Once a nature reserve on its own, this section of
Table Mountain National Park covers more than 19,000 acres. Much of the
park consists of rolling hills covered with fynbos and laced with miles
of walking trails, for which maps are available at the park entrance. It
also has beautiful deserted beaches. Eland, baboon, ostrich, and
bontebok (a colorful antelope that was hunted to near extinction in the
early 20th century) are among the animals that roam the park. A paved
road runs 12½ km (8 mi) to the tip of the peninsula, and a turnoff leads
to the Cape of Good Hope, a rocky cape that is the southwesternmost
point of the continent. A plaque marks the spot -- otherwise you would
never know you're standing on a site of such significance.
The opposite is true of Cape Point, a dramatic knife's edge of rock
that slices into the Atlantic. Looking out to sea from the viewing
platform, you feel you're at the tip of Africa, even though that honor
officially belongs to Cape Agulhas, about 160 km (100 mi) to the
southeast. From Cape Point the views of False Bay and the Hottentots
Holland Mountains are astonishing. The walk up to the viewing platform
and the old lighthouse is very steep; a funicular (R31 round-trip, R21
one-way) makes the run every three or four minutes. Take a jacket or
sweater -- the wind can take your breath away. It took six years, from
1913 to 1919, to build the old lighthouse, 816 feet above the high-water
mark. Considering how precipitous the path is, it's surprising it didn't
take a lot longer. On a clear day the old lighthouse was a great
navigational mark, but when the mists rolled in, it was useless, so a
new and much lower lighthouse (286 feet) was built at Dias Lookout
Point. The newer, revolving lighthouse, the most powerful on the South
African coast, emits a group of three flashes every 30 seconds. It has
prevented a number of ships from ending up on Bellows or Albatross Rock
below. You can't go into the lighthouses, but the views from their bases
are spectacular.
Stark reminders of the ships that didn't make it are dotted around
the Cape. You'll see their rusty remains on some of the beaches. One of
the more famous wrecks is the Thomas T. Tucker, one of hundreds
of Liberty Ships produced by the United States to enable the Allies to
move vast amounts of supplies during World War II. It wasn't the U-boats
patrolling the coastline that did the ship in. Rather the fog closed in,
and on her maiden voyage in 1942, she ended up on Olifantsbos Point.
Fortunately, all on board were saved, but the wreck soon broke up in the
rough seas that pound the coast.
The park has some excellent land-based whale-watching spots. About
June-November, whales return to these waters to calve. You're most
likely to see the southern right whale in False Bay, but the occasional
humpback and Bryde's whale also shows up. When the water is calm, you
may even be lucky enough to see a school of dolphins looping their way
past. The Rooikrans parking lot is good for whale-watching, but there
are any number of lookout points. It's just a matter of driving around
until you see the characteristic spray or a shiny black fluke.
The mast you see on the western slopes of Cape Point near the
lighthouse belongs to the Global Atmosphere Watch Station (GAW). The
South African Weather Bureau, together with the Fraunhofer Institute in
Garmisch, Germany, maintains a research laboratory here to monitor
long-term changes in the chemistry of the earth's atmosphere, which may
impact climate. This is one of 20 GAWs throughout the world, chosen
because the air at Cape Point is considered particularly pure most of
the time.
A large sit-down restaurant has better views than food (but that is
saying a lot), and a kiosk sells snacks. There are three gift shops and
an Internet café, where you can send a photo of yourself with Cape Point
in the distance to the folks back home. During peak season
(December-January), visit Cape Point as early in the day as you can;
otherwise you'll be swamped by horrendous numbers of tour buses and
their occupants. Fun alternatives include an escorted bike trip to the
point and an overnight hike with comfortable basic accommodations and
incredible views, which is booked through South African National Parks.
Be wary of baboons in the parking lot; they have been known to steal
food and can be dangerous if provoked. Unfortunately the indigenous
chacma baboons are increasingly under threat, and in 2004 it was
estimated that only 125 (98 females and 27 males in 10 troops) remain in
the Cape Peninsula. Many baboons have been shot for raiding homes and
stealing food. Baboon-feeding tourists only exacerbate this serious
situation.
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