The path of the Kuils River transects the eastern edge of the greater Cape Town metropolitan area. From its source in the affluent suburb of Durbanville it then passes through the stark suburb of Kuils River, to which it gives its name. It then continues past the poor farming communities of Blue Downs, the informal settlements of Khayelitsha, and finally the underprivileged suburb of Macassar, where it then exits into the Atlantic Ocean in False Bay.

'Kuil' is an Afrikaans word meaning pool or pit, and even though a few small natural pools still remain, long sections of the river are now guided along concrete channels. It becomes a badly polluted river as it progresses from its source, and residents living beside its banks have been cautioned to avoid direct contact with its contaminated waters. Read Less