The towns of Somerset West, Strand and Gordon’s Bay form the region
commonly known as The Helderberg. They are perfectly situated between
the base of the Helderberg and Hottentots Holland’s mountains and the
sea (False Bay) and are a mere 40 odd km’s from Cape Town. The Helderberg
Region form part of the Greater City of Cape Town Metropolitan area. The
main suburbs of Somerset West are : Spanish Farm, Erinvale, Bel’Aire,
Heldervue, Parel Valei, Land and Zeezicht, Schonenberg, Dennegeur, Helderrand,
Golden Acre.
The town of Somerset West was established by Dutch soldiers in 1672,
with the town developing around the Lourens River and the farm of Vergelegen.
In the 1960’s the AECI factory between Somerset West and the Strand
was the 2nd largest dynamite factory in the world. Today Somerset West
boasts the largest concentration of millionaire residents in the country.
Strand and Gordon’s Bay are traditional seaside resorts.
Both years back being classified as predominantly holiday and fishing resorts.
Strand beach boasts 5km’s of white sandy beach. The Steenbras dam,
Cape Town’s primary supply of drinking water is located on mountain above
Gordon’s Bay.
The Helderberg is host to numerous excellent schools offering education
(private and government) from grade 1 up to grade 12 (matric).Some of the better
known are Somerset College, Somerset Private, Somerset House, Parel Vallei,
Strand High, Hottentots Holland, de Hoop, Beaumont, Lochnerhof and Hendrik Louw.
For sport lovers and , in particular, golfers there are fantastic facilities
available. Within a mere 15 km radius you will find Erinvale, Strand
and Somerset West golf courses. The beaches offer the normal surfing,
kiting and other beach sports and recreation. Hiking along the coastline and
up the numerous mountains is also another great sporting attraction.
If sporting is not top of your list, then there are numerous other attractions
and activities of interest. The Heldeberg Nature Reserve boarders onto
the suburbs of Somerset West. A scenic drive up the coast from Gordon’s
Bay may result in the sighting of whales plus stunning views of the False Bay
coastline. The Helderberg region is also well known for its vineyards
and if these are not close enough, the winelands of Stellenbosch, Paarl and
Franschoek are a short distance away. There is wide spectrum of different
types of restaurants in and around the Helderberg.
Central to all 3 towns the Somerset Mall is situated. This mall offering all
the top retail stores and is a shopper’s paradise. Vergelegen Medi Clinic
is the major private hospital for the area. Under construction is Cape Town’s
own film studio and this will bring its own flair to the region. Cape Town International
Airport is a mere 30min’s drive.
Chas Everitt International Property in Somerset West
Somerset West (Afrikaans Somerset-Wes) is a town in the Western
Cape province in the Republic of South Africa. Named after Lord Charles
Somerset in 1819, it has thrived and is now the commercial and residential capital
of the Helderberg Basin whilst maintaining its village atmosphere. It
is situated in the Helderberg area (formerly called Hottentots Holland),
about 50 km southeast of Cape Town and 10 km from Strand.
Somerset West lies within easy reach of several beaches bordering the
Atlantic Ocean and lying within False Bay. The nearest, the beach at Strand,
approximately 6 km from the centre of the town, is popular with those having
young children and holidaymakers, as is Gordons Bay, a quaint village
complete with harbour and other innocent attractions.
The town is overlooked by the imposing Helderberg (meaning "clear
mountain"), a part of the Hottentots-Holland range of mountains but still
distinct from the continuous aspect of the other mountains.
The entire region is renowned for its scenic beauty, flora and fauna, wine
and fruit, gastronomic experiences, friendly hospitality and historical heritage.
Somerset West caters for all sport lovers with 3 golf courses (including
the renowned Erinvale), a country club, soccer, croquet, bowls, squash, tennis,
cricket, hockey, a pistol shooting range and golf driving range.
The town also boasts the wine farm of Vergelegen (meaning "far lying",
or "far situated"), an 18th century farmhouse built in the historic
Cape Dutch style. The farm is now owned by a subsidiary of the large mining
company Anglo American, who have restored the farmhouse to its original magnificence
and continue to produce some of South Africa's best wines there.
In the 1960s, the AECI factory between Somerset West and Strand
was the second largest dynamite factory in the world. Today the town boasts
the largest concentration of millionaire residents in the country.
The historic town of Stellenbosch, founded by the Dutch settlers in the 17th
century is reachable from Somerset West via the R44 road that takes the
traveller through the magnificent scenery of this part of the world. Wine farms
dot the route as well as vegetable and fruit growing fields and mountains drowse
in the background.
The wine route is part of the greater Stellenbosch wine route and incorporates
wine estates from 10km out of town, the oldest wine co-operative in the country,
a brewery and wine estates bordering on the town.
About 15km from Somerset West on the N2 is the fruit route which starts
at Elgin and the coastal whale route to Hermanus.
Somerset West is well known for its annual display of Christmas lights
erected atop the street lights of the Main Road. Each year the Main Road is
decorated with an array of flashing bells, angels, palm trees and camels, reindeer,
candles and even squirrels. The display started in the late 1970s as a low key
affair with only a few lights, but has since grown into a major tourist attraction.
The Helderberg Lights Festival (also known as the Strawberry Festival)
traditionally complements these lights when the Main Road is closed off in the
evening as floats, parades and flea market stalls are lined up under the lights.
Carols by Candlelight is another popular Christmas tradition that has been
held annually for the past 20 years at Vergelegen (a world-class wine farm).
Visitors are invited to bring a picnic basket, blanket and torch and celebrate
the joy of Christmas with family and friends on the sprawling lawns amongst
the historic camphor trees.
The area also has its own community radio station, named Radio Helderberg,
broadcasting community notices, local news, and playing adult orientated English
and Afrikaans pop music.
Somerset West is home to four private schools: Somerset House, Somerset
College, Helderberg High/Primary, Somerset Private and the government
schools Beaumont Primary, Somerset West Primary, De Hoop Primary, Hottentots
Holland High School and Parel Vallei High School.
Strand (Afrikaans for 'beach') is a seaside resort town situated on
the eastern edge of False Bay and at the foot of the Hottentots Holland Mountains.
Its geographical position is just between Macassar and Gordon's Bay, and is
about 50 km southeast of Cape Town. Strand is in the Western
Cape province of South Africa, and has a population of approximately 50
000.[1] Strand's main attraction is the beach; five kilometers of white
sandy beach lapped by the waters of False Bay.
History
Strand originated a few hundred years ago as a holiday and fishing resort
and was founded in 1714. In 1970, during Apartheid, all non-whites were forcefully
resettled when the town was classified as a white-only resort. A notable community
that was forced to leave at this time were the descendants of Cape Malay slaves
who had escaped from Cape Town over 100 years earlier[citation needed].
They lost their homes but their mosque still stands today.
It is now regarded as part of the greater city of Cape Town itself,
because the City Cape Town took over Strand's municipal powers.
It is 10 km away from the inland town of Somerset West, however recent
expansion of both towns have resulted in it being built completely fixed to
each other, with shopping malls and residential complexes creating the connections.
Strand forms part of the Helderberg Basin, together with Somerset
West and Gordon's Bay.
It has great views of the Cape Peninsula and fine beaches. During the summer,
tourists from inland - mainly Johannesburg - flock to the area and this tourism
is the principal source of local income[citation needed]. This has been the
case since at least 1950. Even in those days the town was popular with visitors
from the north and was home to quite a few retired veterans of the Boer War.
There is a train service from Strand to the central business district
of Cape Town. The great coastal road that makes its way up the eastern
seaboard of the Cape rises into the coastal ranges from near Strand.
Strand also accommodates one of the largest dynamite factories in South
Africa. These dynamite sites are owned by the AECI group. Rumour has it that
the area is going to be remade into a waterfront, but this has not yet been
confirmed.
Tourism
The sun seen in the late afternoon on one of Strand's beaches.The beach
is known to be one of the best and safest bathing areas in the country. Facilities
on or nearby include Dune Park with a super tube and mini-golf and Harmony Park
which boasts a huge tidal pool. Water sports may be conducted from various points
along the beach front.
For the sporting enthusiast Strand offers a wide variety of organised
sport including a golf course capable of hosting international events, tennis
courts, rugby fields, squash clubs, jukskei, and water sports like surfing,
sailing, power boating, paddle skiing and board sailing. The Pipe is a part
of the beach marked off for surfers and is known for its big, "surfable"
waves.
Strand also boasts an Olympic-sized, covered, centrally heated swimming
pool which is open all year round. The coast between the Lourens River mouth
and up to Rooi Els is very popular with beach fishermen and rock anglers, whilst
organised and social diving activities beckon the more adventurous.
Chas Everitt International Property in Gordons Bay
Gordons
Bay is the ideal town to base yourself in when in the Western Cape.
It is so central to all the Cape's Tourist attractions, and itself is the perfect
town for a sea side holiday. It is on the fringe of the Stellenbosch wine
route which starts in Somerset West, 10 minutes drive from Gordons
Bay, whilst Strand shares the coastline. Cape Town is across
the bay and is only 30 minutes drive, and the Cape Town International
Airport is half way between Gordons Bay and Cape Town. To the
south, over Sir Lowry's pass, about 30 minutes drive, is Hermanus, famous for
Whale watching, whilst Gordons Bay and False Bay has it's fair
share of Whale sightings.
LOCATION:
We are 40 mins out of Cape Town on a dual carriageway.
35 minutes out of Stellenbosch and the wine routes via a dual carriageway.
45 minutes away from Hermanus, via the most exquisite coastal road,
winding through several small villages en route. This route (from Gordons
Bay to Hermanus) is famous for spotting schools of
Whales by the dozen.
50 minutes away from the beautiful French Hugenot Village of Franschhoek.
CLIMATE:
The climate is Mediterranean, average maximum temperatures peak at 30 degrees
from December to March, dropping to 18 degrees from May to September. (These
are obviously averages)
Summers are warm and dry, with the occasional windy day.
Spring and Autumn have mild and balmy days and warm evenings.
Winters tend to be mild. Short lived storms which are wet and cool, interspersed
with sunny days.
BEACHES:
Gordons Bay has some of the best beaches in the Cape, beautiful
white sand, rock pools, shallow paddling areas and calm seas. The sea is much
warmer here than you will find on the Atlantic coast. Bikini Beach has been awarded Blue Flag status, an international quality
rating of the highest order!
The area abounds with excellent restaurants, shopping malls and amenities.
Gordons
Bay is the ideal town to base yourself in when in the Western Cape.
It is so central to all the Cape's Tourist attractions, and itself is the perfect
town for a sea side holiday. It is on the fringe of the Stellenbosch wine
route which starts in Somerset West, 10 minutes drive from Gordons
Bay, whilst Strand shares the coastline. Cape Town is across
the bay and is only 30 minutes drive, and the Cape Town International
Airport is half way between Gordons Bay and Cape Town. To the
south, over Sir Lowry's pass, about 30 minutes drive, is Hermanus, famous for
Whale watching, whilst Gordons Bay and False Bay has it's fair
share of Whale sightings.
