Graaf’s Pool

Graaf’s Pool. Graaf’s pool is unique, it was built in 1910 to accommodate the needs of Lady Marais who was paralyzed from the waist down from childbirth. Her husband built the pool for her as a private bathing area. There was a tunnel for access to the pool that went under the beach road, and a wall to shield the users from view.

In the 1920s the mansion was sold to the Graaff family who bequeathed the pool to the City of Cape Town  in 1929,

The pool became popular with gay men, who swam in the nude behind the wall.  Some of the locals objected to this and the wall was partially demolished in 2005,

The huge slabs of concrete that make up the sides and bottom of the pool have been smashed. Bits of rusted rebar are exposed. Broken terracotta pipes lead away from the corners of the pool no longer in use. Green marine algae grow about. The pool is now mostly abandoned.

Dogs are allowed as long as they are kept on a leash.