View of Hermanus and Grotto Beach from Rotary Way

Hermanus (originally called ''Hermanuspietersfontein'', but shortened in 1902 as the name was too long for the postal serviceHermanus Pieters: The Beginnings of Hermanus
at the official), is a town on the southern coast of the

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 202 ...

province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring coun ...

. It is known for

Southern Right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...

watching during the southern winter to spring seasons, and is a popular retirement location.

History

Hermanus Pieters (ca.1778–1837) was a Dutch teacher who arrived in Cape Town in 1815. He was recruited by Dutch-speaking farmers who disliked that English was the only language used in all government schools. He settled in Caledon, but taught Dutch to farmers in a wide area around that town, including the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley. He often vacationed at the spring ("fontein") in present-day Hermanus, where he fished and grazed his sheep, the place eventually became known as “Hermanus Pieters se Fonteyn”. He died before the village Hermanuspietersfontein existed. 65 years after his death the postmaster decided to abbreviate the name to Hermanus. The parents of Roger Bushell, leader of the "Great Escape" (the escape by Allied airmen from

Stalag Luft III Stalag Luft III (german: Stammlager Luft III; literally "Main Camp, Air, III"; SL III) was a ''Luftwaffe''-run German prisoner-of-war camps in World War II, prisoner-of-war (POW) camp during the Second World War, which held captured Allies of World ...

in World War II), retired in Hermanus after World War II, and are buried there. Bushell's name is one of those commemorated on the war memorial.

Location

Hermanus lies along Walker Bay on the south coast of the

. It is located about 115 km southeast of

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

and is connected to the Mother City by the R43 highway (or coastal R44 scenic route) and N2 motorway. The R43 continues to

Cape Agulhas Cape Agulhas (; pt, Cabo das Agulhas , "Cape of the Needles") is a rocky headland in Western Cape, South Africa. It is the geographic southern tip of the African continent and the beginning of the dividing line between the Atlantic and Indian ...

, the most southerly point of Africa. Hermanus is 40 km from

Gansbaai Gansbaai (Dutch/Afrikaans for "bay of geese," sometimes referred to as Gans Bay or Gangs Bay) is a fishing town and popular tourist destination in the Overberg District Municipality, Western Cape, South Africa. It is known for its dense populatio ...

, a spot where people can dive amongst the

great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans. It is nota ...

s. It is also notable that Hermanus still boasts a historic railway station building without a railway line. The founders of the town decided not to lay any tracks as this would have made Hermanus more commercial and felt that Hermanus needed to stay a small fisherman's village. To this day the locals still refer to it as "the village." The town of

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provin ...

borders Hermanus to its east.

Sandbaai Sandbaai (or Sand Bay) is a seaside town of approximately 4,000 people on the south coast of the Western Cape province in South Africa. Sandbaai lies between Onrusrivier to the west and Hermanus itself to the east. Sandbaai is governed as ward 7 of ...

lies on the coast at the entrance to the Hemel-en-Aarde (Heaven and Earth) Valley. It is the most recently developed and fastest-growing residential area of Greater Hermanus. Zwelihle, designated a "black" area by the

apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...

era government, is a residential area that consists mainly of shacks. Following the

COVID 19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

the town has emerged as a popular destination for very wealthy South Africans to move to.

Climate

Hermanus is classified as having a

warm-summer Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate (also called a dry summer temperate climate ''Cs'') is a temperate climate sub-type, generally characterized by warm, dry summers and mild, fairly wet winters; these weather conditions are typically experienced in the ...

( Köppen). It receives roughly 520 mm of rain per annum, the majority of which falls during the winter months of June to August in the form of frontal precipitation. Average midday temperatures range from 25 °C in February to 16 °C in July. Extremes above 30 °C and under 10 °C are not uncommon. Summer and Winter months are characterised by strong south-easterly and north-westerly winds respectively.

Facilities

The Space Science Directorate of the South African National Space Agency, previously the

Hermanus Magnetic Observatory SANSA Space Science, previously the Hermanus Magnetic Observatory (HMO) is South Africa's national geomagnetic research facility. The observatory is situated in the town of Hermanus (Overstrand Local Municipality) in the Western Cape Province and ...

(HMO), is a research facility of the National Research Foundation and forms part of the worldwide network which monitors variations of the

earth's magnetic field Earth's magnetic field, also known as the geomagnetic field, is the magnetic field that extends from Earth's interior out into space, where it interacts with the solar wind, a stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun. The magneti ...

Environment

Beaches

''Grotto Beach'' is the largest beach in Hermanus and has also been proclaimed a

blue Flag beach The Blue Flag is a certification by the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE) that a beach, marina, or sustainable boating tourism operator meets its standards. The Blue Flag is a trademark owned by FEE, which is a not-for-profit non-go ...

. Blue flag beaches meet international environment, safety and management criteria. Other beaches with Blue Flag status include ''Voëlklip'', ''Onrus'', ''Kammabaai'', ''Langbaai,'' and ''Hawston''. The rugged coastline also hosts many other smaller beaches, coves and tidal pools.

Floral diversity

Hermanus is in the Cape Floristic Region and thus has one of the highest plant diversity levels in the world. The principal vegetation type of this region is

fynbos Fynbos (; meaning fine plants) is a small belt of natural shrubland or heathland vegetation located in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape provinces of South Africa. This area is predominantly coastal and mountainous, with a Mediterranean clim ...

, a mixture of evergreen shrub-like plants with small firm leaves. In the local Fernkloof Nature Reserve, 1,474 plant species have thus far been collected and identified.

Bird watching

Over 100 varieties of bird species reside in the Greater Hermanus area. Species such as the Orange-breasted Sunbird, the Cape Sugarbird, Victorin's Warbler, and other rare animals, make Hermanus a destination for bird enthusiasts.

Whales and whale-spotting

The town is noted for the presence of whales that often swim within sight of the coastline of the town. Although the Southern Right whale is the most prolific species in Hermanus bay, it is not the only species in the area. The whales can be seen from the cliffs all along the coast from as early as June and usually depart in early-December. They were once hunted in the nearby town of Betty's Bay, but are now protected. The Old Harbour Museum contains several exhibitions that explain the local

whaling Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industr ...

industry, and the De Wetshuis Photo Museum houses an exhibition of photos by T. D. Ravenscroft that depicts the history of Hermanus. The Whale Museum houses a skeleton of a whale and shows an audio-visual presentation of whales and dolphins twice daily. Visitors can watch whales from the cliff-tops, from the air or via boats. Since August 1992, Hermanus has had the world's only whale crier, the first being Pieter Classen 1992-1998, then Wilson Salukazana 1998-2006, and Zolile Baleni since April 2006, who sounds his

kelp Kelps are large brown algae seaweeds that make up the order Laminariales. There are about 30 different genera. Despite its appearance, kelp is not a plant - it is a heterokont, a completely unrelated group of organisms. Kelp grows in "underwa ...

horn to announce where whales have been sighted. In 2005,

Zakes Mda Zakes Mda ( ), legally Zanemvula Kizito Gatyeni Mda (born 1948) is a South African novelist, poet and playwright and he is the son of politician A. P. Mda. He has won major South African and British literary awards for his novels and plays. He i ...

wrote the novel ''

The Whale Caller ''The Whale Caller'' is a fifth novel written by South African writer Zakes Mda, who is currently a professor at Ohio University, It is a novel about a man in South Africa named Whale Caller. The Whale Caller first appears to be sexually attract ...

'' in which the Whale Crier of Hermanus is the main character, a man who gets enthralled by a

southern right whale The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20 ...

he names Sharisha. The book was adapted into a 2016 movie by the same name.

Whale festival

Hermanus hosts an annual Hermanus Whale Festival at the end of September, to celebrate the calving and mating season. Eco-Tourism is the main theme of the Hermanus whale festival with the Eco-Marine Village. Residents and visitors celebrate the migration of Southern Right Whales and other marine wildlife with ocean-themed activities and exhibitions, emphasizing education and environmentally responsible adventures and activities. Prior to this main whale festival, a Kalfiefees (or Calf Festival) is held, to welcome the first whales (usually in August). Both festivals are characterized by food and craft stalls, environmental presentations, and South African drama productions.

Gallery

File:Great white shark Dyer Island.jpg,

Great white shark The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major oceans. It is nota ...

near Dyer IslandSee German page: Dyer Island (South Africa) Hermanus Coastline from the air with a City view.webm, An aerial video of the coastline along Hermanus with a view of the town. Hermanus-new-harbour.jpg, Hermanus's new harbor Old harbour and town.jpg, Railway station building, Hermanus (South Africa).jpg, Historic railway station building Southern Right Whales.jpg,

Southern Right Whales The southern right whale (''Eubalaena australis'') is a baleen whale, one of three species classified as right whales belonging to the genus ''Eubalaena''. Southern right whales inhabit oceans south of the Equator, between the latitudes of 20° ...

File:Hermanus Community Partnership Function.jpg, Hermanus Community Policing Forum meeting.

Notable residents

* H. A. Humphrey (1868 – 1951), engineer and inventor. * Ernest Frederick Watermeyer (1880-1958), lawyer and Chief Justice of South Africa. *

Stuart Cloete Edward Fairly Stuart Graham Cloete (23 July 1897 – 19 March 1976) was a South African novelist, essayist, biographer and short story writer. Early life Cloete was born in Paris to Margaret Edit Park, granddaughter of Glasgow banker Edward ...

(1897 – 1976), novelist and author. * Evered Poole (1902 – 1969), South African World War 2 military commander and diplomat. * Louis Roy Serrurier (1905 – 1990), cricketer. * Uys Krige (1910-1987), writer and novelist. *

Cecil Michaelis Maximilian Gustav Alfred Cecil Michaelis (born: 19 August 1913 - died: 3 May 1997), was an artist who also practised in glass and ceramics, and a philanthropist who encouraged crafts and design. He was the only son of Sir Max Michaelis, a South Af ...

(1913-1997), artist and philanthropist. * Athol Rowan (1921-1998), cricketer. * Dick Westcott (1927-2013), cricketer. * Julian Sleigh (1927-2013), priest and author. * Harvey Wood Tyson (1928 – 2018), journalist and writer. * Paul Johnstone (1930 – 1996), South African rugby player. * John Michael Kumleben (1933 – 2014), cricketer. * Piet du Toit (1935-1996), rugby player. *

Mervyn Gotsman Mervyn S. Gotsman is Professor Emeritus of Cardiology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem and Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, Israel. Biography Mervyn Samuel Gotsman was born in 1935 in the town of Hermanus in South Africa to Benjamin, ...

(1935), professor of Cardiology. *

Barry Hilton David Barry Hilton (born 29 January 1956) is a South African stand-up comedian. Referred to by his middle name, Barry (aka 'The Cousin'), he is also an actor, television personality and motivational speaker. After 6 years of initially working ...

(1956), stand-up comedian. * Frank Opperman (1960), actor and musician. * Petrus du Plessis (1981), rugby player and coach. * Eden Links (1989), cricketer. *

Leolin Zas Leolin Lucien Zas (born 20 October 1995) is a South African rugby union player for the in Super Rugby and in the Currie Cup and the in the Rugby Challenge. His regular position is winger and centre. Career Youth / Boland / South African Sc ...

(1991), rugby player. * Robert Hunt (1996), rugby player.

References

External links

Overstrand Municipality

Hermanus Tourism/Visitor Information Centre
{{Authority control Populated places in the Overstrand Local Municipality Populated coastal places in South Africa Articles containing video clips