Morgans Bay

Morgan Bay is a town in Amathole District Municipality in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.

Morgan Bay

af: Morganbaai
Morgan Bay
Morgan Bay
Coordinates: 32.704°S 28.336°E / -32.704; 28.336
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceEastern Cape
DistrictAmathole
MunicipalityGreat Kei
Area
 • Total1.36 km2 (0.53 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total321
 • Density240/km2 (610/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African47.5%
 • Coloured0.6%
 • Indian/Asian0.6%
 • White47.2%
 • Other4.1%
First languages (2011)
 • Xhosa47.9%
 • English40.7%
 • Afrikaans9.5%
 • Other1.9%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
Postal code (street)
5292
PO box
n/a

The holiday village of Morgans 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, sent out by the British Admiralty to survey the coast from Maputo to the mouth of the Keiskamma River. The nearby Bead Beach (Treasure Beach) is the site of a 16th-century Portuguese shipwreck.[2]

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 1.6km long 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. [3]

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. [4]

The Morganville Motorcycle Museum, located just 7km out of town, houses over 650 motorcycles, a Convair 880 passenger jet, several London buses and lots of 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. [5][6]

Other activities in Morgan Bay include bird watching, hiking, mountain biking, township tours, fishing, surfing, game drives and horse riding.

References
  1. "Main Place Morgan Bay". Census 2011.
  2. "Double Mouth Nature Reserve". Morgan Bay Tourism. Retrieved 2017-05-07.
  3. "The Morgan Bay beach". Morgan Bay Tourism. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
  4. "Morgan Bay Rock Climbing". Eastern Cape Rock Climbing. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
  5. Freeman, Jim (2017-12-16). "Bike nut, and he has a plane!". The Citizen. Gauteng. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
  6. "Morganville Motorcycle Museum". Morgan Bay Tourism. Retrieved 2018-05-07.
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