Duiker Island — Seal Colony

Duiker Island near Hout Bay is home to a Cape fur seal colony numbering in the thousands, and diving here is one of the most joyful wildlife encounters in South Africa. Seals descend in spiralling torpedoes, pirouette around divers' bubbles, and play tug-of-war with fins — their curiosity and agility underwater is completely disarming. The kelp forest surrounding the island provides an atmospheric backdrop, sunlight filtering through the canopy in shafts of green-gold. Beneath the seals, the rocky substrate shelters octopus, cuttlefish, and abundant reef fish. Visibility is typically excellent in winter when the summer upwelling has eased. The experience requires a short boat ride from Hout Bay Harbour and is suitable for Open Water certified divers comfortable in cold water.