Trafalgar, South Coast

The war-like connotations of the name 'Trafalgar' for one of the little towns along the south coast of KwaZulu Natal is rather obscure to say the least. Trafalgar lies just south of San Lameer, north of Palm Beach and closest to the Port Edward side of the popular strip of coast, 150 kilometres south of Durban. Its name descends directly from the missionary relatives of Viscount Horatio Nelson who arrived on our shores in the late 1800s and named their farm after the battle fought in 1805.

But that is where the associations with battle end. In reality Trafalgar is rather a laidback, sedate village that remains unspoilt and offers typical subtropical vegetation, gorgeous grassy verges and at least two kilometres of beach. The distinct advantage of staying in a tiny village like this one is the assumption that it hasn't become inundated the way the more popular towns, like nearby Margate, have.

Despite being small its beaches are protected by shark nets and surfers rate the waves as pretty decent. Snorkelling too is a popular pastime and 90 million year-old fossil beds lie just a short distance from the shoreline. The attraction of Trafalgar increases when one learns that this forms part of the Trafalgar Marine Reserve that extends for just six kilometres along the coast and 500 metres offshore and incorporates the Mpenjati Nature Reserve that preserves the natural environment of forest types, dune vegetation and grasslands. The intention is to include this reserve into the proposed Pondoland Marine Protected Area, which will extend from the southern reaches of KwaZulu-Natal into the northern parts of the Eastern Cape.

The town has one little shop and a café, a short walk brings one to San Lameer where there is apparently a beachside restaurant, whilst a 15-minute drive brings one to Ramsgate and Margate.