Travelling inland north from the city of Cape Town, the river runs in a west to east direction.

The Greater Brandvlei Dam, completed in 1936 and fully extended by 1987, provides water to various irrigation schemes throughout the agricultural sector of the region.

Frequently, bull sharks enter the estuary and dwell in the waters of the Breede River, having been recorded as much as 5 km upriver.

As Jeremy Wade's investigations indicate, the bull sharks of the Breede River are larger than average due to their unique habit of stealing fishermen's catches, allowing them to feed and gain weight without expending much energy.

This and the healthy nature of the river's ecosystem in turn has led to a record of very few to no shark attacks on humans in the area.