The Back Channels

With the 1942 Decision to split the Umfolozi and St Lucia Mouth to divert the sediment from the Umfolozi straight into the ocean the Scientists from the Royal Society of South Africa realised that they could be starving the Lake system with fresh water.

Included in the 1968 management plan was a serious of back Channels with sediment traps to feed the Estuary and Lake System with fresh water during low energy flow of the Umfolozi River.

One of these channels was dug from the Umfolozi River to feed the Estuary behind honeymoon bend and further up. The original plan to link this channel up with the Mapati River was abandoned due to hard black clay.

So the channel run under the R618 towards the Narrows where it joined the Estuary just past the Dredger Harbour Above the Bridge.

The whole reasoning behind this was to trap fresh water from the Umfolozi River between the Ebb and Flow of High and Low Tide. Using the incoming tide and the resistance of capillary action between marine and freshwater to pump fresh water into the lake system through Brodie's Crossing.