Palm Beach, KwaZulu-Natal

Palm Beach is a seaside town in Ugu District Municipality in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa.

Palm Beach
Palm Beach
Palm Beach
Coordinates: 30.988°S 30.272°E / -30.988; 30.272
CountrySouth Africa
ProvinceKwaZulu-Natal
DistrictUgu
MunicipalityRay Nkonyeni
Main PlacePort Edward
Area
 • Total3.87 km2 (1.49 sq mi)
Population
 (2011)[1]
 • Total529
 • Density140/km2 (350/sq mi)
Racial makeup (2011)
 • Black African11.5%
 • Coloured6.4%
 • Indian/Asian4.2%
 • White77.7%
 • Other0.2%
First languages (2011)
 • English64.1%
 • Afrikaans26.6%
 • Zulu6.3%
 • Xhosa2.5%
 • Other0.6%
Time zoneUTC+2 (SAST)
PO box
4275

Etymology

Palm Beach is named after the Ilala Palm (hyphaene critina), a species indigenous to sub-tropical Southern Africa and used by rural communities for centuries. The trees' leaves are used for woven rooftops, baskets and mats and the sap is used for liquor.[2]

Geography

Palm Beach is on the south bank of the Mpenjati River which enters the Indian Ocean at the Mpenjati Nature Reserve. The beach at Mpenjati Nature Reserve has been used by naturists for many years.

The Mpenjati Nature Reserve surrounds the Mpenjati River lagoon and extends some 500 metres out to sea in order to protect the unique fossil found in the area. [3]

Beach

The village boasts a beach with its own natural tidal pool and nearby estuary. This beach is patrolled by lifeguards as well as shark-spotters.[4]

Kitesurfing

Palm Beach has been and continues to be rated as one of the best wind sport wave riding venues in the world although it is not exploited much by kitesurfers.

Palm Beach is a microcosm on its own. It is in fact the combination of an outer reef, a rocky outcrop in the form of a point and a river system that feeds sand into the equation that makes this place unique. The outer reef transforms the ocean swells into sought after waves while at the same time disarming the waves' explosive energy.[5]

gollark: Unrelatedly, trying to choose a phone to replace my broken one has been an annoyingly complex multi-day ordeal because phones now are bad.
gollark: Sure, that makes *some* sense then.
gollark: You could say "it's better than nothing", but if you think you can do something it might give you a false sense of confidence and stop you considering safer options.
gollark: Generally, I'm pretty sure *consistently* defending (physically) against armed people when you are *not* armed is not really possible.
gollark: But there's probably a selection effect where people who both have guns and are really stupid about using them soon die/get imprisoned and no longer go around with guns.

References
  1. "Sub Place Palm Beach". Census 2011.
  2. "Palm Beach". www.sa-venues.com. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  3. "Palm Beach". www.sa-venues.com. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  4. "The 10 best places in Palm Beach, KwaZulu-Natal — Best Price Guarantee". www.afristay.com. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  5. Bottcher, Dean (2011-08-19). "Palm Beach: Kwazulu Natal Kitesurfing at its Best". inMotion Kitesurfing. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
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