Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay/Maidstone Rock

This is a CC-by-sa 3.0 compatible article. Any edits must be licenced under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 in addition to the CC-by-sa 1.0 licence currently required by Wikitravel. By editing this article you acnowledge that you agree to additional licencing to CC-by-sa 3.0 The dive site Maidstone Rock is an offshore rocky reef in the Seaforth area of Simon's Town on the False Bay coast of the Cape Peninsula, near Cape Town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Get in Access Access to this site is by boat, It is about 4.4km from the Miller's Point slipway. Position S34°11.581' E018°27.466' This reef is to the east of Noah's Ark This site is in a Marine Protected Area (2009). A permit is required. Understand Name The name "Maidstone Rock"is the name given the to the reef on the SA Navy charts. Depth Maximum depth is about 21m on the sand, and the top of the highest pinnacle is about 9m. Topography The reef includes a row of granite pinnacles of various heights on a flat fine sand bottom. Geology: Late Pre-cambrian granite from the Peninsula pluton. Conditions The site is exposed to wind and waves from the south east, so should be dived in weaterly winds or a calm. The site is reasonably protected from south westerly swells, but long period swells from the south west will cause strong surge. The site should usually be at it's best in winter but there may also be occasional opportunities at other times of the year. See Reef scene at Maidstone Rock Klipfish The colonial ascidian "Blue Choirboys" Small Abalone Spider crab on Mauve sea cucumbers Marine life Typical of the outer reefs in this area, but not many sea fans. Different rocks have different characters with different dominant invertebrates. Mauve sea cucumbers, striped anemones, strawberry anemones, black brittle stars and common feather stars are abundant. Large numbers of large whelks with egg masses have been seen. Fish may include Roman and small shoals of Hottentot. Photography Macro or wide angle lenses are most suited to the site and the visibility to be expected. Suggested Routes No particular routes are known. Work your way along the line of pinnacle as suits you best. Stay safe Hazards No site specific hazards are known. Skills No special skills required. Ability to deploy a DSMB recommended. Equipment No special equipment required. A DSMB is recommended to inform the boat of where you will be surfacing. Back to Diving the Cape Peninsula and False Bay This is a guide article. It has good, detailed information covering the entire topic. Plunge forward and help us make it a star!