Diving in Port Elizabeth
Port Elizabeth is the southernmost big city on the entire African continent, even further south than Cape Town. It is located in South Africa’s province of Eastern Cape and the metro area is 1,959 square kilometers (756 square miles) and is home to over 1 million people. The city is known by the people of the region simply as, “PE” and has officially been a town since 1820. The city has a coastline of approximately 16 kilometers (10 miles) along Algoa Bay, a major seaport of South Africa. With that much coastline, Port Elizabeth is a wonderful spot for diving in the region. There are a number of reefs and wrecks to dive in this region. The Wreck of the Baratz, the Haerlem Wreck, d the Patti Wreck are all amazing shipwreck dives in the area. There are also boat dives that are available both inside and out of Algoa Bay. In the bay, Shy Shark Reef, Phillips Reef, The Colosseum, Roxy, John Dory’s Reef, Orange Wall, and White Sands are all worth checking out. If you want to explore out of the bay waters, check out Evans Peak, Gasmic Reef, Cracker, Zephyr’s Wall, Thunderbolt Reef, Crossroads. Gunner’s Rock, or Brenton Island.
Aquatic Life in Port Elizabeth
The Port Elizabeth region is especially known for one specific variety of shark, The Spotted Ragged Tooth Shark This shark is also called a grey nurse shark or a sand tiger shark but around PE, they are simply known as “Raggies”. They are especially common in the Algoa Bay with dive sites such as Hobie Beach one of the best places to view them. While these sharks look like ferocious man-eaters with their protruding teeth, they are actually a very slow and docile species of sharks who have never been known to pose any harm to divers.