Kleinplaas dam

Kleinplaas Dam is an earth-wall dam built between 1964 and 1967 to supply water to Simon’s Town. The wall was extended in 1970, increasing its capacity to 1,300 megalitres. It was constructed on the eastern side of the old Kleinplaas farm, meaning “small farm dam”.

For decades, it formed part of Simon’s Town’s water system, together with several other reservoirs in the area, including:

Older concrete and Admiralty reservoirs with a combined capacity of 49.5 million litres were Springs yielding 68,000 litres per day, Neptune and Prince George reservoirs (combined 68 million litres), Lewis Gay Dam (opened in 1952, holding 86 million litres)

Kleinplaas Dam was built in 1967, and it holds 500,000 kilolitres.

Kleinplaas Dam remained Simon’s Town’s main water source until the early 1980s, when the town was connected to Cape Town’s central water supply.

From the 1990s, the surrounding sandstone outcrops became one of the Cape Peninsula’s top bouldering areas.

Hiking at Kleinplaas Dam

Kleinplaas Dam lies in the Redhill area, above Simon’s Town. The route to the dam is an easy, family-friendly walk on a clearly marked trail. The distance is 2.7 km (from the car park to the dam), which takes about 45 minutes. Dogs are allowed

This area offers a peaceful, relatively flat network of paths — ideal for relaxed walks, scenic breaks, and easy access to the dam and surrounding viewpoints.

situated in the Redhill area above Simon’s Town