Mzanzitravel Magazine Issue 10

Discover
Watching the whales at
Hermanus…come meet the gentle giants
of the southern oceans
Over the years the Western Cape coastal town of Hermanus has gained
fame as a premier holiday and retirement destination boasting lovely
beaches, mountain and coastal fynbos as part of the Cape Floral
Kingdom, crafts and farmers’ markets, locally produced wines, its old
fishing harbour and more. But perhaps its biggest attraction is as one
of the best whale watching locations in the world.
Little more than an hour’s drive from Cape Town, Hermanus is the focal
point of the Cape Whale Route which stretches around much of the
coast of the Western Cape. Today it is home to the annual Hermanus
Whale Festival as well as a very unique character…Hermanus’ very own
whale crier who alerts people to the arrival of whales by blowing on his
kelp horn. Hermanus is recognized by the World Wildlife Fund as one of
the 12 best whale watching locations in the world.
Each year, from around May or June, the great Southern Right whales
start arriving here in Walker Bay from the Antarctic to calve and mate,
and stay sometimes as late as January. But the best time to see these
giants of the southern oceans is between July and November. From
the various lookout points dotted along the coast here, you will see the
dark figures gliding in pods through the water, blowing 5m v-shaped
spouts of water into the air, frolicking, breaching the surface as they
dive upwards and often clear out of the water, before tumbling back
down with their huge tailfins causing a splash. When blowing water
you can hear a hollow, echoing sound, and at other times you can hear
them making a loud, bellowing sound that carries up to 2km far and is
often heard at night. The females bond strongly with their calves and
will sometimes play with them for hours on end.
At some points these huge marine mammals come as close as 5m or
even less to the shore. They can be viewed up close from the boats of
any of a number of whale tour operators in the town and surrounding
areas, or on a guided kayak tour, or from any number of excellent
lookout points along the coast. On a good whale watching day nothing
can be more fun than wandering the local cliff paths which stretch from
one side of town to the other. At most of the lookout points you will
find interpretative signboards providing visitors with all the essential
information on the whales.
Some of the best whale-watching spots are found along the 12km Cliff
Path, at Dreunkrans, Windsor Bay, Gearing’s Point overlooking the Old
Harbour, the Old Harbour itself, De Gang, Siever’s Point, Kwaaiwater,
Voëlklip beach and Grotto beach. One of the most unique restaurant
settings and whale-watching spots is Bientang’s Cave Seafood
Restaurant, located in a cliffside cave previously inhabited by a Khoi
Strandloper of the same name. Here you can sit at one of the rustic
tables watching the whales play just meters away while tucking into a
sumptuous seafood meal washed down with local wine.
In the previous century these gentle animals were almost killed to
extinction by whale hunters. In South Africa they have been protected
since 1935 and are now almost universally protected, still hunted only
by Japanese whalers much to the anger of the rest of the world. This
year alone the Japanese whalers killed 333 minke whales around
Antarctica. Despite being a signatory to the international ban on
whale-hunting for commercial purposes, Japan exploits a loophole
by claiming its annual kills are for “scientific purposes”. Nonetheless,
the Southern Right whale population has again steadily increased to
around 6,500 with most of these visiting the South African coastline
each year.
The Cape Whale Route extending northwest and southeast of
Hermanus includes pretty seaside towns like Betty’s Bay, Kleinmond,
Pringle Bay, Stanford and Gansbaai. Apart from whale watching, the
area is also renowned for shark cage diving. Hermanus offers visitors
many other things to do including a variety of regular open-air markets,
music and food festivals, adventure activities, the local wine route,
a variety of organised tours, fun activities for kids, arts and crafts,
museums including the historic Old Harbour, arts and crafts, diving,
surfing, horse riding, mountain and seaside hikes, forest adventures,
several excellent golf courses, and plenty of accommodation ranging
from camping sites to luxury guest houses and hotels.
For more information contact the Hermanus Tourism Bureau at Tel +27
(0)28 312 2629 or email hermanustourism2@hermanus.co.za or visit
their website at www.hermanustourism.info.
Damian Ryszawi / iStock