Morgan Bay is a village in

Amathole District Municipality Amathole is one of the 7 districts of Eastern Cape province of South Africa. The seat of Amathole is East London. Over 90% of its 892,637 people speak Xhosa (2011 Census). The district code is DC12. "Amathole" means calves, the name of the mou ...

in the Eastern Cape province of

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

. The holiday village of Morgan Bay was given its current name in 1822, when it was named after A.F. Morgan, the master of the Barracouta, a survey ship of the Royal Navy. The ship was part of an expedition under Captain

William Fitzwilliam Owen Vice Admiral William Fitzwilliam Owen (17 September 1774 – 3 November 1857), was a British naval officer and explorer. He is best known for his exploration of the west and east African coasts, discovery of the Seaflower Channel off the co ...

, sent out by the British Admiralty to survey the coast from

Maputo Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,0 ...

to the mouth of the

Keiskamma River The Keiskamma River ( af, Keiskammarivier) is a river in the Eastern Cape Province in South Africa. The river flows into the Indian Ocean in the Keiskamma Estuary, located by Hamburg Nature Reserve, near Hamburg, midway between East London and P ...

. The nearby Bead Beach (Treasure Beach) is the site of a 16th-century Portuguese shipwreck.

Tourism

Morgan Bay is a popular holiday destination due to its picturesque setting, mile-long beach, estuary, sea cliffs and location at the Southern end of the Wild Coast. The sandy beach is patrolled by lifeguards during the festive season and is ideal for ball games like cricket, rugby and tennis. A touch rugby and cricket tournament are held between Christmas and New Year every year. The dunes are good for sandboarding and the beach is also popular with joggers and walkers. The shallow Inchara river estuary, which hosts numerous water birds, is ideal for swimming and water sports like canoeing, board sailing and standup paddle boarding. The Morgan Bay cliffs are popular with hikers and offer excellent vantage points for watching the sunrise or enjoying a sundowner with friends. The Morgan Bay cliffs is the largest sea cliff climbing location in South Africa with over 600 climbing routes and several bouldering problems. The Morganville Motorcycle Museum, located just out of town, houses over 650 motorcycles, a Convair 880 passenger jet, several London buses and many other collectables. Owned and run by former Eastern Cape Finance MEC, Billy Nel, the museum is opened to the public on the occasional open-day, which he holds for local charities, and for visiting motorcycle clubs during rallies. Other activities in Morgan Bay include bird watching, hiking, mountain biking, township tours, fishing, surfing, game drives and horse riding.

External links

*
Morgan Bay Tourism

References

{{Amathole District Municipality Populated places in the Great Kei Local Municipality Tourist attractions in the Eastern Cape