Cape Town to Sodwana Bay and Back

Text and photos by Nicolene Olckers

Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the world has changed irrevocably. The travel limitations have caused tourism worldwide to grind to a virtual standstill. Divers and dive operators have experienced this palpably as even their more adventurous clients stayed home. 
At DAN Southern Africa, the economic and marketing consequences have impacted our membership, industry partners and the larger dive community in our region. We are not out of the woods yet.

On a more cheerful note: What better way do we have to get in touch with our members and business partners than to go on a round trip to visit them – personally? The primary purpose of the excursion was to connect with the various dive centre owners, dive staff and divers to introduce the new DAN Southern African promotional brochures. On our round trip, we also enquired about their experiences promoting DAN and how we could make this more accessible and streamlined. It was a massive effort, and all the advice, suggestions and ideas were noted and are being implemented as best we can.  

The DAN Promo Roadtrip took off in top gear with our first stop in Mosselbay, Western Cape, in South Africa. We hit the ground running and even had an opportunity to go SCUBA diving. First was a visit and meeting with Reel van der Merwe at Garden Route Scuba. Situated on the main road of Mosselbay, the bright blue painted building certainly makes for a significant landmark. After a most constructive meeting to discuss the DAN promotional materials and how they use them, we moved on to meet the team of divers and researchers based at Go Dive Mosselbay. Elton Polly’s enthusiasm was infectious, and we were soon roped into a dive. Conditions weren’t ideal at the Point site, with the visibility down to about 2 meters and very silty, so we cut the dive short to wait for better weather conditions. Thereafter spending time with Leanne Walmsley and her son Josh at Electro Dive.

As we continued Eastward on the famous Garden Route, we made several more stops at Pro Dive in Plettenberg Bay and Pro Dive in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth), Mike’s Dive Shop and Elite Scuba. We also met with DAN Instructor Gregory Driessel to discuss DAN Training, materials and registration procedures. One of the most exciting visits in Gqeberha was a tour of the Bay Hyperbaric Medicine Facility. The professional medical staff are based at the Marine Sciences Centre of Nelson Mandela University.

Then we took the long drive to Shelly Beach, Scottburgh and Umkomaas with its revered shark diving destination – Aliwal Shoal reef. The warm, clear waters of the Indian Ocean and the phenomenal shark sighting made the 13-hour drive worthwhile. Our meetings here were also characterised by plans and excitement about the coming summer-month dives and the 2023 Sardine Run. The latter usually starts around May and lasts until the end of August. The event attracts local and international divers and professional underwater photographers from around the globe. It is a powerful income booster for most South Coast dive operators.

Meetings about DAN membership, managing emergencies and streamlining the DAN online application and renewal processes were crucial talk topics. Discussions with Agulhas House, Blue Ocean Dive Resort, Aliwal Dive Centre, ScubaCo Dive & Travel, Buddy Scuba Diving Adventures, Wetu Safaris, African Watersports, ScubaXcursions, Aqua Planet Dive Centre and Charter and African Dive Adventures provided more insight to their engagements with DAN. We also managed to enjoy underwater excursions and shark adventures. We are grateful for the time and effort to take us out to dive sites and return us safely to shore.
 
On the return journey, we were joined by the CEO of DAN Southern Africa, Morné Christou, for a few action-packed days to present a series of Oxygen First Aid for Scuba Diving Injuries workshops to the operational staff of the different dive centres. These workshops were presented to all dive staff to refresh their oxygen skills and knowledge. For some, this was the first time they got to practice these skills. It was heartwarming to witness their enthusiasm and determination.

We visited Vinayak Maharaj of Umhlanga Scuba in the cosmopolitan city of Durban. The E coli pollution on the Ethekwini beaches made it almost impossible to dive on nearby reefs. Vinayak said he has been fortunate to have access to diving in the UShaka Marine World tanks with his clients, allowing them to have a unique experience while learning to dive. We also met the man behind D3 Total Diver Evolution, Stuart Skene.

We then headed north on the KwaZulu Natal coast to Sodwana Bay and iSimangaliso Park. This Internationally recognised heritage site provided the most fantastic dive conditions. We had the privilege of diving with the professional crew from Pisces Diving. We encountered a horde of incredible underwater creatures. During our visit with the dive operators, we had questions regarding the emergency procedures, the shortage of oxygen supply and further about memberships and promotional materials.
 
Well, we had to return home at some point. Fortunately, the long way back to Cape Town saw us surfing into the Surfing Capital of South Africa, Jeffreys Bay or J-Bay, as it is more popularly known. Paul van Jaarsveld of J-Bay Scuba Diving offers scuba diving year-round. We also had the opportunity to do two dives with them. The colder water shocked the system after KZN, but we managed two 45-minute dives before opting for the sunshine on the boat.

Further along, we meet the familiar face of Shaun Prinsloo at Stillbay Scuba. We first met Shaun pre-COVID in Mozambique and wished him all the best with his new ventures in Stillbay, Western Cape. The last stop on this trip was at the southernmost point of Africa at what must be the most Southerly based scuba diving operation in Africa, Southern Tip Extreme Adventure. It sure looks to be adventurous diving based in the coastal village of Struisbaai.

We look forward to joining Stephen Griffiths and Hendri Dunn on some southernmost diving expeditions.

In closing, we would like to thank the various dive centre owners, skippers, dive leaders and their ever-enthusiastic, professional diving staff for receiving us and welcoming us into their centres and onto their boats. For sharing their daily lives with us and showing us their resident underwater wonder worlds!