If you are looking to keep yourself busy after you enjoyed your stoked surfing lessons, Blouberg is truly the place to explore, filled with exciting and exhilarating activities. 

Whether you’re a tourist or a local from Cape Town and want to continue having fun in the magnificent Mother City, then make your way to Blouberg and enjoy the amazing views and activities that await you.

Get to Know Blouberg a Bit

Did you know that Robben Island is situated approximately 7 km off the coastline from Bloubergstrand? This famous location is where South Africa’s first black president, Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, was imprisoned for 27 years fighting for freedom for his fellow South- Africans. The island is also known as one of the most popular tourist attractions in South Africa and is one of South Africa’s National Heritage Sites.  

That’s not all, Blouberg is well-known for its restaurants and fun activities that are perfect for the whole family to enjoy. Take part in activities like kite surfing, Stand Up Paddle boarding (SUP), and Paramotoring for those explorers that like to have fun in the water. 

For the more relaxed and romantic type, Blouberg serves the most beautiful sunsets and scenery for beach-walks with your partner. There are unending ocean views to gaze over and reminisce with your loved ones or you can watch the waves break into the rocks, whilst enjoying FrozenYO from the Famous Yoghurt Truck on the Blouberg Shoreline. 

Blouberg also brings shopping convenience to your doorstep with places like Eden On the Bay Mall, the shopping centre that seems to have it all. Here you can find 14 different boutiques, health and beauty places, restaurants and café, picnic spots, and coffee shops. The mall is also pet-friendly so you may bring your furry friends along for a day out and about.  

Let’s have a look at the surrounding places in and around Blouberg that can keep your wild and adventurous spirit happy.

Places to Visit in Blouberg

Blouberg is as magical as its surroundings, located on the shores of Table View, this picture-perfect landmark is surrounded by the most popular suburbs in Cape Town. 

Here is a break-down of the nearby places and what you can do in and around the area. 

Food

Ons Huisie

One of Cape Town’s top-rated restaurants, Ons Huisie (Our Small Home) is a popular eatery located in Bloubergstrand and offers an ocean view while having breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Ons Huisie is also an internationally recognised heritage site. The restaurant is pet friendly, provides traditional West Coast cuisine, and provides an amazing view of Robben Island and the Atlantic Ocean.

Blue Peter

The Lighthouse restaurant (more commonly known as Blue Peter), the restaurant/hotel is a must-visit for something to eat and drink in Blouberg. 

On the lower deck, the establishment has a pub-style, relaxed atmosphere, whereas the top has a more classic atmosphere to really wine and dine.

Shopping & Other Entertainment

Bayside Mall

If you’re a bit tired of being out and about in the sun, Bayside Mall is a great option to visit. Located in the heart of Blouberg, the  Bayside Mall offers a variety of services and entertainment including clothing stores, restaurants, cafés, eight cinemas, and a food court.

You’ll also be able to stock up on healthy requirements at specialised shops or spoil yourself (or a loved one) at the mall’s jewellery stores.

Killarney Motor Racing Complex

If you want more of an adrenaline rush after you have finished your stoked surfing lesson, then Killarney Motor Racing Complex must be included on your to-do list. 

Grab a few friends and race around on Killarney’s race track in a Formula One car. If that is not enough, you get training experience to upskill yourself and have a head-to-head race with your personalised number plate against others. 

Here you can watch races including stock cars, drag racing, karting, super motards, and motocross.

Studio 46

More of the artsy type? Then you’ll love Studio 46. Here you can expect to find an exhibition of work done by local artists including painters, crafters, sculptures, photographers, and jewellery designers. 

Beach Side

Dolphin Beach

Located in Table View, Blouberg, Dolphin Beach is about 20 minutes away from the city centre. The beach is a popular hangout because of its wind conditions that are perfect for watersports like kite surfing.

Dolphin beach also offers a breathtaking view of Table Mountain, so remember to have your camera on hand when exploring the area.

Big Bay & Little Bay

Big Bay Beach is divided into two beaches, Big Bay and Little Bay, by a rocky point. The beach is mostly known for its awesome watersports fun including surfing, wind-surfing, and kite surfing, attracting hundreds of people from all over. The area constantly hosts annual competitions where men and women from the watersports community participate for excited spectators.

When you’re on the beach, you have plenty of room to explore the stretches of sand as well as a beautiful view of Table Mountain. As you already know, the water at Big Bay is chilly but remains a hotspot for creating great memories with friends, family, and partners.

The beachfront is filled with a variety of dining options and shops where you’ll be able to wine and dine with a spectacular Cape Town sunset.

Some popular places include:

• Moyo – Popular for its amazing cocktails and artsy face painting.

• Eden on the Bay – This is another popular spot located within Big Bay filled with lovely restaurants (including Moyo), Eden Café Restaurant (great for a quick brunch), and Primi (perfect if you love pizza or pasta).

• The Big Bay Waffle Company– Here you’ll find the best Belgian waffles in SA.

Nature

Blaauwberg Nature Reserve

A nature lover? The Blaauweberg Nature Reserve (BBNR)is a great place to explore Cape Town’s beautiful natural elements as well as other historical and cultural sights.

The nature reserve’s vision is to protect the unique diversity of the natural, cultural, historical resources available in the area to ensure present and future generations are able to enjoy it as well.

SANCCOB Seabird Rehabilitation Centre

The Seabird Rehabilitation Centre is a non-profit organisation whose main focus is to help ensure there isn’t a decline in Africa’s seabird populations. They rescue, rehabilitate, and release injured, oiled, and abandoned seabirds, including the endangered African penguin.
 

Blouberg with its surroundings is filled with various activities and sights that can keep the entire family busy and entertained. You can have loads of fun after you stoked surfing experience anywhere in Blouberg. 

Learn to Surf

Come and share our passion for surfing by booking your surf lesson (or surf camp) with Stoked School of Surf. We’ll ensure you know your way around the board and the beautiful Cape Town waters. Get in touch to book your lesson or browse our blog to read up on surfing!

As you’re already pumped to get started with your first (or maybe 10th surf lesson), you can easily forget to do some warm up exercises to ensure your body is primed and ready for the action to come. 

Warming up before you get on your surfboard is crucial for preventing your risk of injury, as well as improving your performance on your board.

Importance and Benefits of Warming Up

There are a few benefits of warming up before any type of physical activity, such as:

Improved Performance

During exercise, the blood flow to your muscles increases by 75%. This ensures the capillaries (or blood vessels) open up, allowing your muscles’ temperature top increase. As a result, more oxygen is released which will help you perform better on your board.

Improved Oxygen

When you are working out or taking part in any physically demanding activity, your muscles require oxygen. When you’re warming up, the oxygen is released more easily.

Improved Blood Flow

When you warm up for about ten minutes, your blood vessels open up, this will help put less stress on your heart.

Increase Muscle Contraction

During a warm up, your body’s temperature rises which helps improve nerve transmission and your muscle metabolism, which results in better performance.

Preventing Injury

Warm muscles contract and release better, reducing your risk of injury. 

Hormones

During a warm up, your body produces more hormones, like cortisol, which helps regulate your body’s energy production.

Focus Your Thoughts

During the warm up, your mind will start to focus more on the activity at hand, thus ensuring you’re focused when you’re ready to start with your surf lesson.

Dynamic Warm up

Dynamic warm ups are a great way to effectively warm up your muscles and are usually better than static stretching. With dynamic stretching, you stretch through a range of motion.

At Stoked, our surf instructors incorporate a few dynamic stretches in the warm up.

To start, our learners will do a short jog to get their blood pumping. Then we’ll form a circle and do the following:

• Arm swings

• Leg swings

• Ankle rotations

• Arm stretches

• Jog in one place

• Upper body rotations

• Bodyweight squats

• Neck rolls/stretching

We try to include various warm up exercises to ensure we warm up our bodies from our heads to our toes!

In conclusion, ensuring you properly prepare your body for an intense exercise like surfing, you’ll decrease your chances of obtaining an injury, like pulling a muscle! 

Remember to cool down as well to allow your heart rate to get back to normal. Try walking at a slow pace on the beach or do some static stretches.

Start Surfing

Want to take your first surfing lesson? Our team at Stoked School of Surf will ensure you have an unforgettable surf experience! Get in touch to book your lessons.

So you’ve just finished your surf lesson with Stoked School of Surf, now what? What is there to do after learning how to surf? 

Muizenberg aka ‘Berg, is one of Cape Town’s most popular beaches because of its friendly waves and great swimming spots. The beach is also a popular spot for beginner surfers because of its generally calmer and warmer water—you might already be hesitant to get on your board, never mind jumping into cold water!

The beach is located on False Bay, which is a large, curved coastline with long, white sandy beaches and even longer, rolling waves when the conditions are right. In the past, False Bay was mistaken for Table Bay by sailors, which is how it earned it’s name ‘False Bay’.

Now that we’ve told you a bit about the beach, it’s time to tell you about a few things you can do in Muizenberg after your surf lesson.

After a surf lesson, there are guaranteed whale sounds originating from your abdominal area, right? A surf lesson can definitely make anyone ravenous for some good grub.

The Knead Bakery & Café located on Surfer’s Corner is the ultimate chic café with some great food and maybe a warm cup of coffee after swimming in cold water.

You’ll be able to watch the waves roll in through the café’s glass-enclosed patio, ensuring you have a view with your lunch.

Check out the café.

Yoffi Falafel

If you’re in the mood for some Middle Eastern food, Yoffi Falafel is yet another local favourite to visit in Muizenberg. Here you can order deliciously fresh falafels (in a pita or on a plate), falafel burgers, hummus plates, falafel balls, salad tubs, and more.

If you want something to drink, they also have a wide variety of options ranging from kombucha to ginger beer.

Check out the restaurant.

Hang Ten Café

Vegans listen up! Muizenberg caters to everyone! Situated in Surfer’s Corner in Muizenberg, Hang Ten Café has been crafting delicious food and beverages for over four years. The café puts focus on preparing wholesome food for locals and tourists. 

For some lovely vegan-friendly meals, gluten-free, grass-fed meat options, as well as vegetarian options, head on over to Hang Ten Cafe.

Check out the café.

The Striped Horse

After your lesson, you’re guaranteed to be thirsty, right?

Another favourite amongst locals is The Striped Horse beach bar and grill. Here you can expect ice-cold draft beer, some good grub, and great music.  

Check out the beach bar & grill.

If You’re in the Mood for Discovering…

The Corner Surf Shop

Why not catch up on some surf history after your lesson at one of the oldest surf shops in Cape Town. 

With stock ranging from both imported and local surfboards to wetsuits, bikinis, and other trendy clothing, the shop has it all. You can also check out the shop’s museum showcasing a collection of vintage surfboards.

The Corner Surf Shop was first opened in July 1971 in Clarendon Lane, Muizenberg. The shop’s founder, Peter Wright, had resigned from his job at a shipping company in Cape Town and was going to join his friend, Clive’s, business. However, Clive’s business had closed down and Peter had to think of another solution. 

His solution? Start building surfboards for himself and his friends. Peter was building boards at his parent’s home in Kommetjie but after a while, he was forced to look for a different location to build his boards, thus after a few years of ups and downs, Peter found the perfect place for his shop, and so The Corner Surf Shop was born. 

Check out the shop’s full history.

The Surfer’s Circle Walk of Fame

Once just a mere traffic circle located in Surfer’s Corner, now a circle honoring surf history.

Surfer’s Circle will allow everyone to celebrate the culture and heritage of South African surfing. 

A Little History

Did you know that the first South African surfer ever recorded riding a wave while standing up, was a woman? Heather Price is the lady that made history!

Heather rode the first wave in Muizenberg in 1919, after befriending two US Marines that had docked in Cape Town, on their way back home, after World War 1. The marines had wooden surfboards, which Heather used to learn how to surf.  

If You’re in the Mood for Shopping…

Blue Bird Garage Market

Are you in the mood for a bit of everything ranging from food to art to drinks? At the Blue Bird Garage Market, you’ll find it all.

Also known as the “Friday Market’, Blue Bird comes to life on Friday evenings, starting at 4 pm and ending around 10 pm.

With vendors from surrounding towns, you’ll have the opportunity to purchase local goods that are proudly South African.

Check out the market.

FEAT. sock co. 

Are you a sock collector or maybe you love funky designs? Visit the FEAT. sock co. shop in Muizenberg, for some awesome socks!

FEAT. sock co.offers various socks designs ranging from pets to wildlife, accommodating socks for kids, ladies, and men. They even have neat little pouches and gift boxes available.

Check out the store.

Palmer Road Market

Palmer Road in Muizenberg has been in business since 1920 and has had countless traders as the years pass by. 

You’ll have countless shopping options ranging from food, art, craft, and other fun activities!

The market brings the street alive with entertainment and has a night market as well for those of you who are night owls. 

Now that you know about all the things you’re able to do after your surf lesson at Muizenberg, don’t be afraid to explore the beach.

Want to Learn How to Surf?

We offer various surf lessons ranging from private to group lessons. If you already know how to surf, just don’t know where to go, we also offer guided surf experiences and for those a little more apprehensive of waves, we offer a flatwater SUP paddle on the Atlantic Seaboard. Get in touch to make your booking. 

Finding that perfect surfboard is easier said than done as the generic factory-made boards most likely won’t meet your unique surfing needs. Just as some teenagers need their prom dress to be tailored to suit their unique body shape or some car fanatics want their car to stand out with a special bumper or custom artwork, so do some surfers require their boards to be a bit more unique.

So, if you’ve already tried every board in the shop, it might be time to think about getting in touch with your local surfboard builder and let them construct your custom board.

For hundreds of years, surfboards were constructed from nothing but wood, with the board stained with natural plant oils. They were big, heavy, and plain-looking.

In modern times, boards are made from various materials to help withstand the force from the waves and although various materials go into the making of a surfboard, it still needs to be light, buoyant, and strong.

Let’s delve into the bigger questions; how exactly is a surfboard made? What materials are used? How does it get its shape? How can it withstand the force of the waves?

Follow along as we take a behind-the-scenes look at how a modern-day surfboard is made in this interview with hand shaper Lyndon Read from Lyndon Read Surfboards.

Manufacturing Process

Client Brief

Most projects begin with a brief. In this case, the shaper and client would meet to discuss the specifications for the build of the board. Not only are the board dimensions discussed but also the surfer’s body dimensions, stance, experience level, and types of waves to be surfed.

Below, Lyndon takes a look at a form filled in by a client on what exactly they want to have in their surfboard. The form includes fields like tail shape, rail type, length, width, and thickness of the board, etc.

Basic Canvas

In order to start building the surfboard, the shaper makes use of a moulded piece of foam called a “blank”. This will be the core of the surfboard that will be shaped, glassed, and polished resulting in a finished surfboard.

A blank is roughly formed in a surfboard-shaped blown mould. Inside the mould, polyurethane chemicals are poured which forms a thick, white foam resulting in the “foam core”.

Commonly the blank is made of two foam halves, running from the nose to the tail. Sandwiched between these halves is a thin wooden stringer (about 5 mm wide) which helps provide strength to the board but still allowing flexibility.

Shaping

Using an electric planer, the shaper uses his trained eye to remove excess foam from the blank until it is the ideal thickness. Constantly refining the contour and ensuring there are no uneven bumps on the surface of the board.

See as Lyndon planes the blank below with an electric planer.

When the board is the right thickness, the surfboard builder then uses a hand plane and sandpaper to further shape the board’s surface and sides.

Below are a few shots of Lyndon checking the board’s thickness and further smoothing it down by hand.