Garden Route Unearthed

Exciting new watersport to enjoy in the Garden route.

In December 2025, I came across a reel on Facebook advertising E-foil rentals with a company called Mike’s E-foil Rentals.

It looked like so much fun that Bryan and I decided we would give it a go on his birthday in January.

So, what is e-foiling, i hear you ask?

Here is the google description:

“E-foiling is an electric-powered watersport where a rider stands on a surfboard-like board with a hydrofoil (wing) underneath that lifts the board and rider above the water, creating a sensation of flying silently over any body of water, with speed controlled by a handheld remote.

It combines surfing, hydro-foiling, and electric propulsion, requiring no waves or wind for propulsion thanks to a battery-powered motor and propeller.”

We contacted Mike and arranged to meet at Island Lake in Wilderness, on the Garden Route at 9am on Sunday 11th January.

It was a stunning day, the sun was shining and there was barely any wind, which was perfect for our first foray into this new sport.

We arrived a little early and Mike and Tiaan were already there with the e-foils out ready and waiting for us.

We got wetsuits on and then started the briefing on how the e-foils work and how to operate the handheld remote.

Mike’s E-foils Rentals has three different e-foils for clients to use.

The black one in the image is the beginners board.

It is wider and therefore has more stability, which is great for newbies to learn on.

The red board is for the slightly more advanced rider. It has more power and is more responsive.

The pale green board, is for those with even more experience and ability. Tiaan was our instructor in the water with us and I am happy to say he was on the pale green board.

So, how does the e-foil work?

The board has a propeller below it and in your hand you have the handheld remote which is connected via bluetooth to the propeller. The hand held remote has a throttle (operated by your fingers) and the gears, (operated by your thumb). You hold the remote as if your fingers are resting where a trigger would be, like you would a water pistol.

Simple!

Well, I started on the black board and Bryan on the red board. We started lying on the boards and getting familiar with using the throttle and the gears and using our body weight to control the direction of the board.

It was great fun leaning from side to side, going in circles, moving up the gears and increasing speed to get the board coming out of the water. This was easy!

Then Tiaan suggested we advanced to kneeling. Well, this is when the fun really began!

I started doing quite well with kneeling, but the faster the e-foil went, the more I had to lean on to the front of the board to stop the nose of the board heading skywards. It was a fine balancing act and I had several times where I was balancing on the board and skimming across the water, but not really “hovering” over the water. Just as I thought I had mastered it, I obviously pushed the throttle too far or too little and ended up in the water.

After a while, Bryan and I swopped boards and boy, was that red one a lot harder. Much smaller and so much more reactive.

The nose of that board comes up so much more quickly than on the black board, so I was constantly having to lean forwards to level out the board, however, if I leant too far forwards I ended up head first back in the water.

It must have been hilarious to watch and I, for one, definitely spent a lot of time in the water having to clamber back on to the board. Elegant, is not the word I would use to describe how it must have looked! thank goodness for the wetsuit.

Anyway, I am not going to give you with a minute by minute breakdown, rather I will just say that by the end of the 1-hour session, Bryan did brilliantly well managing to stand and balance on the board whilst flying above the water.

I also managed to get the board out of the water, flying over the lake a couple of times, but I was kneeling!

The weirdest thing for me, was as soon as I felt the sensation of flying above the water, I thought:

“Oh, no, I’m going to keep going higher and higher. I had better slow down!”

Needless to say, I then ended up nose-diving back into the water, often!

We had such a fun time, and I would 100% do it again. I would also recommend it to anyone that loves water-sports and is looking for a new challenge!

Mike and Tiaan are great guys and great instructors, so do yourselves a favour, contact Mike’s E-foil Rentals and have a go.

They are located in George, but offer their E-foil rentals in various bodies of water from Mossel Bay to Knysna (I believe).

Contact Mike to arrange a really fun experience: +27 82 268 2036

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