His devotion to the world's oceans won him an Oscar. Now he shares his favourite things to do in Cape Town, from whale spotting in False Bay to freediving in the kelp forests. Situated at the southern tip of Africa and surrounded by the Atlantic and Indian Oceans, Cape Town's identity is woven with its waters.
Once a refuelling station for the Dutch East India Company , its history goes further back – to the Khoekhoe and San Indigenous peoples, nomadic pastoralists and hunter-gatherers who once inhabited the region and lived off the land and sea. Cape Town's intimate relationship with its coastline continues to the present day. Capetonians all seem to have at least one outdoorsy hobby, and it's not hard to understand why: in a single day, it’s possible to hike to the picturesque Lion's Head peak, go surfing at Muizenberg beach and dive the kelp forests of False Bay, thanks to the density of activities on offer.
Winters in South Africa are often milder than in Europe, coinciding with climbing season (the nearby Cederberg mountains feature world-class routes) and whale migrations up the coast. With no shortage of adventures, we spoke to renowned naturalist, author and documentarian Craig Foster , the creator behind the Academy Award-winning 2020 documentary My Octopus Teacher , about his favourite coastal activities. His latest book, Amphibious Soul: Finding the Wild in a Tame World , explores the importance of reconnecting with our intrinsic sense of wildness and relations.