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South Africa · Our home waters
Cape Town
Where two oceans meet, and the kelp forest comes alive.
Where
Cape Town, SA
Where the Atlantic meets the Indian
When
Year-round
Our home base & day trips
Water
Cool & alive
Wetsuit territory
In the water
Snorkel & freedive
Kelp forests & reefs
Where it all began
My home, and the greatest kelp forest on Earth
Cape Town is where Wild Mermaid began. Beneath the surface lies the Great African Sea Forest, a towering golden kelp forest found nowhere else, where two oceans meet and the water teems with life found on no other coast.
It’s a magical, otherworldly place to dive, light streaming through the kelp, sharks weaving between the stems, curious creatures at every turn. This is the ocean I know best, and I’d love to share it with you.
Endemic to these waters
Who you’ll meet in the kelp
Shysharks
Tiny, spotted and endemic, curling into a ring when they feel shy.
The kelp forest
A living cathedral of golden kelp, the heart of this whole ecosystem.
Octopus
The famous common octopus, curious, clever and a master of disguise.
Cape fur seals
Playful and inquisitive, they’ll twist and dart around you.
How the days run
Easy days from my own doorstep
Because this is home, Cape Town days are relaxed and flexible, we watch the conditions and choose the best spot, whether that’s a sheltered kelp forest dive or a reef alive with colour. Perfect as a standalone trip, or paired either side of St. Helena.
I’ll teach you to move gently through the kelp, read the little endemic creatures, and freedive if you’d like to, and I’ll photograph it all so you can take the forest home with you.
Dive my home waters
Come and explore the Great African Sea Forest
Whether you’re peeking beneath the surface for the first time on a snorkel, or dropping deep on scuba, I know all the best-kept secret spots, and I’d love to show you.
Wild Mermaid
Intimate ocean expeditions · Cape Town, South Africa