Island and a visit to the nearby seal colony. We delighted in spending 45 minutes being entertained by the seal pups who, unable to contain their curiosity, followed our boat with their curious heads popping out of the water at every opportunity to look at us.

Bird Island was a treat – we were pleased to find thousands of breeding African Penquin and Cape Gannets. The Cape Gannets looked particularly healthy, fat and fit. This had to be from their feeding on sardines on the annual sardine run. In fact, we were informed that 2 weeks previously there were very few Cape Gannet on the island and most had returned in the past week.

The final leg of our journey from Bird Island to Port Alfred was uneventful until we got to Kenton on Sea, that is. Here we found 5 humpback whales, two escorting a newly born calf. The calf was in a playful mood and kept spy-hopping to see our boat and entertained us for what seemed like ages.

Tomorrow, our next leg sees us travel from Port Alfred to East London. Who knows what tomorrow brings. Let’s hope for more of the same.