Hermanus (originally called Hermanuspietersfontein, but shortened
as the name was too long for the postal service), is a town with 80,400
inhabitants (2011 census) on the southern coast of the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is famous for southern right whale
watching during the southern winter and spring and is a popular
retirement town.
The whales can be seen from the cliffs in the town
centre as early as June and usually depart in early December. They were
once hunted in the nearby town of Betty's Bay, but are now protected to
ensure the survival of the species. The Old Harbour Museum contains
several exhibitions that explain the whaling
industry, and the De Wetshuis Photo Museum houses an exhibition of
photos by T D Ravenscroft that depicts the history of Hermanus. The
Whale Museum houses a skeleton of a whale and an shows an audio-visual
presentation of whales and dolphins twice daily.
Hermanus lies along Walker Bay on the south coast of the Western Cape. It is located about 115 km southeast of Cape Town and is connected to the Mother City by the R43 highway (or coastal R44 scenic route) and N2 motorway. The R43 continues to Cape Agulhas, the most southerly point of Africa. Hermanus is 40 km from Gansbaai, a famous spot where one can dive amongst the Great White Sharks.
It is also notable that Hermanus still boasts a historic railway
station building without a railway line. The founders of the town
decided not to lay any tracks as this would have made Hermanus more
commercial and felt that Hermanus needed to stay a small Fisherman's
Village. To this day the locals still refer to it as "the village."
Facilities
The Space Science Directorate of the South African Space Agency, previously the Hermanus Magnetic Observatory (HMO), is a research facility of the National Research Foundation, and forms part of the worldwide network which monitors variations of the earth's magnetic field.
Hermanus Yacht Club is a popular yacht club in the Western Cape amongst the yachting community. It hosted the Laser (dinghy) 4.7 worlds in 2007
The Hermanus Golf Club in Eastcliff is one of the most beautiful golf courses in the country.
Hermanus is also famous to locals for its historic Windsor Hotel, Marine Hotel, various fishermen's cottages and old harbour.
Beaches
Grotto Beach is the largest beach in Hermanus and has also
been proclaimed a "Blue Flag" beach which ensures its preservation as a
world heritage site. Other beaches include Voëlklip, Onrus, Kammabaai and Langbaai.
Whales and whale-spotting
Hermanus has since August 1992 the world’s only Whale Crier (the
first being Pieter Classen 1992-1998, then Wilson Salukazana 1998-2006, Zolile Baleni since April 2006 ) who sounds his kelp horn to announce where whales have been sighted. Zakes Mda wrote 2005 the novel The Whale Caller in which the Whale Crier of Hermanus is the main character, a man who gets enthralled by a Southern Right whale he names Sharisha.
Whale festival
Hermanus hosts an annual whale festival at the end of September, to
celebrate the returning of the southern right whales to this bay during
the calving and mating season. Prior to this main whale festival a
"Kalfiefees" (or "Calf Festival") is held, to welcome the first whales
(usually in August). Both festivals are characterised by food and craft
stalls, environmental presentations and South African drama
productions..
Around the town
The hinterland beyond the town is largely wild and mountainous and
there are many remote areas of hills and wild ravines covered in pristine Cape 'Fynbos'. The rising thermals rising around the rugged
heights of the Fernkloof Nature Reserve attract para gliders from all over the world.
Craft Markets
Various art/food/craft markets are held in and around Hermanus every weekend. In the centre of town is the Lemm's Corner Market where you can buy anything from clothes, art and food. The Food & Wine Market is at Hermanuspietersfontein in the Hamel-en-Aarde Village. The Hermanus Country Market is located at the cricket fields.
Cape Town - Disaster officials are on high alert as winter weather continues to lash the Western Cape.
The SA Weather Service
issued a warning for very rough seas between Table Bay and Port Alfred
with waves of between 6m and 9m while gale force winds have also been
forecast between Cape Point and Plettenberg Bay.
The cold front has brought with it heavy rain and strong winds.
“Heavy
rain is expected in places over the Cape Metropole, Overberg, western
and south-western parts of the Cape Winelands and the southern parts of
the West Coast districts,” the SA Weather Service said.
Eyewitness News quoted Cape Town disaster risk management as saying almost 10 000 people affected by the weather have been helped.
Nearly
2 000 households, mainly situated in informal settlements, have already
been flooded. Solomons-Johannes said more than R1.4m had been spent on
providing aid to affected households.
The persistent rain is only expected to clear by Friday.
Cape Town - Emergency officials in Cape Town are on high
alert on Tuesday following a warning by weather forecasters.
A series of cold fronts are expected to hit the Western Cape
on Tuesday and Wednesday, resulting in a warning by the SA Weather Service of wet
and windy conditions.
Heavy rain and gale-force winds were experienced in Cape
Town on Tuesday morning.
The SABC reported that Cape Town disaster management
officials are focusing on low-lying areas, and have been dispatched to areas
where reports of flooding have been received.
The Cape Times reported on Tuesday that alerts for flooding and
high seas had been issued and routine inspections would be undertaken.
Minimum temperatures in Cape Town are expected to range
between 9 and 15°C on Tuesday. Rain is expected in Cape Town until Saturday.
The weather system is expected to spread eastwards over the
rest of the country later in the week.
Anyone in need of assistance can phone the disaster risk management call centre on 0860 10 30 89.