Bell Buoy
Page Maintained by: Stratlec Trust
In 1797 Lt William McPherson Rice charted a submerged reef approximately 1½ nautical miles off shore, north of Cape Recife. He named it Dispatch Rock and noted that it lies only 3m below the surface at low tide. This rock was a peril to many a ship and in 1838 a lit marker buoy was anchored over the reef, but it was soon washed away. In 1843 another buoy was placed and an official notification was placed in then Government Gazette naming it Roman Rock.
Today an East Cardinal marker buoy warns ships to pass on the eastern side. At night a flashing light marks the location of the reef. There is of course a bell on this buoy to warn ships when fog rolls into Algoa Bay, hence the name Bell Buoy.
This reef is also known as Roman Rocks due to the large number of red roman fish that are found here. Bell Bouy is an extensive reef and very popular amongst divers due to its close proximity to Hobie Beach. The large reef made up of gullies and pinnacles which are teeming with fish, soft corals, feather stars, starfish, sea fans and anemones (characteristic of the Cape).
The current co-ords for the buoy are 33o58.897 S 25o41.916 E
Roman Rocks Shipwrecks
- 1858: Buffon – a French Brig (grounded)
- 1867: Balaklava – a Barque (grounded)
- 1892: Orchomene – a Schooner (grounded)
- 1914: Dover Castle – an Intermediate Steamer (refloated)
- 1917: Rhodesia – a Danish Timber Boat (grounded)
- 1934: Paris Maru – a Japanese Cargo Vessel (grounded)
Amongst the first recorded sinking on Roman Rocks, as it was later called, was the bark H.M.S. ‘Balaklava’ which struck the struck a pinnacle on 14th May, 1867. She began taking in water rapidly and a special pump belonging to the P.E. fire brigade was dispatched by tug in an attempt to save her, but she suddenly sank in seven fathoms of water. There was just sufficient time to take the crew aboard the tug. In the cargo were two stained glass windows intended for Holy Trinity Church.
In 1934, Roman Rocks claimed another victim, the ‘Paris Maru’. On Monday 15th January 1934, the 7197 ton Japanese freighter left the harbour after discharging cargo to sail to Cape Town. She was hardly under way when she struck the Roman Rock off Beacon Point.
She began to flood rapidly but the captain turned her and tried to make his way back to the harbour. All the crew except the captain and five others took to the boats and landed safely. She was now down by the bowsand the propellers could not function. She drifted past the end of the Charl Malan Quay and on towards the North End beach. The tug ‘James Searle’ stood by and took off the captain and the rest of the crew just before the ship suddenly spouted like a whale and sank.
Unsuccessful attempts were made to salvage her, but she was finally destroyed by explosives to prevent her becoming a danger to shipping. The tragedy of it was that this was Captain Jogetu’s first command.
Dive Sites
In reality, Roman Rocks does not merely comprise a single pinnacle but it is an extensive reef covering a large area. With plenty of pinnacles and gullies to explore, it is an ideal diving site and cannot be covered in one dive.
Four distinctive dive sites have been identified so far. These are Shark Gully, Ship Rock, Kraal and Three Sisters
The Bell Buoy is alsa popular mark of the course for sailors in Algoa Bay, a destination rounding mark for paddlers and swimmers, an aspirant slab wave spot for surfers and a very popular diving spot.
Bell Buoy Challenge
The Bell Buoy Challenge is Africa's premier 5km Indian Ocean swim.
Rated as one of the toughest Ocean Swims in the world, the Nelson Mandela Bay Bell Buoy Challenge, takes place in the Indian Ocean waters of Algoa Bay - a potential World Heritage Site given that it's rich in both terrestrial and marine biodiversity. This ‘biodiversity hotspot’ is one of the unique dive sites in the world and is listed in the top four richest areas in the world in terms of biodiversity.
THIS 5km deep water ocean swim has a half-way point is approximately 2.5km out to sea. For safety reasons, the age limit for the Bell Buoy swim is a minimum of 14 years of age (in the year of the race) in accordance with the FINA rules for open water swimming (OWS 1.2).
There are two entry categories - ELITE and SOCIAL. The Elite category will compete for the prize money and may not have any outside assistance for their swim (ie no seconds) whilst the Social category will be encouraged to provide their own seconds and sighters to assist them with their swim.
Because of the nature of the Bellbuoy Challenge swim and the number of swimmers in the water, the use of a sanctioned Swim Buoy / Tow Buoy is compulsory for ALL swimmers.
Swimmers enter the popular annual Bell Buoy Challenge with sailors, paddlers and motor boats providing support and safety vessels along the route.
Champions
The Bell Buoy crossing (Hobie Beach to Bell Buoy and back) was achieved for the first time in 2009 by Eastern Cape solo swimmer Kyle Main. On the back of Kyle’s 2009 double crossing, the Nelson Mandela Bay Bell Buoy Challenge has been established as an open water ocean swim of 8km from the cities prestine blue flag Hobie Beach to the Nautical Bell Buoy, situated some 2.5km off shore and 3.5km from Hobie Beach, and back.
Main, who has built a reputation on attempting long-distance solo open-water swims, found himself among a school of about 200 dolphins during his Bell Buoy swim. “Dolphins are par for the course for long swims in the bay. The swim was slightly tougher than expected, especially due to the currents around the bell buoy and on the way back. The wind was also not in my favour, being offshore (a westerly) at the time and I suspect an easterly would have been slightly easier.” Kyle Main.
Since then the crossing has attracted some of the world greatest open water swimmers. Amongst these, past champions include Petar Stoychev (Bulgarian Olympic swimmer), Melissa Gorman (Australian Olympic swimmer and 2009 5km World Champion), Rok Kerin (Slovenian Champion) and SA Olympic swimmer Troy Prinsloo. In 2014, safety of the event was greatly improved, with the start/finish at Pollok Beach in this challenging 5km ocean swim. Another major impact on the event was the joining with the OWWT in 2019.
Age group records
- Oldest Bell Buoy Challenge finisher - Rob Connacher (Port Elizabeth) - 80yrs and 3 days (2014)
- Oldest female finisher - Reinette Harington (Port Elizabeth) - 70yrs 74 days (2023)
- Youngest ever finisher - Zoe Giddes (Port Elizabeth) - 13yrs 2 months 81 days (2025)
- Minimum age permitted for the swim is 14 years (as at 31st December in the year of the swim).
