AfricanDiver.com

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.

Senegal, the Maldives, Dahab and Sodwana Bay; all parts of Africa and its surrounding islands that feature in this issue of African Diver. The Moving Sushi expedition alerts us to the serious state of Senegal’s fisheries and Christopher Bartlett reminds us of the perilous state of the ocean’s shark stocks. Rowan Duvel lightens the mood with his article on freediving with Mantas in the Maldives while Morten Villadsen enthrals us with his experiences of freediving the Blue Hole in Dahab. Paul Hunter takes us on a personal visit to Sodwana Bay and DAN advises on altitude diving. Enjoy this fourth issue and don’t forget to visit our blog.

Diving in Benin – Benin? Where’s Benin you may ask. But worry not Mike Markovina explains all. Want to help tag whale sharks? Nimu Njonja is looking for help in Kenya to tag whale sharks this February. Interested in freediving? Trevor Hutton takes us on his journey to re-conquer Badgat’s deep hole and the AfricanDiver team takes lessons in freediving to find out for ourselves. We take a look at the Natal Sharks Board and travel back in time to discover Natal’s whaling history. We’ve covered Malaria and now we look at Dengue fever – another mosquito borne disease to watch out for. We hope you enjoy our 3rd issue as much as we do.

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You either love sharks or hate them but you cannot deny their purpose and their beauty. They are fascinating creatures yet stir up so much controversy. The Natal Sharks Board is one of the world’s leading shark institutions and one of the most controversial.

Click here to read more about my visit to the Sharks Board

Ever wondered what it’s like to dive in the predator tank in the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town? Or wondered about diving in the freshwater of Marico Oog? Have you thought of diving at Ponta Mamoli in southern Mozambique but never got around to it. This issue answers those questions for you and is sure to make you stop your wondering and start planning. Not sure what diving goals to set yourself for the New Year? How about learning to freedive? We got that one covered too. We’re proud to present issue 2 of African Diver and we hope you like it as much as we do.

AfricanDiver.com is a free online diving magazine focussed on all types of diving in Africa. The first issue is now available for download or, if you prefer, you can download sections of the first issue. We welcome contributions, enquiries and feedback. Our hope for AfricanDiver.com is that it is relevant, thought provoking and positive. While this issue has a distinctly Southern African feel to it, future issues will include contributions from other diving places in Africa. We celebrate everything that African diving has to offer and we want you to, as well. Please visit our website often, email us at [email protected] and subscribe to be notified when issues are available for download. Spread the word, dive the seas and may your bubbles always be free.