Dried fish and salt – and a combination of the two known as bokkoms – are the things Velddrif (or Velddrift) is most famous for. Following the sign that says Bokkombedryf (bokkom industry) will take you to Bokkomlaan (bokkom lane) where the dried fish is made and sold. Bokkoms is a delicacy typical to the West Coast.

It has a significant market in the Western Cape where it is very popular and can be found in hotels, bars, bottle stores, fish shops and beach kiosks and is available for ordering and shipping online in vacuum packed format.

Mullet is abundant just off the coast at Velddrift and the town’s weather conditions – hot summers and relatively low rainfall – are ideal for drying the fish. Salt pans in the region have attracted Cerebos, the largest salt brand in South Africa, which has one of its factories close by.

It also has access to fresh water in the form of the Berg River. The town is picturesque, with wooden jetties moving slowly back and forth in the continual ebb and flow of the ocean’s tides which push up into the Berg River mouth. A number of restaurants and accommodation facilities attract visitors all-year round. Architecture in Bokkomlaan developed in much the same way as a bokkom dries, which is to say, slowly.

First, houses were built from reeds, which later became a one-room solid structure built with wood and gum from the Bluegum tree, animal dung instead of floorboards and sand and shell bricks called skulpgru.In 1899 Carinus Bridge was built over the Berg River, which opened the town for business.