Durban, Umhlanga and Ballito
Your sunglasses were on your head until a Golden Mile wave took them
This coast has named beaches, piers, a lighthouse and tidal pools, which gives you plenty of marks to describe where you were.
If a wave pulled metal-framed sunglasses off your head on Durban's beachfront, a detectorist can look for them in the water and on the sand. The beach you were on, and how deep the water was around you at that moment, are what a search is planned from.
Ring Seekers is a lost ring and jewellery recovery service that connects people who lost a ring, wedding band, watch, keys or phone in Durban, Umhlanga and Ballito 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.
Up the coast from the city lie Umhlanga Rocks, with its lighthouse and pier, Umdloti, Ballito, Salt Rock and Sheffield Beach. Down the coast are Amanzimtoti, Scottburgh, Margate, Uvongo, St Michael's and Ramsgate, and far to the north, St Lucia and Sodwana Bay. Wherever you were, the first message to us looks the same.
The beach name, then the pier
The Golden Mile is one beachfront, but the sand along it is divided into named beaches, among them Snake Park, North Beach, Bay of Plenty, Dairy Beach, Wedge, South Beach and Addington, with piers along the way. If you are unsure which one you were on, go up to the promenade, find the nearest pier, and write down both, together with the time the wave caught you.
Farther up the coast the marks change. At Umhlanga, most people remember the lighthouse, the pier or the lawns. In Ballito, say whether you were on the promenade, on the sand or in a tidal pool, and which bay was in front of you.
Places we cover in Durban, Umhlanga and Ballito
- Durban Golden Mile
- North Beach
- Bay of Plenty
- Snake Park Beach
- Dairy Beach (New Pier Beach)
- Wedge Beach
- Battery Beach
- South Beach
- Addington Beach
- uShaka Beach
- Umhlanga Rocks
- Umhlanga Main Beach and lighthouse
- uMhlanga Pier and promenade
- The uMhlanga Lagoon trail
- Bronze Beach
- Umdloti
- Ballito
- Willard Beach
- Salmon Bay
- Thompson's Bay
- Salt Rock and Umhlali
- Sheffield Beach
- Amanzimtoti
- Umkomaas and Scottburgh
- Aliwal Shoal
- Margate Main Beach and Lucien Beach
- St Michael's Beach and Uvongo
- Ramsgate
- St Lucia
- Sodwana Bay and Jesser Point
Beaches worth naming in your first message
What people come to each beach for.
The Golden Mile surf beaches
North Beach is one of the busiest beaches in the city, with people swimming and surfing. Bay of Plenty and Snake Park are surf spots too. Dairy Beach, also known as New Pier Beach, has a beach break with a consistent wave, and Wedge Beach lies next to the new pier, so the pier makes a handy mark for both.
South Beach, Addington and uShaka Beach
South Beach is popular for surfing, swimming and cycling. Addington Beach is sheltered, and its small waves suit first-time surfers and young swimmers who prefer calm water; people play beach volleyball there too. uShaka Beach is a family beach and a good place for beginners on a board.
Umhlanga main beach, the lighthouse and the pier
The lighthouse stands over the main beach at Umhlanga Rocks, which has green lawns and a promenade for slow walks along the coast. People walk the promenade in the morning and rest at the uMhlanga pier to watch the sun come up. North of the main beach, a trail through the uMhlanga Lagoon Nature Reserve crosses the Ohlange River on boardwalks through coastal forest.
Umdloti
Umdloti lies between Umhlanga and Ballito. It is a compact beach, quieter than its neighbours, with rocky edges and natural tidal pools for sheltered swimming. Low tide is the time to be there.
Ballito, Willard Beach and Thompson's Bay
Ballito's promenade begins at Willard Beach, where people swim and surf, and follows the coastline round towards Salmon Bay. A trail leads off it to Shaka's Rock, and tidal pools along the coast make for quieter dips. Thompson's Bay, just north of Ballito along Marine Drive, is a sheltered beach with warm water.
Salt Rock, Umhlali and Sheffield Beach
Salt Rock Beach has white sand and warm water, with the quiet neighbourhood of Umhlali behind it. It is known for Granny's Pool, a shallow swimming area, and for the Salt Rock Tidal Pool. Sheffield Beach has sheltered coves and rock pools.
Umkomaas and Scottburgh
Scottburgh beach is so big that it seldom gets as crowded as others. People swim or canoe in the lagoon, ride the supertube, play putt-putt, and surf or bodyboard the waves. Umkomaas lies just to the north, and offshore, the Aliwal Shoal reef draws scuba divers.
Margate, St Michael's, Uvongo and Ramsgate
Margate Main Beach is central, with wide sand, shops close by and the Margate pier for fishing. Lucien Beach, also called Margate North Beach, is close by and is reached by steps from the main road. St Michael's Beach has a point break for surfers and bodyboarders, and tidal and splash pools, and Uvongo has tidal pools as well. Ramsgate has a large tidal pool and a lagoon at the river mouth.
St Lucia and Sodwana Bay, far to the north
In the iSimangaliso Wetland Park, the town of St Lucia sits between its estuary and the sea, and a boardwalk runs from the estuary mouth through forest onto the beach. Sodwana Bay, known worldwide for its diving, has miles of sandy beach, and at low tide people snorkel the shallow pools by Jesser Point.
Between your first message and a search
One chat, one person
Everything about your loss stays in a single WhatsApp chat, and one person looks after it from your first photo to the last update.
The detectorist sees what you saw
Your map pin, your pictures of the beach and of the item, and what you told us about the pier or pool nearby all go to the detectorist before anyone sets out.
Straight answers on the chances
Before anything is arranged you get our honest view of the chances, good or bad, in plain words.
Nothing booked without your yes
We explain the costs before any search is booked, and nothing is arranged on your behalf until you have agreed.
What was around you when it went
Pick the card closest to where you were.
Out on a board
Something that came off beyond the breaking waves is a long shot, and you would hear that from us first. Nearer the sand it is different, so tell us if you were at Bay of Plenty, Snake Park, Dairy Beach or Wedge on the Golden Mile, or at the point break at St Michael's, and how far in you were when you noticed.
Tidal pools and rock pools
Umdloti, Ballito, Salt Rock, Uvongo and Ramsgate all have tidal pools. The name of the pool, and a photo of the rocks where you left your things, are the two details we ask for first.
Piers and promenades
The Durban beachfront has several piers, Umhlanga has its pier on the promenade walk, and Margate has a pier used for fishing. Name the pier, and tell us whether you were out on it or down on the sand beside it.
Questions about Durban, Umhlanga and Ballito
How do I describe where on the Golden Mile the wave caught me?
By the beach name first. The sand along the beachfront is split into named beaches with piers along the way, so give us the beach name and the pier you were closest to. Then say how deep the water was, whether you were on a board, and when it happened. If a friend has a picture of you wearing the sunglasses that day, send it: it shows the exact frames.
Our daughter's bracelet came off while she played in the small waves at Addington.
Addington is a sheltered beach, and its small waves suit first-time surfers and young swimmers who prefer calm water. Tell us where the family had set up on the sand, how far out she went, and for how long she was in. Send a photo of the bracelet on her wrist, or the listing for the same one on a shop website.
The engagement ring was off while I put on sun cream on the lawns near the Umhlanga lighthouse.
The lighthouse stands on the main beach at Umhlanga Rocks, which also has green lawns and a promenade for walks along the coast. Picture where you sat in relation to the lighthouse: was it straight ahead, to your left or to your right? Tell us too if you then walked down to the sand or along the promenade, and send a photo of the ring.
A gold chain came off in one of the tidal pools at Umdloti.
Umdloti is a compact beach with rocky edges and natural tidal pools, and it is at its best at low tide. There is more than one pool, so a pin on the one you swam in matters most. Tell us whether you also climbed on the rocks around it. For the chain, say whether it is gold or gold-plated, and how fine the links are.
A watch clasp opened somewhere on the Ballito promenade between Willard Beach and Salmon Bay.
The promenade begins at Willard Beach and follows the coastline round towards Salmon Bay, and a trail leads off it to Shaka's Rock. Start from the end you set out from, then list the benches, steps or viewpoints where you paused, and say whether you went down onto the sand or up the trail. The make and model of the watch, and a photo of it, go in the same message.
Is Granny's Pool the same as the Salt Rock tidal pool? My Oura ring came off in one of them.
No, they are two separate places. Salt Rock Beach is known for both: Granny's Pool, a shallow swimming area, and the Salt Rock Tidal Pool. Tell us which pool you were in when you noticed the ring had gone, and whether you crossed the rocks or the sand between them. Add the ring's colour and size.
We sat near the steps down to Lucien Beach in Margate when the wedding band slipped off.
Lucien Beach, also called Margate North Beach, is reached by steps from the main road and is so close to Margate Main Beach that the two almost share one stretch of sand. There are tidal pools there too. Tell us which steps you came down, how far from the bottom you sat, and whether you went to the pools, the main beach or the pier. A photo of the band completes the message.
Durban, Umhlanga and Ballito
Send the beach name while it is fresh in your mind
North coast, Golden Mile and south coast alike.
A WhatsApp message with that name, a photo of the item and the nearest pier, pool or lighthouse is plenty to begin with.