Page 101 - Bulletin 7 2003

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All of these boats, from Simon’s Town and Kalk Bay, would go round Cape Point to
Hout Bay for the snoek season in the winter months. This was the main season when

fishermen could earn a better living. Boat-owners would moor their boats there and
travel daily to and from their homes on the False Bay side.

In the early years there were no sea rescue boats. On 18 July 1948 the boat “Sea
Foam” capsized and seven men drowned and only one survived. He was Mr. Turk

Achmad and he swam ashore. He passed away around 1995. Later, the Kalk Bay
boat Ang-Jerry, owned by the late Mr. Williams, was used for any emergency at sea.

In 1965 the pilchards were running well in False Bay and about 80 boats from the

West Coast and Hout Bay came to fish in the bay, taking their catches back to the

West Coast and Hout Bay. At the same time there was good crayfish in Smitswinkel
Bay and crayfish boats “Retreat”, “Wynberg”, “Harfield”, “Claremont”,

“Nuweland”, “Mowbray”, “Salt River”, and “Woodstock” were all anchored in the

bay. Ten fishermen from the boat “Woodstock” on return from the harbour in their
ferry dinghy capsized and drowned.

Trek-fishing was established at numerous places where it no longer occurs. Trek

fishermen operated at Buffels Bay (McKellar Bay) in the Cape of Good Hope Nature
Reserve. Victor Lawrence, a white owner, ran the operation until he died. At

Seaforth the Miller’s, a coloured group, were operating until they were forced to

move under the Group Areas Act in 1970. At Jaffa’s Bay, Simon’s Town, Ossie
Jaffa, a Moslem, was operating until displaced by the expansion of the Dockyard in

the 1980s. Trekking is still going on from Long Beach, Simon’s Town, by the
Cotton’s. (Figs. 3.12, 3.13 & 3.14). And at Glencairn / Klein Vishoek Achmad, who

used to be with the Jaffa’s, is still running a trek.

Since 1880 fishermen have been operating at Witsands and Kommetjie, mainly hand

line-fishing and crayfish. Mr. De Villiers, a white man, held the beach-boat fishing
rights and the fishermen were forced to work for him. He operated 12 ft. rowing

boats. In 1920 Mr. De Villiers and Mr. Higgens built a 60 ft. boat called the “Star of