Haga Haga, Wild Coast

The little seaside village of Haga Haga is the epitome of the Wild Coast, just 75 kilometres from East London.

There is something of the magical to this part of the world - lush green hills intermingled with forested and deeply carved river valleys that roll down breathtakingly precipitous cliffs onto long, white beaches and secluded bays. Haga Haga nestles at the mouth of the river of the same name - perfect for swimming, sailing and canoeing, and the various rock pools and the beach make for wonderful days spent collecting shells and splashing in the shallows. There are generous rocky outcrops and ledges that allow for great fishing, and hiking here is possibly one of the most rewarding ways of seeing Haga Haga and other little seaside villages like it. The lower Wild Coast Trail extends from Qora Mouth via Haga Haga to the little town of Cintsa, and is an epic walk that takes in some of the most unspoilt and scenic aspects of the coastline.

The unusual name of the village seems to stem from the days when farmers brought their livestock to the coast during the winter months for grazing for as long four months at a time. In a bid to cross the beach, they would unspan one team of oxen and hook them onto another team. This then lead to the use of ‘haka haka’, which in Xhosa means to ‘hook on’, to describe this beach. Others believe that the name is simply an emulation of the unrelenting pounding of the surf on the shore.