Cape Point lies at the most south-westerly point of Africa in the city of Cape Town, South Africa. It is included in the Cape of Good Hope Nature Reserve which was proclaimed in 1939. The reserve encompasses a 40km coastline that struck fear into the hearts of sailors and was first called the Cape of Storms. The name was later changed to the Cape of Good Hope by Henry the Navigator, probably for the sense of relief sailors may have felt once they had rounded the horn.
Cape Point has an interesting interpretive centre showcasing the many animals and flora indigenous to the area. The reserve lacks trees due to the high winds that blow most days, however, it is crammed with thousands of plant species here in the world’s smallest floral domain known as the Cape Floristic Region and classified a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2004.
There is a lovely walk (or via a funicular ride) up to the old Cape Point lighthouse and across to the scenically spectacular Cape of Good Hope beach where visitors take photos of themselves, with feet in water, believing that they are standing in the place where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans meet.
The original lighthouse was built in 1860 and was too far inland and too high to prevent shipwrecks. A new lighthouse was constructed roughly 50 years later, and located much lower down the point. From the old lighthouse, it’s possible to see the west coast of Africa along the Atlantic Ocean, and across False Bay on the Indian Ocean to the east.
The reserve is criss-crossed with hiking trails where hikers are likely to see the rare Bontebok antelope, ostriches strolling on the beaches and dassies (rock hyrax) sunning themselves on rocks, ever vigilant of attacks from raptors overhead. A shipwreck trail leads to two wrecks still visible along the coast.
A padrão (stone cross) was mounted here by the Portuguese government to commemorate Bartolomeu Dias’ epic journey around the tip of Africa in 1488. The cross can be seen at Buffalo Bay where an ancient lime kiln has been restored.
Cape Point is the scene of an oft-seen pirate ship called the Flying Dutchman. The legend goes that its Dutch Captain Hendrick Van der Decken swore that he would rather be eternally damned than allow the rounding of the Cape to beat him. He never succeeded and many a ship’s crew have told of having seen the Flying Dutchman on stormy evenings.
Chacma baboons frequent Cape Point and they have adapted their diet to include marine life. They are also opportunists, beware of leaving vehicles unlocked, they have the ability to open car doors and will thoroughly trash the interior!
