Cape Town and the Western Cape
The Oura ring was on for the paddle out at Muizenberg and missing by the walk back up the sand
Surfers' Corner, on the False Bay coast at the end of Muizenberg Beach, is where beginners catch their first waves, with board hire and lessons close by.
An Oura ring that came off during a surf lesson at Muizenberg can still be looked for, and the chances rest on how exactly you can say where you were when it went: in the shallows off Surfers' Corner, on the sand while the board was carried back, or at the bag you left near the bathing boxes.
Ring Seekers is a lost ring and jewellery recovery service that connects people who lost a ring, wedding band, watch, keys or phone in Cape Town and the Western Cape with a metal detectorist who can search there.
Tell us what happened and where. We find a detectorist who can reach the beach, brief them with your map and photos, and tell you honestly if the odds are poor.
The same help applies at St James along the seafront, at Sea Point, Clifton and Camps Bay on the Atlantic side of the city, at Bloubergstrand across Table Bay, from Simon's Town down to Cape Point, and on the beaches of Hermanus on Walker Bay.
Start at the surf school
Ask at the surf school whether anyone has turned it in, and check the rash vest, the wetsuit and the bag before you drive off. After that, what helps is a record: which lesson group you were in, roughly where the instructor had you standing in the water, and the times you entered the water and left it.
The beaches on this page lie on different stretches of water. Sea Point, Clifton and Camps Bay face the Atlantic, Muizenberg and St James are on False Bay, and Hermanus sits on the edge of Walker Bay. Tell us which of these coasts you were on before anything else.
Places we cover in Cape Town and the Western Cape
- Cape Town
- V&A Waterfront
- Sea Point promenade
- Milton Beach, Sea Point
- Clifton 1st Beach
- Clifton 2nd Beach
- Clifton 3rd Beach
- Clifton 4th Beach
- Camps Bay Beach
- Bakoven
- Llandudno
- Muizenberg Beach
- Surfers' Corner, Muizenberg
- St James Beach
- Zandvlei
- Seaforth Beach, Simon's Town
- Windmill Beach, Simon's Town
- Buffels Bay and Bordjiesrif, Cape Point
- Bloubergstrand
- Big Bay and Little Bay
- Hermanus
- Grotto Beach
- Voëlklip Beach
- Kammabaai
- Langbaai
- Sandbaai
- The Old Harbour, Hermanus
From Sea Point round the peninsula to Walker Bay
Cape Town beaches from Muizenberg round the peninsula to Blouberg, then two parts of Hermanus, a small coastal town on the edge of Walker Bay.
Muizenberg Beach and St James
Muizenberg Beach is known for its warm, shallow water and its colourful bathing boxes. Surfers' Corner, at the far end, has gentle waves that suit beginners, and surf shops nearby hire out boards and give lessons. A walkway along the seafront leads on to St James, where another set of bathing boxes stands beside a tidal pool that backs onto a sandy beach. Behind Muizenberg, Zandvlei is an open-water wetland where people come to fly kites.
Sea Point promenade and Milton Beach
People walk, jog and cycle along the Sea Point promenade, and along the way there is an outdoor gym, play parks and lawns for ball games. Milton Beach has a tidal pool and a shoreline to wander.
The four beaches at Clifton
Clifton has four coves, named First to Fourth, separated by granite boulders and sheltered from the South Easter. You reach them by narrow, steep stairs from Victoria Road. First Beach is the least crowded and popular with surfers, Second draws people playing volleyball and other beach sport, Third is small and quiet, and Fourth is where most people come to lie in the sun.
Camps Bay Beach
Camps Bay has a wide stretch of white sand with Table Mountain and the Twelve Apostles above it, grassy banks and palm trees behind it, and restaurants and cafés across Victoria Road. The tidal pool is at the far end of the beach.
Llandudno
Llandudno is one of the most secluded beaches in Cape Town, with bush and milkwood forest around it and Judas Peak and Little Lion's Head on either side. Granite boulders line the water, with caves among the rocks, so say which end of the sand you were at.
Simon's Town and Cape Point
In Simon's Town, Seaforth is a narrow sandy beach with shaded lawns for picnics and restaurants around it. Windmill Beach, tucked behind the golf course, slopes into two calm, clear gullies either side of a rocky point, used for snorkelling and dive training. Further south, the tidal pools at Buffels Bay and Bordjiesrif in the Cape Point reserve draw swimmers and picnickers.
Bloubergstrand, Big Bay and Little Bay
Bloubergstrand looks across Table Bay to Table Mountain and Robben Island, and is the Cape Town centre for kitesurfing and windsurfing. It is split into Big Bay, which takes the full Atlantic swell, and Little Bay, where a row of rocks across the mouth breaks the waves. Little Bay has rock pools and a lawn for picnics and braais.
Grotto Beach, Hermanus
Grotto Beach is an expansive stretch of sand where people swim, sunbathe, play games and go on long walks. A play park for children and a restaurant stand by the beach, and bodyboarders use the water in summer.
Voëlklip, Kammabaai and Langbaai
Voëlklip is a small beach, hidden from the wind, with grassy spots for picnics, and it changes size with the tide. Kammabaai, next door, is split in two by rocks, with rock pools to explore at low tide, and surfers and bodyboarders use it. Langbaai is a quiet beach tucked between rocks, reached by steps, where people swim, surf and paddle.
What we do once you have written
One chat, one person
Every message goes to the same person on WhatsApp, from the first one naming the beach to the last one about how the search went.
Pins and answers go together
The detectorist gets your map pins and photos along with your answers, for example which Clifton cove you were on and where you have already looked.
Beyond the break or not
A loss on the sand or in water you could stand in is a different case from one beyond the break. We tell you which of the two yours looks like.
Costs before a booking
We explain the costs before any search is booked, in the same chat as everything else.
Cold Atlantic, warmer False Bay, and sand that goes under at high tide
What the water and the tide were doing helps place where something went.
Atlantic cold, False Bay warm
Most Cape Town beaches have cold Atlantic currents. Clifton is known for chilly water, and a swim at Camps Bay means a plunge into the frosty Atlantic. Muizenberg, on the False Bay coast, has warm, shallow water and shallow, consistent waves, which makes it a place to learn to surf.
Rock, reef and sand
At St James local surfers ride a reef break, Kammabaai in Hermanus is split in two by rocks, and Langbaai sits between rocks. Say whether you were over sand or near the rocks when it went. Something that went down beyond where you could stand is a long shot, and you would hear that from us first.
Sand that goes under at high tide
In Hermanus, Voëlklip changes size with the tide, and at high tide most of its sand goes under water. Kammabaai next door shrinks at high tide too. Roughly what time it happened helps.
Questions about Cape Town and the Western Cape
We went down the steep stairs from Victoria Road. How do we tell which Clifton beach it was?
The four beaches are numbered First to Fourth and split by granite boulders, so the rocks either side of you are the best clue. Fourth is the one most people head for, Third is the smallest and sits just round the corner from it, and First is the least crowded, with surfers in the water. Any picture from the day with the boulders in the background helps settle which cove it was.
Does the grass behind Camps Bay beach count, if the earring went during a picnic?
Yes. The grassy banks under the palm trees are part of a day at Camps Bay, and the patch of grass you sat on is easy to mark. Pin the palm tree nearest your blanket and say whether you went down onto the sand or into the water afterwards. A close-up of the earring from an earlier photo shows the detectorist its size and shape.
We walked from Muizenberg to St James before we noticed the watch had gone. Where does a search start?
With the route. A walkway runs along the seafront between the two, past rock pools, and both beaches have their own bathing boxes, so a photo showing the boxes nearest you tells us which beach you were on. Mark where you swam or sat at each end, and anywhere you stopped along the sea wall.
I only noticed my bracelet had gone at the end of a run along the Sea Point promenade. Is that worth reporting?
Yes, once the run is broken into pieces. The outdoor gym, the play parks, the lawns and Milton Beach all lie along the promenade, so each place you stopped, stretched or sat is a point to mark. Tell us where you set off, where you turned round and every stop in between, and send a photo of the bracelet.
A phone went missing at Voëlklip in Hermanus while the tide was out. Has the sea been over it since?
It may well have. At high tide most of the sand at Voëlklip goes under water, and at low tide the beach opens through to Kammabaai next door. Tell us roughly when you were there, whether you walked across towards Kammabaai, and where you were in relation to the grassy picnic spots.
Can metal-framed sunglasses dropped on a long walk down Grotto Beach be looked for?
They can, if the walk can be narrowed down. Grotto is an expansive beach, so we need to know where you set off, which way you walked and for roughly how long. The children's play park and the restaurant by the beach are good fixed points to measure from.
We are back home now. Can a wedding band lost on holiday in Cape Town still be looked for?
Yes. A search is planned from the pins, photos and notes you send, so nobody needs you on the beach while it happens. If a friend is still in the city, ask them to photograph the spot with something fixed in view, such as a staircase, a restaurant sign or a rock.
Cape Town and the Western Cape
The Atlantic side, False Bay or Walker Bay
The beach name comes first.
Send the beach and the item on WhatsApp, with a map pin if you have one. If you are not sure which Clifton cove or which part of Muizenberg beach it was, say that too.