A Short History of Walvis Bay Lagoon

Walvis Bay is a city in Namibia located on theproduces about 400,000 tons of sea salt. There
western coast, the name is derived fromare about 50,000 people residing in the city.
whalefish from when it was a main whaling stationSince the Walvis Bay lagoon is rich in plankton and
in that part of the world. The bay has a naturalmarine life, it is a common destination for some
deepwater harbour, making it a frequentof the biggest whales, making it a frequent
destination for sea vessels. This part of thedestination for whale watchers as well. Walvis Bay
Atlantic Ocean is rich in marine life, which attractslagoonhas provided the citizens of the city, not
a lot of whales during certain times of the year.only with some good fishing, but also other
The area was discovered by Diego Cao in 1485avenues for earning money. Tourism in the city is
when he landed in Cape Cross, which is locatedalso booming because of the scenic beauty of the
north of the bay. Bartholomeu Dias followed in theplace and the abundance of sea birds by the
year 1487; however, the Portuguese did notlagoon. These birds come in assorted breeds,
stake a claim on the area. While it was discoveredmany are pelicans and flamingos. There are over
in the late 40s, it was not until the late 19th120,000 birds in the area, making the place a
century that commercial development occurredspecial attraction with the bird watching fraternity.
on the site, when the British colonized a good partFar from its colonial history, Walvis Bay city is
of Africa and annexed Walvis Bay to the Capenow independent in its own right. It is relatively
colony. The British joined Walvis Bay, Capeeasy for the citizens to make a living in the area.
Colony, and several other areas to form theIf there is anything that the colonizers have done
Union of South Africa, to provide a safe passageto help the country of Namibia and its cities, it is
for British ships. As is the case with most Africanto introduce commercial development in the area
territories, Walvis Bay has had its share ofallowing the citizens to be independent and make
colonizers.a living on their own. While the number of tourists
The good fishing opportunities have enabled a lotin the area is not that big compared to other
of fishing industries to make a name forAfrican locations, Walvis has done pretty well for
themselves in the area. Fishing is one of theitself. There are a lot of activities to take part in
primary sources of living for many people in theand a lot of locations to go to. The Bay lies
area. Another primary import product in the cityapproximately 35 kilometres south of
is sea salt as Walvis Bay has salt pans coveringSwakopmund.
an area of approximately 3,500 hectares, which