Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay/Blomvlei

The dive site Blomvlei is an offshore recent wreck in the Table Bay, near Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa.

-33.87473318.3454831 Blomvlei: S33°52.484' E018°20.729'. This site is the Robben Island Marine Protected Area since 2019. A permit is required.

"Blomvlei" is thought to be the name if the vessel wrecked at this site, but it may be its sister ship, the Mooivlei.

Maximum depth is about 53 m. and the top of the shallowest point of the wreckis is at about 47 m. (Average depth of a dive is likely to be about 50  m.)

Visibility is unpredictable. The site has not been dived often. It is likely to be similar to other sites in the area of similar depth. Surface visibility is not a reliable indicator of visibility at depth, and a heavy layer of plankton bloom may overlay a dark but relatively clear deeper layer. Or maybe not.

The substantially intact hull lies upright on a flat sand bottom with the centreline at 202°T. The forecaste still carries the anchor winch and two anchors in the hawses. The big trawl winch is in the main deck forward of where the superstructure used to be, and there is a rectangular structure with skylights on the quarterdeck. The boiler and propeller are still present but not the rudded.

Geology: The wreck lies on a flat sand bottom.

The site is exposed to all winds and swells with a westerly component, so should be dived in calm or light offshore winds and low swell, and may be good after a southeaster. The depth limits the effect of surface waves on the wreck, but conditions during the ascent and visibility of divers at the surface should be taken into account. South-easterly winds may be strong on the south peninsula but light over Table Bay.

The site is likely to be at its best in summer but there may be opportunities at other times of the year. This is an area which sometimes has upwellings caused by south-easterly winds, but it is not as strongly affected as some other parts of the Cape Peninsula. Sunny days in summer will generally cause plankton bloom to close down surface visibility, but under the bloom it may be relatively clean but can be very dark.

Access is by boat. The site is about (distance) km from (the V&A Waterfront, or ? km from the Offshore Powerboat Club at Granger Bay.

Explore the wreck, and let us know if you find anything that could help with a positive identification.

Wreck of a steam powered steel fishing vessel in moderately intact condition.

• Bruce Henderson and Kelly Graham, 2024, Wood, Iron and Steel: Shipwrecks Mapped off the Western Cape, Wreckless Marine, Cape Town. ISBN 978-1-037-00702-6 (high resolution sonar images)

• -33.8245518.4710171 MV Seli 1
• -33.83353318.3447672 MV Afrikaner
• -33.83518.3816673 SS Hypatia
• -33.835218.3809674 Whale Rock
• -33.8398618.385565 MV Daeyang Family
• -33.86273318.2694336 T.S. McEwan
• -33.86918318.4863837 MV Winton
• -33.873118.3249178 Mooivlei
• -33.873318.316359 Disa
• -33.8818318.33858310 MV Gemsbok
• -33.88596718.430511 Highfields
• -33.88713318.409712 SS Cape Matapan
• -33.88778318.36581713 King Emperor
• -33.89666718.39666714 SS SA Seafarer
• -33.897518.409515 RMS Athens
• -33.90618.397516 Three Anchor Bay
• -33.90793318.417917 Two Oceans Aquarium
• -33.91508318.35701718 Sea Point Ridge Pinnacles

Back to the Alphabetical list of sites, or list of dive sites in the Table bay and approaches

Other regional dive sites:

• Dive sites of the Cape Peninsula west coast
• Dive sites of the Cape Peninsula east coast
• Dive sites of False Bay offshore and approaches
• Dive sites of False Bay east coast
• Fresh water dive sites of the Cape Town Metropolitan Area