First of all — yes, this is as hard as it sounds.
If you haven’t been to South Africa and explored its coastline, it might be hard to understand… so I’ll help you out.
South Africa is well known among sailors as one of the most gnarly coastlines of a circumnavigation. It’s the alternative to the Red Sea, and when people decide whether to go north or south, this coast is definitely something they think long and hard about.
So, as you can imagine, when we sailed into South Africa we were well aware of the sailing ahead of us down its coast. But I was also pretty excited — because the wildness sailors are cautious of… can bring swell. And thankfully, there are places for that swell to break.
Not just surfable… world-class.
So, shall we sail down the South African coast together and I’ll tell you how we managed to find surf from each port? Sounds good.
Related:
Surfing from a Boat in Madagascar: An Unforgettable Adventure
Richard’s Bay
The most northern port you can clear into is Richard’s Bay.
It’s not super social, to be honest — the town is pretty industrial — but the marina itself is cute. And with all the international vessels there with us, it was pumping, which made it fun.
When it comes to surf, it wasn’t spectacular. Coming from Madagascar and its next-level waves, we knew it wouldn’t quite compare… but after days at sea, we were very keen to get in the water.
So the morning after we arrived, we made our way to the beach and found… clean, glassy waves! A beach break no less — we hadn’t surfed a beach in ages.
The next week or so was spent surfing the dirty, dumpy, but fun beach whenever the weather allowed. While we were there, we also got a solid glimpse of just how wild this coast can become… let’s just say it already had our utmost respect.
Soon enough, we sailed on to our next stop.
Durban
We’d managed to find waves in our first port — they were even walkable from the boat! Now it was time to explore a proper city and see what Durban had to offer.
Okay, I know many people will think we’re mad — even the locals did — but we walked from the marina to the beach, straight through the city, carrying our surfboards.
Yes, it took ages.
Yes, the waves were definitely not worth it that day.
But at least now we knew… we needed a car.
The weather had us staying in the city for a couple of weeks, which meant we got to know the beach pretty well and managed to surf almost every day. It was interesting how the waves broke off the piers — welling up and almost wedging on the inside. Challenging, different, and super fun.
After a trip inland, we were finally on our way down the infamous Wild Coast.
Knysna
Have you heard of Knysna?
I’ll admit — I hadn’t even heard of it until we were nearing South Africa. But now I know… it’s home to one of the most treacherous bar crossings in the world.
No exaggeration.
It’s a super-narrow entrance between steep cliffs, with breaking rocks on either side. You’re forced to stay close to one side to avoid getting caught near the other. It’s unpredictable — some boats can’t get in because it’s breaking, while others get in and then can’t get out because conditions turn into a full close-out.
So yes… we were a little nervous. But some awesome dolphins greeted us so a tiny little bit less nervous.
Timing the incoming tide, flat seas, and very little wind, we followed a local vessel through the Heads. We made it safely — but we were very aware of the damage it could do.
Okay, enough sailing — let’s talk surf.
Knysna is only a few hours from one of South Africa’s most famous waves: Jeffreys Bay.
We’d flown down from Tanzania to surf J-Bay before, and now our home was just a few hours away. So obviously, we went.
We stayed a few nights and absolutely frothed. I’ve already written a lot about J-Bay, though, so I won’t go on now — you can read about that trip here.
Another well-known break nearby (only an hour’s drive) is Vic Bay. Yet another right-hand point break — not as famous, but still so fun. It runs along the rocks, and the first time we surfed it the swell was small. The second time though… bigger swell, and wowzers. So, so good.
Knysna was a huge highlight for us. Getting to surf both of those breaks was unreal — and thankfully, we just made it out over a breaking wave on departure, safe.
Cape Town
Welcome to the most southern point of Africa!
We rounded Cape Agulhas in daylight and got to see the lighthouse — pretty incredible. Then we continued on past the Cape of Good Hope, and before we knew it… we were in the Atlantic Ocean.
Full warning: the Atlantic down there is FREEZING.
Like, can’t duck dive because of brain freeze, freezing.
But we still found waves.
More car rentals, squeezing in, boards on the roof — but who cares. The biggest struggle was wrestling 4/3 wetsuits on and off. Brutal.
We surfed spots like Noordhoek, Llandudno, and Kommetjie. All fun, all freezing, but absolutely worth it. Somehow I lasted the longest — the guys would bail after half an hour, but I stayed out for nearly two. No idea why… maybe extra froth.
We loved Cape Town. Waking up to the mountains, surfing cold Atlantic waves, climbing Table Mountain — it constantly left us in awe. Very special.
Summary
Alright, I should probably wrap this up — I could go on forever.
But the short answer is: yes, you can surf South Africa from a sailboat… but you’re going to want a car. This wasn’t a “how-to” guide — just how we did it.
What I do want to say is this: if you haven’t been to South Africa, please go. Sail it, surf it, explore it — it’s wild in the best way.
Thanks for reading! I hope you learned something and enjoyed the ride.
If you have stories of crazy places you’ve sailed, surfed, or both — please comment. I’d love to hear them.