Surfing South Africa Part 3: Coffee Bay to Ballito

All things must come to an end – even surfing tours of countries five times the size of the UK. This post is the final instalment of my South African odyssey, taking in the remote swells of Coffee Bay, the bustling sands of Durban Town, and the powerful breaks of Ballito.

By this stage of the trip, we were all fully immersed in the surfing lifestyle: rising early to catch crisp dawn waves, feasting on tropical fruit for breakfast, napping through the sultry midday heat, and running back to the water at the hint of an afternoon swell. Join me, as we continue north from Chintsa (see part 2) and venture into the heart of South Africa’s Wild Coast:

Coffee Bay

Beaches:

Leaving the main highway at Mthatha, head down increasingly rural roads (mind the cattle) until you arrive in the haven of Coffee Bay backpackers. Grab your board from the trailer, and walk up the coast for fifteen minutes until you see the broad sweep of Coffee Bay itself. A river runs into the sea at the southern end, and there’s usually a rip here that you can use to get out the back (mind the submerged rocks at high tide). There’s a point break that needs a bigger swell to really get going, but for me the central beach break is where the best action lies. The peak moves around depending on tide and swell conditions, but once you’ve found it, there’s a glut of glorious left handers waiting to be caught.

Skills:

During our stay, we had the privilege of a short coaching session with Dave Malherbe, owner of the backpackers and a former world title holder. He encouraged us to focus on paddling technique and positioning to increase our wave count. One of the reasons surfing is such a tough sport to master is the vanishingly small proportion of each session spent actually standing up on waves. By watching the back and using strong, efficient paddle strokes to get to the peak early, you can catch more waves and set-up for a smooth take off. Given most surfers are regular footed (stand with their left foot forward), the left peeling waves of Coffee Bay are an ideal opportunity to work on the oft-neglected backhand side.

Rest days:

Coffee Bay is an oasis of rural tranquility, a world away from the big city lights of Cape Town and Durban. Home to the Xhosa ethnic group, traditional ways of life continue, with villages consisting of circular mud brick houses and conical thatched roofs. Attend an evening dance and see the women (or ‘mamas’) of the community strutting their stuff to the beat of animal hide drums. Sup on the staple, maize-based meal ‘pap’ and wash it down with a glass of umqombothi, the locally brewed beer. Also on the agenda is a scenic hike to the ‘Hole in the Wall’, a large archway bored into an island outcrop by the relentless battering of the Indian Ocean.

Durban

Beaches:

In Durban, we stayed on The Bluff, a tight-knit community gathered on a promontory to the south side of the city. The Bluff is home to Ansteys, a powerful beach break that can get pretty gnarly in the bigger swells. There’s usually an A-frame peak perpendicular to the paved area outside Beach House Cafe. Further down is a right hander capable of generating barrels. For something a little mellower, drive into town, and take your pick from a succession of beach breaks separated by piers. Surfing is a pretty popular past time in Durban, but luckily the locals are a friendly bunch.

Skills:

Ansteys boasts a ferocious shore break, where reforming waves dump directly onto the beach in terrifying 2m high towers of whitewater. Learning to run the gauntlet here and paddling out in between big sets is a skill in itself. Meanwhile in town, we took our ISA Level 1 surf assessments, so it was vital to learn how to finish waves in control. After weeks of simply falling off to end a ride, we worked on reading the sections ahead to determine when it was time to turn off and resume the prone position. Finally, while it may sound obvious, looking in the direction you want to go can be tricky to master when your natural inclination is to watch your feet. By turning my eyes to the far end of the beach, I enjoyed the exhilaration of shooting down the line.

Rest days:

As part of their South Africa tour package, Ticket to Ride offered us the chance to train as international surf instructors. Most of the trip was about getting our personal surfing skills up to scratch, but in Durban we took on the surf lifeguard and surf instructor training. This includes a five day examined first aid course, with routine aspects like CPR and defibrillators, but also more specialised areas like paddling a rescue board and shark attacks. As for the instructor course, this mainly focuses on how to deliver an effective beginner lesson, but also includes a test of your ability  to ride two left and two right open-faced waves. After all that training, unwind with a visit to Origin Nightclub, home to five separate dance floors to ensure you can find your song.

Ballito

Beaches:

Located just 25 miles north of Durban, Ballito is an affluent tourist town, popular with wealthy South Africans in search of a beach break. But do not fear, there’s also a budget option called Monkey Bay Backpackers, offering chilled hostel vibes in the midst of all the hotels. Willard Beach is in easy walking distance of the hostel and has a powerful right hander near the lifeguard area. You’ll need to be quick on the pop-up if you want to avoid a one-way ticket to the washing machine. Also, be careful with cross-rips here, as I’ve seen people pulled onto the sharp rocky outcrops that separate the sandy areas. We only surfed here a couple of times due to tricky swell conditions, so I’ve omitted the usual skills section.

Rest days:

While I wouldn’t exactly call it close, Ballito is within striking distance of the Hluhluwe-iMfolozi nature park. After an obscenely early start, by mid-morning we were driving the humid tracks of Africa’s oldest game reserve, up near the border with Mozambique. All of the Big Five can be spotted here, and on our trip we saw an abundance of elephants, two grumpy rhinos, and even a lion crouching in the brush. If you’re taking a bathroom break, don’t leave the windows open, otherwise your vehicle will be ransacked by monkeys. For something closer to home, channel your inner Rambo, and pick up a semi-automatic weapon for a bruising burst of adrenaline at Durban paintball.

End Note

The end of a group trip is always a jarring experience. For so long the departure date has been an abstraction of the future, then suddenly it becomes an immediate reality. Friendships forged by intense shared experience are cut short as everyone jets back from Neverland to their real lives. Most of those faces I’ll probably never see again. But, if I do, I hope we’ll shred some waves together.

If you enjoyed reading this article, then be sure to check out my previous posts on surfing in Devon and Pembrokeshire.

Photo credits

Sunrise surf – Chad Schwab

Surfing at Ansteys – Dennis Schroeder