Cannon Rocks
Encyclopedia
Cannon Rocks is a small seaside town on the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...

 in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

, between Boknes
Boknesstrand
Boknesstrand is a small town in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It is close to Cannon Rocks, Kenton-on-Sea, Alexandria, Bushman's River Mouth and Port Alfred. It is part of the Ndlambe Local Municipality in the Cacadu District of the Eastern Cape.-External links:* http://www.boknesstrand.co.za...

 and the boundary of the Greater Addo Elephant Park. It is situated 135 km to the east of Port Elizabeth and 180 km west of East London approximately 15 minutes from the town of Kenton-on-Sea
Kenton-on-Sea
Kenton-on-Sea, more commonly known as Kenton, is a small coastal town on the Sunshine Coast, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It is situated between the Bushman's River and the Kariega River, and lies approximately half way between the industrial centres of East London and Port Elizabeth...

. Port Alfred
Port Alfred
Port Alfred is a small town with a population of just under 20,000 in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is situated on the eastern seaboard of the country at the mouth of the Kowie River, almost exactly half-way between the larger cities of Port Elizabeth and East London and 30 km...

 is approximately 30 km to the East of Cannon Rocks. Cannon Rocks is part of the Ndlambe Local Municipality
Ndlambe Local Municipality
Ndlambe Local Municipality is an administrative area in the Cacadu District of the Eastern Cape in South Africa, with its capital at Port Alfred...

 in the Cacadu District
Cacadu District Municipality
Cacadu District Municipality is situated in the Western Portion of the Eastern Cape province, covering an area of 58 242 square kilometres. The area of the district municipality includes nine local municipalities and other portions collectively known as the District Management Areas . The seat of...

 of the Eastern Cape.

The town is named after two cannons of historical importance and is close to the Diaz cross
Dias Cross Memorial
The Dias Cross Memorial is a provincial heritage site in Alexandria in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It can be seen from miles away from its distinctive colors.In 1945 it was described in the Government Gazette as-References:*...

, erected five centuries ago by Bartholomew Diaz, the first Portuguese ocean explorer to sail along the eastern coast of South Africa.

Cannon Rocks is a major marker for weather forecasts for the coastal belt. It divides two coastal sections: Plettenberg Bay
Plettenberg Bay
Plettenberg Bay, nicknamed Plet or Plett, is the primary town of the Bitou Local Municipality in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. As of the census of 2001, there were 29149 population...

 to Cannon Rocks; and Cannon Rocks to Kei Mouth
Kei Mouth
Kei Mouth is a resort town on the southeast coast of South Africa, situated in the Wild Coast region of the Eastern Cape Province, situated 94 kilometres from the city of East London...

.

Geology

There are outcrops in the sea close to Cannon Rocks of a coastal marine formation, the Salnova Formation. This formation occurs about 20 metres above sea level and comprises calcrete with quartzitic
Quartzite
Quartzite is a hard metamorphic rock which was originally sandstone. Sandstone is converted into quartzite through heating and pressure usually related to tectonic compression within orogenic belts. Pure quartzite is usually white to gray, though quartzites often occur in various shades of pink...

 sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...

 boulders and shell material.

Activities

Cannon Rocks provides one of the best kitesurfing locations
Kitesurfing locations
Any location with consistent, steady side-onshore winds , a large open body of water and a good launch area is suitable for kitesurfing. Kitesurfing takes place along ocean shores, usually off beaches, on large lakes, on bays and inlets and occasionally on rivers.Some of the world's top kitesurfing...

 anywhere in the world. The town played host to the 2006 South African Kitesurfing
Kitesurfing
Kitesurfing or Kiteboarding is an adventure surface water sport that has been described as combining wakeboarding, windsurfing, surfing, paragliding, and gymnastics into one extreme sport. Kitesurfing harnesses the power of the wind to propel a rider across the water on a small surfboard or a...

 Championships.
The major attraction is the unspoilt and uncrowded nature of the beaches, coupled to a stable and predictable south westerly.

The town is a premier rock and surf angling
Angling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...

 destination with the site of lone anglers making their way down the unspoilt beaches a beautiful sight.

There is a charter company (Big Blue) in town that takes visitors on deep sea angling, snorkeling
Snorkeling
Snorkeling is the practice of swimming on or through a body of water while equipped with a diving mask, a shaped tube called a snorkel, and usually swimfins. In cooler waters, a wetsuit may also be worn...

 or scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....

 excursions.

There is a two hour drive that takes visitors through the Golden Mile dairy farms on the spectacular cliffs overlooking Bird Island and the world's biggest coastal dune field. The road turns into the state forest where century old trees form a dense canopy over the road. The road ends in Alexandria
Alexandria, Eastern Cape
Alexandria, South Africa is a small farming town in the Eastern Cape of South Africa and is situated 100 km North East of Port Elizabeth on the way to Bushman's River Mouth, Kenton-on-Sea and Port Alfred...

, where it branches back over the mountain to Cannon Rocks.

Two hiking trials begin in Cannon Rocks. The first (7 km) starts right at the western end of town at the Cannons and winds through the bush to a look-out over the coastal dunefield. It then goes back on the beach. It is advisable to wear a sun-hat and take water.

The second trial is a two-day trial that can be booked through the Addo Elephant Park offices.

Economy

Cannon Rocks is close to an area called "The Golden Mile" of dairy farming. It is a strip of land between the sea and the Woody Cape forest
Woody Cape Nature Reserve
The Woody Cape Nature Reserve is a 25,000 hectare conservation area in Eastern Cape, South Africa....

 that is very well suited to dairy farming. This historically drove the development of the area.
Recent price collusion between major milk-buying companies Clover, Parmalat and Woodlands have left the once prosperous farmers facing bleak futures, with herds reduced and many farmers opting for beef cattle.

The economy of Cannon Rocks is primarily retirement housing, holiday houses and weekend visitors. The beaches are immaculately clean and safe due to the very low number of visitors and the fact that there is approximately 100 km of untouched bush and beaches to the west.

Cannon Rocks does not have a retail outlet and residents and visitors buy basic commodities in Boknesstrand
Boknesstrand
Boknesstrand is a small town in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It is close to Cannon Rocks, Kenton-on-Sea, Alexandria, Bushman's River Mouth and Port Alfred. It is part of the Ndlambe Local Municipality in the Cacadu District of the Eastern Cape.-External links:* http://www.boknesstrand.co.za...

 or Kenton-on-Sea
Kenton-on-Sea
Kenton-on-Sea, more commonly known as Kenton, is a small coastal town on the Sunshine Coast, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. It is situated between the Bushman's River and the Kariega River, and lies approximately half way between the industrial centres of East London and Port Elizabeth...

. Basically the only commercial activity is the Post Office Agency. Kenton-on-Sea also provides several banks and associated commercial activities.
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