A famous Cape Town tourism hot spot has become somewhat of a sunken graveyard for ships as wrecks begin to pile in the busy harbour. Hout Bay Harbour is one of Cape Town’s tourism jewels and thousands come each year to soak up the seaside atmosphere or take a leisurely trip on a ferry. Its big attraction is seal island which is inhabited by thousands of cape fur seals and is a big hit with tourists but unfortunately Hout Bay has seen better days. Thats because the around 17 ships are wrecked inside the habour,some half submerged others fully,all though a potential danger
The wrecks are clear to see and some are scattered around busy passage ways in the harbor,others seem to face the same fate in the near future. They been building up over the years,some even on top of each other,some have fallen victim to bad weather but most to crime
“The wrecks are a bad thing because they are,apart from being unsightly they a navigation hazard,specifically a pollution hazard,they always leak various fluids into the sea and most of the tourists come here to see the wildlife and obviously if wildlife is affected,tourism will drop off.” Robert King, Skipper/Nauticat Charters
Hout Bay harbor’s wrecks may be a sight for soar eyes but they could also harm the local economy,if the nearby seal pollution if affected.
For now though,wildlife continues to make Hout Bay a big tourism draw card and with the peak holiday season fast approaching,the wrecks are for the time being seen,as just a minor inconvenience.
