New book is both a love letter to nature and a practical companion for those who like to go swimming in the wild
Kalk Bay Harbour
Kalk Bay Harbour is not your typical wild swimming spot, but for many Capetonians, it defines the experience of being in the sea. Maybe it’s nostalgia, maybe it’s the full sensory overload: the sound of chattering voices, clinking cutlery, music from Brass Bell, the rumble of passing trains, the bustle of boats. The smell of salt and diesel, frying fish, fresh catch and deep-fried calamari. And yet, despite all this activity, when you slip into the water, you find yourself floating in a pocket of stillness at the centre of it all – surrounded by streaks of colour, rusted lines, ropes, nets, textures, movement.
This isn’t wilderness, but it is wild in its own way: gritty, joyful, layered. It’s not the place to come for peace and quiet or untouched reefs. It’s where you swim to feel alive and part of the Cape, a place where generations of families have come to fish, eat, jump into the harbour and spend time together. There’s a kind of democracy to it: kids bombing off the edge while their grandparents queue for snoek and chips, divers clambering up ladders beside barefoot swimmers, laughter echoing off the walls of the old breakwater.
You can access the harbour either through the stone arches off Main Road or by winding your way through the Brass Bell restaurant complex. The usual swimming spot is on the far side of the working harbour, near the slipway, although it’s worth exploring the protected corner near the old pool walls and the ladders bolted to the quay. The water here is sheltered and deep, with a dramatic sense of place. Be mindful of boat traffic and slippery surfaces and check the tides before you jump in – access can be trickier at low tide.
- Things to think about
The Battle of Muizenberg took place in 1795, when the British seized control of the Cape from the Dutch East India Company (VOC) at the outset of the Napoleonic Wars. The Dutch had aligned with the French and the British, wanting to secure the Cape as a strategic stop on the route to India, sent a fleet and soldiers.
The actual ‘battle’ was small and brief – more of a skirmish. British naval guns fired from ships anchored in False Bay, bombarding the Dutch garrison stationed in what is now the Muizenberg area. The Dutch were quickly overwhelmed and retreated, allowing the British to take the Cape. A few cannon remnants and plaques still remain in the area as reminders.
Venus Pool
Tucked into the far reaches of Cape Point Nature Reserve, Venus Pool is one of the most beloved tidal pools on the peninsula, not for its size, but for its exquisite balance of drama and calm. Framed by jagged cliffs and backed by the roar of the open sea, the pool itself remains serene: a shallow, clear basin perfect for a cooling dip, a child’s first snorkel or a few contemplative moments floating in the tide.
To get there, start your journey at the Cape Point entrance gate and follow the tarred reserve road. Turn left at the Bordjiesrif turn-off, then take another immediate left, ignoring the sign to Bordjiesrif itself. Continue to the end of the road, passing old lime kilns and fynbos ridges, and park where the road runs out. From here, it’s a roughly 15-minute walk along a narrowing paved track that eventually becomes a footpath. A wooden sign marks the descent. Scramble down a series of flat rocks, and you’ll arrive at the pool’s edge, protected by a wall of black boulders that buffer the ocean beyond.
The pool is only about 10m across but full of magic. Snorkellers will find starfish the size of open hands, jewel-coloured urchins, green seaweed, tiny anemones, mussels, crabs and shoals of darting fish. On calm days, the surface is glassy and clear.
On wild ones, waves slam the outer rocks with dramatic force, crashing into the air with a resonant boom while Venus, protected within, holds its stillness. It’s a pool for dipping, not distance. For gazing, floating and remembering how to slow down.
There are no facilities here, so bring everything you need, including sunscreen and plenty of drinking water. Water shoes are highly recommended; the rocks are uneven and the urchins, though beautiful, are not friendly to bare feet. While swimming here is generally easy, the surrounding ocean is another story. Adventurous swimmers sometimes leap from the outer rocks into the open sea, but the return is difficult, the barnacles unkind and the current unforgiving. It’s not something to attempt lightly.
Venus Pool is a year-round joy and sunrises or early mornings offer something particularly special: soft golden light spilling across the rocks and the pool often empty save for a heron or a solitary swimmer. On days when the swell is low and the sea is playful, there’s even the possibility of coasteering 4km northward toward Smitswinkel – a slow scramble-swim along the cliffs and ledges that, while entirely condition-dependent, offers the kind of adventure that feels like a secret between you and the coastline.
- Things to think about
Just above Venus Pool stands one of the Cape’s oldest signal cannons, once part of a chain used to alert the garrisons of incoming threats. Stationed here in the 1800s, one signalman – bored by the long hours and isolation – reportedly fathered nine children during his time at the post. The nearby lime kilns tell another story: before the peninsula became a protected park in the 1930s, this stretch of coast was an industrial site. Shells and calcrete were hacked from the cliffs and burnt in these kilns to make white lime, which was used to coat and preserve homes across the Cape. Today, the kilns are all that remain, crumbling quietly beside the road.
Text | Matthew Dowling
Photography | Jay Caboz
A Guide To Wild Swimming In The Western Cape by Serai and Matthew Dowling is published by Rockhopper Books and is available now. This excerpt is published by permission.
