Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay/Whale Rock

The dive site Whale Rock is an offshore rocky reef in the Robben Island area on the Atlantic seaboard of the Cape Peninsula, near Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

Understand

See also: Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay#Understand

Position

1 Whale Rock: S33°50.112’ E018°22.858’ — A shoal area of reef south of Robben Island.

This site is in the Robben Island Marine Protected Area since 2019. A permit is required.

Name

The name "Whale Rock" is the name for the area on SA Navy charts.

Depth

Fairly shallow. Mostly less than 10 m.

Topography

Large area of shallow reef.

Geology: Pre-Cambrian sedimentary rocks, probably of the Tygerberg formation.

Conditions

This reef is exposed to the south west swell. There is often a break in the area and the surge can be very powerful. The water is usually cold. The site should be dived when the sea is fairly flat.

The site is usually at it's best in summer but there are also occasional opportunities in other seasons.

Get in

See also: Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay#Boat dives

Only accessible by boat. The site is about 8 km from Oceana Power Boat Club slipway.

There are day charter boats which can take a diver to any of the dive sites in the region, but most operators only work from a limited number of launch sites, which limits the dive sites they visit. Visits to a dive site also depend on the weather and are generally not predictable or bookable more than two to four days in advance. See the listing for Cape Peninsula and False Bay boat dive charters and the associated services directory for contact details.

See

Marine life

See also: Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay#The marine ecology

Large red bait pods abound in this area.

Routes

No particular route recommended.

Stay safe

See also: Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay#Stay safe

Hazards

Surge can be very strong.

Skills

No special skills required.

Equipment

See also: Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay#Equipment

No special equipment recommended

Nearby

• 1 Robben Island steamer wreck
• 2 MV Daeyang Family
• 3 SS Hypatia
• 4 MV Winton
• 5 Highfields
• 6 Two Oceans Aquarium
• 7 SS Cape Matapan
• 8 RMS Athens
• 9 SS SA Seafarer
• 10 MV Gemsbok
• 11 Three Anchor Bay
• 12 Sea Point Ridge Pinnacles
• 13 Bantry Bay

Back to the Alphabetical list of sites, or list of dive sites in the Robben Island area

Other regional dive sites:

• Dive sites of the Cape Peninsula west coast
• Dive sites of the Cape Peninsula east coast
• Dive sites of False Bay offshore and approaches
• Dive sites of False Bay east coast
• Fresh water dive sites of the Cape Town Metropolitan Area