Die Ark
Piet and Tienkie van Greunen
tel: 027 652 3026

Honnehok Chalets
Attie and Elize Hough
tel: 027 692 3041
fax: 027 692 3022
e-mail: dog@hondeklip.co.za
web: www.hondeklip.co.za

Groen Spoeg Park Website:
www.hondeklipbay.co.za

ATTRACTIONS

The brightly coloured houses of Hondeklip Bay are spread out across a bleak landscape like diamonds on the sea floor. Rusbos grows on the sandy plains, its yellow blossoms competing with the intense sunlight in winter. Strong wind forces waves to crash onto boulder beaches, their white crests contrasting starkly with the dark blue sky. Watching over the town day and night is the Dog Stone, from which the town derives its name.

Learn more about the living history of Hondeklip Bay, where the wind howls through the ancient graves of sailors lost at sea and the shell of the Aristea, shipwrecked in 1945. See for yourself the sad, long-term impacts the struggling fishing and mining industries are having upon the socio-economic environment of Hondeklip Bay, two industries that were once considered the lifeline of Namaqualand.

Although a coastal town, the nature of the coast as well as diamond diving and commercial fishing activities have discouraged swimming and surfing, but the coast is still ideal for long walks. Elize and Attie Hough at the Honnehok will take you on 4x4 tours along the vast and unspoilt coastline. Alternatively you can obtain a crayfish permit and a marine conservation list at Springbok or Garies and enjoy collecting your own seafood.

GETTING THERE

The small fishing village of Hondeklip Bay is squeezed between the mining areas of Trans Hex and De Beers, about 180 km south of Port Nolloth. Two roads lead to the town nestled on the beach, one from Garies or Kamieskroon past Wallekraal, the other one from Springbok past Koingnaas. The road from Kleinzee to Hondeklip Bay is still closed for visitors to the area as it leads through restricted De Beers mining fields.

The Hondeklipbaai Multi-Purpose Resource Centre offers self-catering accommodation with spacious open-plan rooms, each with its own kitchenette and bathroom. Each room has its own barbeque facility and a beautiful view of the beach and harbour. The Multi-Purpose Resource Centre can also arrange catering of delicious West Coast fare by a local women's group.

The 'Honnehok' guesthouse is situated near the small harbour. With its separate chalets, swimming pool and a cosy bar decorated by caps of all different sizes and colours from previous visitors, the Honnehok makes for a lovely recreational stay on the West Coast. An en-suite guestroom, a bachelor flat and a fully serviced one-bedroom apartment are also hired out at 'Die Ark', run by Peet and Tienkie van Greunen. Currently under development by the Hondeklip Bay community is a guesthouse for group accommodation. This guesthouse will overlook the village and picturesque harbour and will be located at the town's Multi Purpose Resource Centre. This centre aims to host a museum, display various exhibits, sell arts and crafts and provide computer and tourism training for the local people.